Travel Croatia

CHEF JOSKO

HRVATSKI NASLIJEDSTVO

Croatia/Hrvatska

Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia (Croatian: Republika Hrvatska), is a country in Central Europe and Southeastern Europe at the crossroads of
the Pannonian Plain, the Balkans, and the Adriatic Sea. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. Croatia borders Slovenia to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Bosnia
and Herzegovina to the southeast, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast.

The Croats arrived in the early 7th century in what today is Croatia. They organized the state into two dukedoms. The first king, King Tomislav was crowned in AD
925 and Croatia was elevated into the status of a kingdom. The Kingdom of Croatia retained its sovereignty for almost two centuries, reaching its peak during the rule
of Kings Peter Krešimir IV and Demetrius Zvonimir. Croatia entered a union with Hungary in 1102. In 1527, the Croatian Parliament elected Ferdinand from the
House of Habsburg to the Croatian throne. In 1918, Croatia was included in the short-lived State of Slovenes, Croats, and Serbs that declared independence from
Austria–Hungary and co-founded the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. A Croatian state briefly existed during World War II, but it was a Nazi/Fascist puppet-state. After
World War II, Croatia became a founding member of the Second Yugoslavia. On 25 June 1991, Croatia declared independence and became a sovereign state.

Since the fall of communism and the end of the Croatian War of Independence, Croatia has achieved high human development and income equality, and ranks highly
amongst Central European nations in terms of education, health, quality of life and economic dynamism. Croatia is a member of the United Nations, the Council of
Europe, NATO, the World Trade Organization and CEFTA. Croatia is an acceding state of the European Union, with entry expected in July 2013, and is a founding
member of the Union for the Mediterranean. Croatia is classified as an emerging and developing economy by the International Monetary Fund and a high income
economy by the World Bank.

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Not so long ago the mention of Croatia would have drawn blank stares, tell your mother you're going to Zagreb and you'd get a look of horror. Today
travel magazines are tripping over themselves to proclaim Croatia the next Riviera. Fact is, the country's status as an Adriatic playground was simply on
recess during the Balkan civil war. The azure waters and countless coves of the Dalmatian Coast remain a yachtsman's dream, while medieval Zagreb
and World Heritage Dubrovnik oozes romance as much as ever. Best of all, Croatia has finally shrugged off the shroud of war, restoration is well
underway (if not already complete), and tourism is quickly returning. Hurry, get here before your mother thinks it's a good idea.

Travel Croatia