Country guide

Croatia

Turquoise coves, stone walls and island light

Croatia is the Adriatic at its most enchanting — a coast of walled medieval towns, pine-fringed islands and water so clear it seems lit from within. It is gentle on families, easy to island-hop by ferry, and at its golden best in the shoulder months when the sea is warm and the lanes are quiet.

May – June & September

Dubrovnik

The walled city above the Adriatic

Dubrovnik is a city that seems to have been carved from a single block of honey-coloured stone — a perfect ring of walls enclosing terracotta rooftops, baroque churches and steep cobbled lanes that tumble down to the sea. Walk the walls at dawn, when the light is soft and the cruise crowds have not yet landed, and you will understand why they call it the Pearl of the Adriatic.

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May – June & September – October

Hvar

Lavender hills and the bluest harbour

Hvar is the sunniest spot in Croatia and one of its loveliest — a walled town wrapped around a harbour of impossible blue, backed by hills of lavender, rosemary and vineyards. Beyond the glamour of Hvar Town lies a quieter island of hidden coves, old stone villages and family-run konobas serving fish caught that morning.

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April – October

Plitvice Lakes

A cascade of emerald waterfalls

Plitvice is a kingdom of water — sixteen terraced lakes spilling one into the next through a hundred waterfalls, all wrapped in beech forest and crossed by wooden walkways that hover above the spray. It is Croatia’s oldest national park and, on the right morning, the most magical place in the country.

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May – September

Rovinj

An Istrian fishing village in pastels

Rovinj is the jewel of Istria — a tumble of pastel houses sliding down a hillside into the sea, a church spire at its crest and fishing boats bobbing at the quay. Once an island, it was joined to the mainland by a bridge, and it still feels like a place afloat: salt air, gulls, and the sound of water at the end of every lane.

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