19 of the best things to do in Croatia

With more than 3,500 miles of coastline to explore, it’s easy to fall under the spell of this Balkan nation’s dazzling Adriatic setting. But Croatia’s fine shingle beaches are just the beginning. Lesser-known islands promise heritage sailing experiences, birdwatching and quiet nights with dark skies. Meanwhile, much of the country’s mainland interior is a rustic retreat of languid lakes, limestone mountains and vine-clad hills, framed by storied villages, castles and historic towns. Here are 19 ways to see the country in a new light.

1. Sail away on Vis

This island has recently acquired a cachet as a bohemian bolthole, its reputation bolstered as the filming location of 2018’s Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again. Why create movie sets that illustrate feel-good escapism when they’re ready-made on Vis? Despite the Hollywood kudos, Croatia’s most distant inhabited island, 34 miles from Split by direct ferry, remains pleasantly low-key. Time on this island feels elastic. Maybe that’s why tour operator Intrepid named it among its annual ‘not hot’ list of 10 overlooked destinations to visit in 2026.

Once a Yugoslav naval base, it was off-limits to tourism until 1989. But its history stretches much further — Vis once played a pivotal role in the Adriatic. Today, the charming fishing village of Komiža is the departure point for sailing trips aboard Vis’s Unesco-listed falkuša sardine boats, now repurposed for tourism to preserve an important facet of traditional island life. Back on dry land, travellers can also tour ancient monastery ruins, Georgian forts and discover relics from the Second World War. But on Vis, it’s the simple life that proves most memorable.

(Could this remote Croatian island be the Med's best sailing break?)

2. Skinny-dip like King Edward VIII

While visiting Rab island with then-lover Wallis Simpson in August 1936, King Edward VIII skinny-dipped in Kandarola bay. The British press was so scandalised, it self-censored his visit, which is why the northerly island is now popular with Italians and Germans but little known among Brits. Rab remains the unsung hero of Croatian beach destinations. Away from Kandarola bay — clothing optional — 22 sand beaches scallop the Lopar peninsula. Paradise beach is sandy and family-friendly, and wilder beaches lie further north — the largest is Sahara, but Ciganka is equally beautiful. Stay near Rab Town at Imperial Heritage Hotel, set in leafy parkland with indoor and outdoor pools. From €217 (£189), half board.

3. Soak in Lastovo’s dark skies

In 2003, the World Wildlife Fund for Nature described Lastovo island as a last Mediterranean paradise. Little has changed in the past 20 years. It’s a remote speck in southern Dalmatia, built of wild bays and pine-scrubbed hills, and still benefits from minimal development. What’s good for nature also benefits stargazing. To boost one of Europe’s darkest skies, streetlights have been dimmed and modified to reduce light spill. In 2023, tourism authorities revived a goal to make Lastovo the first International Dark Sky Reserve of the Adriatic. Twice weekly, the tourist board runs astronomy tours on Mount Hum. Yet even in quiet bays, velvety summer nights on Lastovo appear to boil with stars. To stay overnight, look for homestays.

4. Experience life on Mars

Pag island in northwest Croatia is a region of pale pink limestone that’s as magical as a desert. First, the area’s holm oak forests were felled for medieval ship-building. Intensive grazing and the fierce bura wind levelled the rest, creating an otherworldly landscape on a Dalmatian island linked to the mainland by bridge, an hour north of Zadar. Travellers can experience it on a seven-and-a-half-mile hike known as the Life on Mars Trail, accessed via Ručica beach. Intermittently marked by paint (GPX files can also be downloaded), the trail heads south, dips to Beritnica beach, then ascends between rock pillars before running south to Slana beach. Taking a via ferrata (climbing route) above the sea, the path then continues to Malin beach before looping back north inland. Stay at the Boškinac, a winery hotel set amid vines and olive groves. From €166 (£144), B&B.

5. Island-hop the Elafitis

In the 17^th and 18^th centuries, if Dubrovnik’s aristocrats wanted to avoid the city’s summertime heat, they escaped to the Elafiti islands. Today, the small archipelago remains car-free and carefree, with regular ferries creating the easiest island-hopping weekend in Croatia. Lopud, the Elafitis’ main holiday isle, is known for its sandy beach, Šunj, but is also the creative getaway of the speedboat set — the Beckhams have holidayed here. Meanwhile, Šipan is all rustic soul. It’s the largest island, at almost two miles long, and is known as the ‘Golden Island’ due to its olive oil production — Šipan has the densest concentration of olive trees in the world per capita, with 300,000 trees for its 476 residents.

But the most escapist Elafiti is Koločep, a square-mile pipsqueak centred around harbour village Donje Čelo and only a 30-minute ferry ride from Dubrovnik. Sights? None really, but there’s local wine served with sea views at Villa Ruza restaurant and kayaks to rent. Take paths through olive groves from Donje Čelo towards Gornje Čelo village at the island’s pinch-point, with fresh grilled fish at rustic Konoba Skerac, and the island’s prettiest bay, Don Đivan. Stay by the sea at Koločep’s Kalamota Beach House, an 11-suite retreat in Dornje Čelo. From €248 (£215), B&B.

6. Meet the vultures of Cres

The sheep population was once so abundant on Cres island that plentiful carrion supported Croatia’s only colony of griffon vultures. Sheep numbers have plummeted from 70,000 to 10,000 over the past century and the griffon vulture population has dwindled to 100 pairs. It’s still possible to learn about them on a visit to the island, reached by 20-minute ferry from Brestova on the coast of Istria. In the village of Beli — all grey stone and terracotta heaped above the sea — a former school hosts a visitor centre with information displays. Behind it, a rescue centre rehabilitates injured birds.

Wild and rare, griffon vultures could be emblematic of northern Cres. This area is the Tramuntana, a sparsely occupied region of oak and chestnut forests and sea cliffs. Cobbled ox-cart trails from Beli provide two- to four-hour walking trails towards the cliffs where the vultures breed, through forests to abandoned hamlets. In Beli, Pansion Tramontana is a homely stay. From €70 (£60), B&B.

7. Sample wine of the ancient Greeks

In 1877, Božo Kršinić — a farmer on Korčula island — hit stone with a spade in his fields above Lumbarda village. The Lumbarda Psephisma tablet he unearthed set down the rights of 200 Greek families who had settled there 2,300 years ago. Academics speculate the Greeks refined local Illyrian grapes into grk, a white wine that grows nowhere else in the world. “Grk goes through our veins,” winemaker Josip Bire says at Bire vineyard. “It’s who we are.”

Grk is the most hyper-local of the wines cultivated four miles southeast of Korčula Town. It survived the phylloxera outbreak of the late 1800s by thriving on the sandy soils of the Lumbarda peninsula. Around 10 family vineyards in the area are open for visitors; Zure, Cebalo, Cipre and Vitis are all worth visiting, as well as Bire. In a woody cellar or on a terrace beside vineyards, the local winemakers will grow philosophical as you sample whites made from grk grapes (bright, complex, mineral-rich) and pošip (full-bodied with hints of apricot and almond), and rich plavac mali reds, over platters of cheese and pršut ham.

8. Escape Šibenik on a DIY ferry tour

For a day of travel dreams, hop aboard the number 532 ferry from the underrated north Dalmatian cathedral city of Šibenik. In less than half an hour, you’ll be whizzed to Zlarin — an island with mellow cafes around a cute harbour and a tranquility that comes from a ban on cars. The Croatian Coral Center museum explores the island tradition of coral diving. Back on the ferry, it’s 25 minutes to Prvić island. Disembarking at Prvić Luka harbour village, take a one-mile stroll on a rural lane to sleepy Šepurine, a pretty village of shuttered houses the colour of old piano keys. The final stop, Vodice, a 15-minute ferry ride away, is home to the archipelago’s best beach, Mala Vrulje.

9. Tour a ‘little Tuscany’

Amid fairytale castles and farming villages, the family winemakers of Zagorje will tell you they’re cultivating a small slice of bucolic paradise in the hills of central Croatia. An hour north of Zagreb, the area’s name translates either as ‘back-hills’ or ‘behind the mountain’ — but that hardly does it justice. Though sights are few, to visit is to enter a living fairytale. White castles crown hummocky hills. Farming villages slumber in woodland. And among it all is one of Croatia’s most distinctive wine scenes.

There are just 15 professional vineyards in Zagorje, but travellers can base themselves at Vuglec Breg — a wine-hotel created from the hilltop hamlet where owner Boris Vuglec, now in his fifties, grew up. Rebuilt cottages have gingham curtains and apple-green shutters. Grandma Roza’s chicken house has been revamped to host cooking classes, and the cow barn is now a restaurant where regional cuisine is refined to Bib Gourmand quality. In between tastings, take a drive towards Veliki Tabor Castle, down lanes like doodles, to find Zagorje’s storybook quality. Rooms at Vuglec Breg cost from €124 (£108).

10. Clean a beach in Dubrovnik

Beyond the old town walls of Dubrovnik, there are dozens of pebble beaches and inlets to discover. And a trip with non-profit association Maritimo Recycling can help visitors experience them in a new way. Founded by a fisherman to protect the Dalmatian coast from plastic waste washing ashore, the grassroots organisation runs beach clean-ups around 10 times a year and encourages visitors to join. Workshops also run from its base in Dubrovnik’s harbour district of Gruž, where travellers can learn about marine pollution while creating an item of jewellery from waste plastic. Its shop also sells souvenir sunglasses made from recycled marine plastic.

11. Sip brandy in tiny Hum

So small is the walled hill town of Hum, a myth was invented to explain it. By the time the giants of Istria had built other towns in the Mirna Valley there was little stone left, which is why Hum measures just 100 metres by 35 — and is often cited as the world’s smallest town. Its other claim to fame is biska brandy. Did Istrian Celts really perfect the recipe of grappa flavoured with white mistletoe and herbs as a fertility drink, as tradition says? Is it genuinely medicinal, as locals claim? After strolling the pretty hamlet, try it for yourself at Hum’s only inn, the traditional, woody Humska Konoba — worth a visit for its terrace views alone. Here, it’s poured from wooden barrels as a punchy aperitif.

12. Spot birds in a Danube reserve

On the horizon-pushing Pannonian Plain east of Osijek, the Drava River comes to a messy end where it meets the Danube on the border with Serbia. This mosaic of lakes, marshes and channels is protected as the 68sq-mile Kopački Rit Nature Park. It’s the Croatian side of the Mura-Drava-Danube Unesco Biosphere Reserve — sometimes dubbed the Amazon of Europe. The most impressive of the 300 bird species here is the white-tailed eagle; Kopački Rit has the largest nesting population in the Danube basin. Other species include ospreys, marsh harriers, turtles, beavers and otters. A two-mile boardwalk runs from the visitor centre near Kopačevo village. Better still, travellers can pre-book an early morning boat tour.

13. Hike the Premužić Trail

Northern Velebit National Park rises sharply from the Dalmatian coast as a karst labyrinth of white peaks and gorges, scrubby pine forest and high meadows. Croatian hikers revere the region for the Velebit Hiking Trail. It’s a nine-day epic where civilisation means huts of the Croatian Mountaineering Association. If that’s too much of an undertaking, there’s the Premužić Trail. Named after 1930s mountaineer Ante Premužić, the three-day, 35-mile route is a taster of the Velebit Trail’s early stages, officially starting from Zavižan Hut. Expect Adriatic views, mad karst scenery and perhaps a fleeting glimpse of chamois or brown bears, plus an exhilarating sense of wilderness that’s often hard to find below 1,800 metres. Responsible Travel offers week-long small-group tours along the trail.

14. See Croatia on two wheels

Touring by bicycle in Croatia means cypress trees strobing past glittering seas, the scent of wild herbs along back lanes and afternoon swims in bays like satin — and there are an increasing number of two-wheeled tours available for those who want a packaged trip. Responsible Travel, for example, is offering a six-night culinary cycling trip through Istria, Croatia’s gourmet region. Cycling 25 miles daily with a guide, you sample olive oil on a family estate, join a truffle-hunter in woods near the hill town of Motovun and sample wines over a farm-to-table lunch before exploring Italianate Rovinj town. Elsewhere, the route rolls through medieval villages and takes a spin along the Parenzana Trail, a former railway.

Though it’s bookended by what are arguably Croatia’s two most handsome cities, the stars of Freedom Treks’ new Dubrovnik to Split cycling tour are the islands. Modestly challenging rides reveal a different side to four of southern Dalmatia’s most celebrated destinations. You pedal the length of Korčula, discover little-visited coves around Hvar, ride on Vis island and stop at pretty Pučišća harbour on Brač. Instead of a hotel, nights are spent in a smart air-conditioned motor yacht.

Much Better Adventure’s Islands & Highlands tour is a backroads challenge for experienced riders, travelling from sea to summit. It takes in sections of the EuroVelo 8 coastal route from the tiny Unesco-listed cities of Trogir and Šibenik to fishing harbours and the moonscape of Pag island. Days averaging 40 miles are a warm-up for a 10-mile ascent into the mountains of Velebit National Park. A support vehicle trails the bikes, if you need a break.

15. Feel Zagreb’s festive spirit

It’s little surprise Zagreb is consistently voted among Europe’s best destinations for Christmas markets. The pastel core of this Austrian-influenced capital seems purpose-built to host them, and traditional local wares include iced gingerbread love-hearts and wooden handicrafts. From late November to early January, the walkable capital’s central squares are repurposed as festive stage-sets. Expect market stalls and street performers on central Ban Jelačić Square; ice-skating in the formal park on King Tomislav Square; gourmet street food from top chefs on the terrace of art nouveau hotel the Esplanade; and a wonderland of twinkling lights in Zrinjevac Park — plus a chance of snow.

16. Peer into the eye of the Earth

The country’s newest nature reserve, designated in 2021, is Dinara Nature Park — a barely populated karst region on the Bosnia and Herzegovina border that shows a totally different side to the country. The park centres on its eponymous mountain — a huge, oval dome of limestone that culminates in the nation’s highest peak (1,831 metres). And in Dinara’s foothills lies the region's most striking attraction, the Veliko Vrilo (Great Spring). This karst sinkhole from which the Cetina River rises is also known as ‘the Eye of the Earth’ because seen from above, it looks like a reptilian turquoise eye. Swimming is prohibited, but there’s a viewing platform beside an Orthodox church.

To climb Dinara mountain is an eight-hour, 10-mile round-trip slog, but there are other reasons to keep you here. Nearby Knin is worth a visit for its medieval fortress. A stronghold for millennia, this was a flashpoint during the breakup of Yugoslavia in 1991; Cold War tanks still rust on the lower slopes of Dinara. To make a day of it, you could also drive east of Knin on an unsurfaced road from Kovačić village to see waterfalls in the Krčić river canyon.

17. View renegade art

A street-art tour of Croatia’s capital offers a window into community, conflict and the offbeat character that’s come to define Zagreb. Look beyond the handsome Austro-Hungarian architecture and the city’s streets are a lively conversation peppered with in-jokes and beauty. Though official murals were painted in communist Yugoslavia in the 1960s and 1970s, Zagreb was the first place in Eastern Europe to adopt the street-style graffiti of New York in 1983.

Paste-up artworks and murals hide in the streets around the central hub of Ban Jelačić Square. Meanwhile, Pri Nami garden bar — a semi-derelict courtyard that hosts the international Zagreb Street Art festival — is a hive of counterculture cool with living walls of street art. And outside historic Lower Town, street art gives way to classic graffiti street-writing at Medika — a derelict former pharmaceutical factory that’s the wellspring of Zagreb street art, with galleries and grungy weekend clubs. A three-hour private street-art tour costs £125 for up to eight people. Book via guide Karlo K through Tours by Locals. Stay at Zagreb’s central Hotel Jägerhorn, founded in 1827, from €107 (£93).

18. Drink in the home of a poet

In an old town full of superb Roman, Venetian gothic and Renaissance architecture, nothing distinguishes the side street of Papalićeva in Split. Only music drifting through the warm night air might tempt you off the main alley. Yet Marvlvs Library Jazz Bar is one of the most atmospheric drinking spots in a city with more than its fair share of them. The late-gothic house was the birthplace of Marko Marulić (1450-1524), a Croatian Dante — the Marulić heraldic crest is carved above the door. Within is the sort of backstreet bar you’ll find by accident and remember for years: bohemian, with live jazz throughout the week; bookish (its owner, a Croat-Argentinian poet, leaves menus of quotes on tables); and blessed with cosy corners in stone-walled rooms.

19. Shop in an artists’ village

Grožnjan is arguably Istria’s prettiest village — a place of cobbles and honeyed stone where cats blink in sunny corners. But it’s also a living story about the transformative power of art. By April 1956, two-thirds of Grožnjan’s Italian population had emigrated after Istria was ceded to Yugoslavia following the Second World War. Faced with the demise of a medieval hill village, authorities offered derelict houses to Yugoslav artists, which is how Grožnjan became a ‘Village of Artists’. There’s not a single hotel but, depending on the season, day visitors will find up to 40 galleries and ateliers in the village. Municipal gallery Fonticus hosts exhibitions in a former granary. In late September, Grožnjan puts on the busy art festival Ex Tempore.