Croatian
Islands
Croatia
is truly a land of islands because it has more than a thousand of them and each
one is different. Many of them are inhabited but each and every one is
exceptional, with its own story and destiny. To have a weak spot is human and
the connoisseurs of Croatian islands have thousands of them. To
be more precise 1185 of them. That's how many islands, islets and cliffs
are located in front of 1777 kilometers of the Adriatic coast. The first trip
to the Adriatic coast and its islands is a journey into the unknown. Every
other trip will be a journey to the already familiar beauty of this country,
always different but equally breathtaking.
We will begin the story about the islands with the Brijuni islands.
These fourteen islands are situated along seven kilometers between Pula and Rovinj. With a
little help, nature has created a small paradise here, true harmony of flora
and fauna, historical monuments and modern hotels. Brijuni offer shade in the
rich evergreen vegetation, pheasants, deer and doe that roam freely all over
the island and the peace and quiet of the holm oak and hundred- year old olive
groves.
The golden or green Krk is and isn't an island. It is one,
if we look at the idyllic nature and peaceful oasis far away from the everyday
world but as far as traffic connections are concerned, it isn't. Krk, which
also has a small airport, is divided from the mainland by the sea but is
connected to it by a bridge.
If you are looking for your own special
island, you'll find it on Krk because the islands Plavnik, Kormat,
Galun, Prvic and Zec are special tourist destinations offering nature
untouched by Man.
If you are interested in exciting town bustle and great hospitality, then the
island towns Baska, Malinska, Omisalj, Njivice, Krk and Punat, which has the
largest marina on the Croatian Adriatic, are the places you need to visit.
Cres and Losinj.
One island or two? They were once connected
by a channel, which was dug up by the Romans, but are now apart. The northern
part of Cres is hidden away in the Rijeka
bay and is exposed to strong gusts of gale, so that sometimes its peaks are
white from the foam of the sea. The southern part is protected from the gale so
its climate is extremely Mediterranean. In the town of Cres is the center of the island. You can enter its nucleus
through three doors and history rears its head at
every corner. There are many monuments that testify to this. What testifies
about the people, their statuses and professions are the family crests on the
house portals or the engraved tools: the blacksmith's or carpenter's on the
houses of craftsmen and a fish on the houses of fishermen.The climate of Losinj
is pleasant, what's more it has lots of woods, so it is both a holiday and
health resort.
Of the 1185 islands and cliffs scattered along the Adriatic coast,
consisting of hard, sharp rocks and a fist full of soil, Susak is
one of the rare islands that nature created from sand. There are 20 million
meters of sand, which gives a specific flavor to the wine produced on Susak.
The next island
of The Kvarner is Rab . In 1889, the local council proclaimed
it a bathing-place and health resort. The British King, Edward VIII especially
encouraged tourism on Rab when he stayed there with his great love, the
American Wallis Simpson. They say that he was the first to go swimming without
any clothes. This is how nudism was founded on Rab. Rab is one of the islands
richest in forests with as many as three hundred springs of water.
Pag is an island full of
mythical olive groves, rich in sea salt, famous for its lace, cheese a world
known delicacy, sheep's milk, live oil and what more do you need? Perhaps this:
a part of Pag with its specific relief resembles the surface of the moon.
Moving along to the middle-Adriatic islands like: Olib, Silba,
Premuda, Vir, Dugi Otok, Lovrada and Pasman, you
notice immediately that you have left the every day problems and bounds of
society far behind you. In front of you lies untouched nature. These islands
will bewitch you, energize you and enrich you. They will become your dream, the
kind you dream of with eyes wide open.
Silba is an island of ship owners and captains and old
captain's houses as well as a harbor protected from the gushes of wind. Ist is an island of fishermen and navigators and is well
known to navigators as a safe haven from the storm.
The island Ugljan is the 'suburban area' and a garden that
lies in front of Zadar and it got its name because of its richness in oil.
There are in fact more than 100.000 olive trees on this island.
The nearby Pasman island 'grew
into' Ugljan. They are actually twins, only Pasman is a bit more peaceful. They
are equally beautiful and covered with silvery green olive groves. These two
pearls can be seen from the coastal town of Biograd the
geographical center of the Adriatic. Iz
is the island situated between Ugljan and Dugi Otok. It is just as
famous for what it does and doesn't have. It has rich Mediterranean vegetation.
It doesn't have any cars.
Dugi Otok offers rest in preserved nature of an area of 114
square kilometers. There are fishermen there, farmers, beautiful secluded
beaches and tourist objects. The town of Telascica
is situated there, which is the biggest natural harbor of all the Adriatic
islands, a nature park and a habitat for mouflon.
According to the legend, Kornati labyrinth of sea passages
and islands were created from the many rock cliffs that God had left over after
he had finished making the World. He threw them into the sea, turned around and
concluded that no other repairs were necessary.
The infamous George Bernard Shaw said of this group of the most indented
islands of the Adriatic and the Mediterranean that consist of 140 islands,
islets and reefs: 'The Gods wanted to crown their work, so on the last day,
from their tears, the stars and their breath they created Kornati.
There are many fisherman's
villages which are periodically inhabited on the islands and because they are
rich in fish they are often the destination of sport fishermen.
Kornati are especially interesting for navigators and thats why there are
two nautical enters there: Zut and Piskera . Among the
islands another picturesque one is Murter which has an area of
18 square kilometers. It is connected to the mainland by a bridge only 12
meters long. This is an island of fishermen, olive growers and ship builders
with the towns: Tisno, Hramina, Betina and Jezera.
The island Prvici near the tourist pearl Vodice, it's an
oasis of Mediterranean flora and fauna. The island Zlarin is southwest of
Sibenik. In the 15 th century it was famous for coral
and sponge harvesting and there is a museum that exhibits this.
West of Zlarin is the island of Obonjan, known as
Otok Mladosti (The island
of Youth). Not far is the
island Kaprije, which got its name from the Mediterranean,
plant caper (kapar) whose buds serve as spices. Many yachts visit Kaprije
because of the many coves and beautiful beaches. Zirje is the
farthest away inhabited island of the Sibenik archipelago with great
fishing-grounds and many coves for navigators.Krapanj is the smallest and
lowest inhabited island of the archipelago of an area of only 0 kilometers and only seven meters high but the most
inhabited island.
"Across from" Split a city
harmonious in structure with cultural and historical values, with an airport
and a harbor lies the island Brac , the highest and by size
the third largest island in the Adriatic . It
is covered with pine woods, vineyards and olive groves and the world famous
stone from Brachas been used in the construction of many important buildings
(e.g. The White House in Washington DC).The beautiful beach Zlatni rat is
located in Bol, which is the biggest tourist town on the southern part of the
island. The beach is located on a cape covered in pebbles which moves,
depending on the wind and waves from one side to another. You'll have to admit
that this is the only beach that you've heard of that changes
its shape from day to day. There are many bathing-places and resorts on Brac:
Postire, Milna, Supetar...
South of Brac is Hvar,
the longest island of the Adriatic This is an island of vineyards, olive groves and
lavender. The island is surrounded by crystal cobalt sea,
many springs of water and the largest number of sunny hours. The many stone
houses along both coasts, which are connected by small bridges, achieve the
harmonious unity of Stari Grad on Hvar, the
fishermanvs museum is in Vrbovska which is unique on the Adriatic...
Hvar is, no doubt , an exceptional
island, a pleasant winter and summer resort, with a mild climate and exuberant
subtropical vegetation. Pakleni otoci are an especially
interesting group of islands with pebbly, sandyand mostly nudist beaches and a
rocky sea bottom, perfect for spearfishing. It is also a well-known place for
navigators.
Opposite Split is the island Solta with
poor vegetation, a steep and well - indented coast with Maslenica - the main
harbor and anchorage for small boats.
Far from the mainland and its worries is the island Vis
rich in palm trees, known for its fishermen, sailors, beautiful nature and
diverse tourist offer.
Southwest is the island Bisevo,
of an area of 6 square kilometers. There are many caves in 'chiseled'
into the steep coasts,among which 'Modra spilja'
stands out with an above-sea level and below-sea level entrance. When the sea
is calm the light rays that shine in the cave break in such a way against the
cave walls that the objects and people inside it are covered in blue and those
in the water a silvery color.
The Vis archipelago
includes the islands Svetac (Sveti Andrija), Jabuka, Brusnik and
the islands of Palagruza. Although it's formally known as a
peninsula, Peljesac is indeed like an island, separated from
Korcula by a narrow channel.
Ston and Mali Ston are picturesque towns
that were after Dubrovnik in the Dubrovnik republic the
most important towns. Oysters and wines: Postup and Dingac from the Mali Ston
bay are famous all over these parts.
They say that Korcula is an
island with the most legends and monuments and along with Lokrum and Mljet the
Croatian island most covered with forests. Towards the end of the 13 th century
near Korcula there was a naval battle between Venice
and Genoa Marco Polo, the famous traveler and travel book writer
who was believed to have been born on Korcula was on the side of the Venetians.
This is an island with many known towns: Korcula, Lumbarda and Vela Luka, the
knight dance 'moreska' from the end of the 15 th century,famous
stone-cutters, sailors and ship builders.
Far away out in the open sea is the island Lastovo
of an area of 50 square kilometers, with an indented pebble coast with
sandy beaches and a few islands on the west and east coast. The houses on Lastovo
are built one above the other one: each one is entitled to its own
share in the sun, air and the view.
Alongside Peljesac is the woodsy island of Mljet of
an area of 100 square kilometers. Because of its thick alpine and stone pine,
Karst caves, two picturesque lakes connected by the sea, many sandy and pebble
beaches, many fishing-grounds rich in fish and lobsters, the western part of
the island has been proclaimed a national park.
Not many people can determine the color of the Adriatic
sea. Sometimes it's dark blue, sometimes
greenish-blue. The fact is that the sea, depending on the time of day and the
angle of the sun's rays overflows into a thousands
nuances. However, it is always beautiful and unique. Out of the 1185 islands
and cliffs, one is definitely your cup of tea. Come and choose it.
