The heart of nature - a country estate near Karlovac

The village tourist estate Srce prirode (The Heart of Nature) has been opened in Gorica Lipnička, around twenty kilometers from the town of Karlovac. This family village estate spreads over 12 thousand square meters and contains three autochthonous renovated houses. The accommodation part of the estate offers nine rooms (18 beds), and the guests can also use a restaurant seating 80 people, a wine tasting facility, a gazebo and a tavern seating 50 people. The family estate offers eco food such as different kinds of honey, juices, wines, cured meats, etc. The meals in the restaurant are prepared according to old recipes. Two conference halls are equipped with modern technology. In addition, visitors to
the estate can engage in the following activities: paintball, Village Olympics, culinary workshop, speleo-adventure, football, archery, volleyball, badminton, boccie and berry picking. The owner of the estate also happens to own the 4-star family hotel Korana in Karlovac, a historic and attractive town located around fifty kilometers from Zagreb, with the old town of Dubovac as its trademark.

The hotel is located on Korana River, one of the four rivers in Karlovac, offering 15 double rooms and 3 business suites, as well as gastro, recreation and other offers.

Karlovac County Tourist Board
www.tzkz.hr

Karlovac Tourist Board
www.karlovac-touristinfo.hr

Seosko imanje Srce prirode & Hotel Korana
www.hotelkorana.hr

Vrbnička žlahtina - Original Croatian

Croatia is well known for its excellent wines, so it is hard to say which one is the best. Although this primarily depends on the personal taste, many experts and “practical wine lovers” believe vrbnička žlahtina is among the best. It is made from the autochthonous grape variety called žlahtina, which is grown in Vrbničko polje, a winegrowing region of protected geographic origin. Depending on the yield, between 700 and 900 thousand bottles of this original dry white wine with controlled geographic origin is made every year.

Connoisseurs describe the wine as “elegant, high-quality, having
a unique aroma and freshness, while all fruity scents and harmonious
features of the variety are expertly preserved “. This is the
reason why the Croatian Chamber of Economy awarded vrbnička
žlahtina the respected Original Croatian mark, stating is “reflects
the traditional Croatian culture of winegrowing, winemaking and
lifestyle in the rural areas on the islands of the Croatian littoral
where survival and sustainable development depend on persistent
and diligent growing of agricultural varieties and their processing
into added-value products.“ The wine should be served chilled at
between 8 and 12 degrees Celsius, and you will enjoy it the most if
you drink it with Mediterranean food. Staying on the island of Krk,
and especially in Vrbnik, a small picturesque town built on a 48-
meter cliff, is certainly an opportunity to try some original Krk food. In addition to fish and seafood prepared with quality local olive oil, it includes homemade pasta and particularly the local lamb, sheep cheese and prosciutto.

Primorje-Gorski Kotar County Tourist Board
www.kvarner.hr

Krk Island Tourist Board
www.krk.hr

Croatia – a respectable camping destination

A meeting of the European Federation of Campingsite Organizations and Holiday Park Associations (EFCO & HP), an organization established in 1979 and bringing together around 25 thousand European campingsites and camp resorts, was held in Umag in late September. Such important convention in Croatia, the region of Istria and the tourist destination of Umag is an acknowledgement of the local camping offer providing the guests with holidays in a beautiful and ecologically preserved environment, keeping up with the growing camping services standards. Croatia has a total of around 226 campingsites and 278 private estate campingsites having a total accommodation capcity of 224,000 persons. The private state campingsites account for around 10,000 units.

According to the Croatian Camping Union, campingsites account for 23.7 percent of the country’s accommodation capacities and they have an approximately equal share in tourist overnights. Around fifteen campingsites having a total capacity of 22.5 thousand persons are classified as four stars, while 57 campingsites having a capacity of a little over 88 thousand persons are classified as three stars. High-category (4 and 3 stars) are mainly in Istria, which also has the most numerous camping capacities, followed
by Primorje-Gorski Kotar County and Zadar County in the third place. Dubrovnik-Neretva County, the southernmost part of Croatia, is the second in the number of four-star campingsites. The Croatian Camping Union evaluated with year’s camping season as successful. According to their estimates, Croatian campingsites had 12.624 million overnights in the first eight months, or 3.2 percent over 2007. Istria, the most developed Croatian camping destination, had 6.825 million overnights, or 3.4 over last year. The average annual campingsite occupancy is 59.1 days, the highest figures achieved in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County – 67.1 days. Of course, the longest stays are achieved in four-star camps – as much as 87 day. The average duration of stay in campingsites is 6.7, with Istria as
number one with an average duration of stay of eight days.

According to the Central Bureau of Statistics, Germans are the most numerous campingsite guests, followed by Slovenia, The Netherlands, Austria, Czech Republic… Every year, the traditional markets are accompanied with new ones. The Croatian Camping Union plans to present the offer more intensively to such guests.

Croatian Camping Union
www.camping.hr