CROATIA
Croatia’s tourism boom continues in 2024. Having joined the Eurozone and Schengen Area in 2023, Croatia is now experiencing the full effects of these changes. Travelers are finding it easier and more convenient than ever to visit this beautiful Balkan nation.
Croatia’s tourism industry thrived in 2022, welcoming a record-breaking number of visitors that surpassed pre-pandemic levels. This trend is expected to hold strong in 2024. The country, also known as Republika Hrvatska (Croatian), continues to be a magnet not just for Europeans seeking sunshine, beaches, and rich history, but also for a growing number of Asian tourists. Croatia’s cultural heritage, with its medieval castles and cities, is a major draw. In fact, Croatia boasts an impressive 10 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, with an additional 15 on the tentative list.
Framing the deep history of Croatia are architectural delights dating back to the 6th century and a gastronomical offering that has been shaped by many different cultures including the Ottoman empire, Italians and other influences from the Middle East. Each region has its own unique gastronomic identity, from Italian in the northern region of Istria to Dalmatia, where cuisine is dominated by offerings of the Adriatic sea, to inland in Slavonia where the land and Austro-Hungarian influence provides hearty stews and goulash made of game, pork, boar and deer. The region is also famed for its wines and brandies.
Croatia boasts 1777 km of shoreline which gives rise to beautiful coves, beaches, crystalline waters and reefs which are peppered by some of the most beautiful islands in the world. Sailing has thus become massively popular in Croatia with so much to explore both above and below the surface.There are a wealth of underwater treasure such as caverns, pillars, canyons and wrecks stretching from the North Western Istria region, through Croatia proper and down the Dalmatian coast to Dubrovnik in the South.
The inland offering of the country is a world away from the sun kissed Adriatic coast. Fairytale forests, snowy mountains (weather permitting) deep blue lakes and some of the most stunning scenery and wildlife that nature can provide can all be found as one crosses the rugged hills and mountains that protect inner Croatia. Here, nature rules and hiking, biking and sustainable tourism and off-piste adventures are on the top of the to-do list. There are 8 national parks to choose from scattered across the country each one offering its own stunning scenery and natural wonder.
