Latest press coverage on Croatia round-up: early December edition!
Are you booking your holidays for 2024 yet? Clearly, some of the travel press think you are as there’s been a fair amount of coverage on Croatia recently which I’m sure is inspiring you to start looking for flights and holidays! Take a look below at the November and early December press coverage on Croatia.
Winter Magic in Croatia
First up is a wonderful piece in yesterday’s Sunday Times Travel section which actually isn’t about travelling to Croatia next year. Well, not in the summer, at least!
The article by Mary Novakovich takes a very welcome look at wintertime in Croatia, and all the wonderful experiences you can have. Sure, you can’t go to the beach in winter but you can enjoy numerous Christmas markets and celebrations all over the country, and enjoy the towns in central and northern Croatia when the inevitable snowfall turns them into real winter wonderland.
Mary also makes the good point that winter is a brilliant time to visit some of Croatia’s famous national parks such as Plitvice and Krka. Not only are the entrance fees a fraction of what they are in summer, there are very few fellow visitors. If you’ve been to these parks in summer you’ll know that they can be crowded beyond belief. But in winter you can enjoy their tranquil serenity. And if it has snowed and the waters and waterfalls are frozen, the parks really do offer up some magical scenes.
Even after New Year, there’s fun to be had. The Rijeka Carnival celebrations begin in mid-January (the first main event – the Rijeka Carnival Queen Pageant and the Handover of the Key to the City is on 19th January 2024) and extend for almost a month up until the main event, the Carnival Parade, on 11th February 2024.
You can read the article online here: I’ve been to Croatia dozens of times. Here’s why I love it in winter
Split instead of Dubrovnik, and Ljubljana to Zagreb
Saturday’s Daily Telegraph Travel section included a couple of pieces on Croatia…and a lovely photo of glorious Split.
In a piece on how some large cruise ship companies are having to make alternative port arrangments due to local restrictions, the newspaper offers up some alternatives to the popular cruise ship destinations of Venice, Dubrovnik, Santorini, Barcelona and Amsterdam.
For Dubrovnik they suggest the alternative of Split, of course, but also mention that lovely Sibenik is another viable option.
Next up, in a piece entitled “Why two cities are better than one”, the newspaper examines possibilities for a twin city break – essentially a multi-night break in which you enjoy two closely positioned European cities instead of just one, travelling between the two places by train.
Visit Croatia thinks this is a brilliant idea, not least because Visit Croatia recently enjoyed a twin-city break of her own, flying into Ljubljana and out of Zagreb – taking the train from one to the other – and enjoying both to the max.
Guess what two cities the Daily Telegraph recommends? Ljubljana and Zagreb! (Did they read my mind?)
They say:
Okay, so it’s slightly over the two-hour limit [the train takes 2 hours 8 minutes] but we think you’ll agree it’s worth it for this capital combo. Plus, both these former Yugoslavian cities are easy to walk around, so the journey between them is all the time you’ll be spending on public transport.
Jane Knight, The Daily Telegraph, 2nd December 2024
Take a look at our Day Trip to Ljubljana from Zagreb to read up on how we enjoyed our time.
Croatia: The best island hop ever
Actually published a few weeks ago, the UK national morning freebie newspaper Metro featured a highly colourful piece on what they called “The best island hop ever”. The article recounts a small cruise holiday in Croatia, hopping down the coast from Split to Dubrovnik and taking in islands such as Hvar, Vis, Korcula and Mljet but also experiencing mainland towns and sights such as Trogir, Krka National Park, Slano and Ston.
Overall the author, Rachel Moss, loved exploring the country by cruise ship…highly recommending it! (Although she was a little disappointed with the older ages of her shipmates.)
“Travelling by small cruise gives you unrivalled access to Croatia’s hidden gems, allowing you to escape the crowds of the country’s most famous hotspots and access little-known ports with unique personalities.”
Rachel Moss, Metro, 16th November 2024
Rachel goes on to add: “the mix of culture and coast makes Croatia one of the favourite countries I’ve ever visited.” That’s quite some praise!
Read the article here: We’ve found the best way to explore Europe’s number one holiday destination for 2024
Some wonderful accolades for Croatia
I’ve mentioned some recent awards for Croatia several times elsewhere, but they’re too good not to repeat so I thought I would add a mention to them here too.
Wanderlust travel magazine revealed that Croatia was declared the Most Desirable Country in Europe in their Readers’ Travel Awards. It is very exciting to see Croatia recognised so highly by travellers.
Esteemed travel publication Lonely Planet also sings the praises of Croatia: in their Best in Travel 2024 Countries category, the only European country to feature was Croatia.
