Put Croatia as one of your travel destination

We are expecting a hot hot summer over in Croatia! And the list of articles that mention Croatia as the next big travel destination is never ending..

Here's one of them about Island Hvar, click here.

Do come back for more as I update you with more about Croatia. I'm planning a trip to Hvar myself this July! Hooray!

Worst Airport to be stranded in when flight is cancelled - Pula, Croatia

Inside of a Ryanair plane.

Not that I had that many flight cancellations experience in my whole life. But this was one of the worst. And it was our first time taking a flight out of Croatia in a Croatian airport.

Let's talk about the airport. It is located in Pula (Istrian Peninsular), Croatia. It is located at 10 minutes bus ride from Pula town. See this link for how to get in and out of this airport. In the tiny little airport or should I say airplane depot, there's only a caffee. Few small counters - car rental, ryanair. Very miserable facilities.

Well.. here's the rest of our story. Our flight was cancelled. We did call earlier in the morning to check before we embarked on our hour drive to Pula from Rijeka. Only to find out when we arrived at the temporary Ryanair counter at the airport that our flight was cancelled. And the next flight would be three days later. We were furious as we had a connecting flight to catch at Heathrow the next day. We requested for a switch to a flight from Trieste to London but they could not do that. So we had no choice but to return home to book our flights online as there was no internet access there. And the two Ryanair staff could not give us any answers.

The whole experience caused us a lot of money and time delay. And we swore never to take any flights from Pula ever again. That much for unlucky travel experience!

Snowboarding in Rijeka, Croatia

To those who love snowboarding, we offer you a new location.
Platak which is located a mere 1/2 hour drive from Rijeka is a great location for snowboarding enthusiasts. The local snowboarders club, Nine is situated in Rijeka itself.
If you wish to learn snowboarding, why not try out the Snowboarding School that offers courses for individuals as well as groups of 3-7.

If you are not in snowboarding like me, you can pop over at Platak to enjoy the snow and some sleigh-riding too.
*This post is not sponsored. All opinions are strictly personal and not for advertising purposes.*

Nightlife in Croatia

There are plenty of places to go out here, especially in summer time.Open air festivals, party on exotic places,clubs and bars are always crowded. One week ago we went to hartera festival that collected some famous names in one great location-old paper
factory in center of Rijeka,Cro. Line up was next :

Steve Lawler
Darren Emerson
Jimi Tenor & Kabu Kabu
DJ Linus
Dub Pistols
Darkwood Dub
.. etc.

Moščenićka Draga

Car computer was showing 32C today.So hot!
My mates and me went to Moščenićka Draga for a swim.Sea was a little bit cold but ok.This place is probably the most beautiful beach around Rijeka.Its located about 30 km from center.
Beach was empty today, during summer it can be very crowded..
Check out link1 and link2 about tourist info.

Zadar

This is one beautiful town where I spent few month of my life during army service. I remember on Saturdays we were free to go out in town, so me and my mates used that time to walk around the city, or just sitting close to the sea. I also remember hours spent on drinking beer and chatting there while looking at sea.Time was flying so fast when we were outside.It was period in my life when I realize how much I love nature.My mates thought I went crazy :P. People in Zadar didn't like army.Remember how they used to look at us.No wonder after all they been through.I feel sad because of their terrible loss during war. I came back to Zadar many times after army, and each time I enjoyed staying there so much.Food is great,and there is something in those small,tight streets and old city core that makes you feel different. I don't have pictures this time but here is LINK to find out more.

Ičići

Today went with my friend to Ičići . It was nice and sunny day so we went swimming.
You can enjoy in peace and quiet cos its not crowded in this time of year.
Click here for few pictures..

Opatija

Opatija is situated below mountain Učka,about 12 km from Rijeka.Its a beautiful tourist place with plenty of hotels and old Austrian villas.You can see beaches,parks,restaurants and lots of bars.Opatija still attract tourists,after 160 years.. Today my friend and I went there for a drink, and I must say I felt like tourist too.No matter how many times I see this place always feels special.
I took few pics with mobile so here's the LINK. C ya!

Madonna del Mare

Rabac - Istria

Today when I woke up, my best mate called me for coffee. It was a very sunny day so we decided to go for a ride a little further, about one hour away from Rijeka. I was telling him about my blog. I don't have my own camera so I had to use my mobile phone. Sorry for bad quality pics - here's the LINK.

From Rijeka to Opatija is about 10 km by car, maybe little more because they are digging roads now before summer and you need to go around a few areas.

It's already very warm and sunny, we saw plenty of tourists on our way, mostly Slovenian and Italians who decided to come when it is a nice day.

After Opatija we passed through Icici, Medveja and Moscenicka Draga which are all tourist places with beautiful beaches.My favourite is Moscenicka Draga.

Road was almost empty, one part of it was nice, but another part somewhere around Labin was so horrible that we felt like riding in horse not in car :P.

We stopped by in one place for a caffe, the view there was wonderful. After Labin we reached Rabac.

Rabac was a former fishing village but now it is a beautiful tourist pearl with plenty of small bays, nice beaches and numerous restaurants.You can find tasty local cuisine and plenty of places for relaxation.Clear sea and mediterranean vegetation , 10 000 people can accommodate in camping sites, apartments and hotels.

We walked few km by seaside, had a few drinks and drove back to Rijeka. Both my friend and I were amazed with beauty of this place, especially now because locals are investing and redecorating beaches and walkways.Wish I could spent a day there with my gf next time when she comes it's a must-see spot.
Check out this link if you want some more info.

Croatia map - Counties

Counties in Croatia:
Koprivnica-Krizevci County
Primorsko-goranska County
Lika & Senj County
Zadar County
Osijek & Baranja County
Vukovar & Srijem County
Istria County
Medjimurje County
Pozega & Slavonia County
Karlovac County
Dubrovnik & Neretva County
Split & Dalmatia County
Sibenik & Knin County
Krapina & Zagroje County
Bjelovar & Bilogora County
Brod & Posavina County
Sisak & Moslavina County
Varazdin County
Virovitica & Podravina County

How to get to Croatia

If you travel from Europe, it's easy as there two flight operators - Ryanair and Easyjet with direct flights into Croatia.
Probably you won't have any problems but be prepared as most of our airports are small with bad service. Transferring from airport to other destinations can be a pain as you will have to book a cab or rent a car to get there.
We had a bad experience last February when we had to fly from Pula (Croatia) to London (UK). Due to the heavy snow in many parts of Europe, the flight was cancelled. We rang them before we left home as Pula is about an hour's drive away from Rijeka. They confirmed the flight was still running as scheduled. However when we reached the airport, angry passengers were told that their flight to London was cancelled. Ryanair informed stated on their website that we could claim refund for cancelled trips but as the Pula-London route was new. It was not listed on the website. We couldn't even file for a claim. And we lost a few hundred pounds rebooking our tickets. As we were connecting in London to Singapore, we had to cancel our London flights to Singapore. So we avoid flying from Croatia to London from then on till someone can assure us that the service has improved.

My advice is: Fly into Trieste (Italy) and rent a car (from Italy as it is cheaper) or catch a coach to Croatia. All these services can be found at the Trieste airport.
If you decide for a rent a car its about 120 pounds for a week,depending on the type of car. Please inform the car rentor that you are driving to Croatia as they will have to issue you with additional insurance for taking the car out of Italy.

If you are flying from other countries outside of EU, book flights that fly into Italy - Milan or Rome. From there, you can catch a train (book in advance) or flight to Trieste.

Hope to see you here! Do drop us a note if you need additional information!

What will I tell you about Croatia?

Some wonder if it is safe to travel in Croatia. (I've heard comments like 'I thought there is a war there!'). Of course it's safe! I mean relatively safe, compared to the number of times I was scared in London - Croatia is apiece of cake! But do bear this in mind - if you are looking for trouble, you will find it anywhere,in any country.
Most of population here is white, so don't be surprised if people stare at you because you are asian or black.They are just not used to seeing many other races here and if you travel to coastal Croatia you should feel welcome. There were racist incidents that I heard of in the capital Zagreb. Most of it had to do with those young skinheads or punks that don't like anybody.
I talked to a lot of people in London and Singapore and each time I noticeed they want to hear my opinion about life here. So, here it is:
My country is one of the most beautiful countries in the world. We have the Adriatic sea, mountains, forests and mediterranean weather which means plenty of sunny days.
People here are friendly, they will help you in times of trouble. They can be lazy but some of us do work hard. As my good friend said 'If you live life fast, you will die fast'. So I guess this says about the mentality here.
Don't be amazed to see plenty of new cars here or latest mobile phones. Most of them buy them on credit just to show off. If you look in one of their wallets, you will find no money. Probably because he just bought new rims for his car which is parked outside with an empty tank.
Don't ask me why, there is no logical explanation.

Can't tell you much about guys but the girls here are pretty.They like to dress up and look pretty.
If you have any more questions about anything here, be free to ask! :)

Plitvice - national park

This is just one of those places you have to see in Croatia.16 lakes connected together makes real phenomenon.
What is very interesting here is the fact you have to walk for hours to see everything,but you won't feel tired cos it feels like being on another planet.Clean air and waterfalls,plenty of untouched nature,small wooden road guiding you around.
There is also small train and ship to help you see even more.Our advice is to carry food and drink from supermarkets because some shops there like to overprice tourists.Also its good to be there in morning,so you can enjoy all day without any pressure.Last train to pick you up from the meeting place is in 18h.
If you are coming there by car don't worry about parking.You can find some people selling honey closely to the roads for about 5 pounds for one bottle, and it's really worth of trying.
This link will show all useful information about this place.

Rijeka - Croatia

Hi! :) Welcome to our blog!

Lots of people heard about Croatia,but they would probably like to find one place on internet with all useful information.
That's why we decided to run this blog,to help promote tourism in my country and to help you people find everything you need. We will also save your time and nerves finding right links and best places to visit with of cos,our own impressions and advice.

This picture took my dear in Kostrena beach,Rijeka.Most of tourist who come to Rijeka only stop by, but its a big mistake to do that because if you spend one weekend here you would be surprised how many beautiful and hidden places lie here.
Rijeka is also very rich in history, and by exploring it you will realize why people here love this town so much.
Must see parts are: Korzo,Trsat and Opatija.
There are plenty of good restaurants here with local specialties.We also so many coffee bars,bakeries and pizza cut shops.Its quite cheap and good to eat there.
Be aware of very bad and dangerous roads if you rent a car.Some parts are ok,but its advisable to be careful.
There is also law that doesn't allow any alcohol-drugs in your blood if you are driving,and your headlights must be always on!
On this link you can find all stuff about my lovely city.There is a web cam feature there and other cool stuff.