‘We sailed on crystal blue seas’
Readers recall their colourful trips to the islands, mountains and… nudist beaches of Croatia
I once took a last-minute solo Secret Escape to Dubrovnik to celebrate an April birthday. On a beautiful blue-sky day, I drove 20 minutes along the coast to Trsteno Arboretum. The oldest Renaissance garden in Croatia, and a setting for Game of Thrones, its entrance is guarded by a 500-year-old plane tree.
So early in the season, it was empty of people and I wandered along avenues of lush planting, past fountains in peaceful seclusion. From an inviting terraced balcony, the most wonderful view appeared across to the Elafiti Islands. Steep steps and archways led me to explore the setting before sitting on a rock in the hot sun with my feet dipped in the Adriatic – ending a perfect day. Clare Kelly, Kent
MIDNIGHT DEPARTURE
In the summer of 1991, a friend and I stayed on an island off Rovinj. Days were spent on pine-covered shores, swimming, sunbathing and lunching at beach cafes. We went to Venice and also Pula to see its Roman amphitheatre.
There was lots to do, interspersed with absolute peace – but at the beginning of the next week, we were told to pack our bags and bussed off in the middle of the night to the Slovenian border, then by boat to Trieste and home to Britain by plane. The war had started.
We had known nothing, though the hotel staff did seem tense – and there was a warship in the bay. We felt regret at losing the rest of our holiday, but were truly saddened by what followed. Linda Saint, Berks
THE WHEEL THING
On a driving holiday in Croatia (then part of Yugoslavia) in 1971, we encountered the country’s first and only dual carriageway. With its white writing on blue signs, it gave every impression of being a motorway but the “traffic” consisted of heavily laden donkeys, mules and elderly ladies clad in black.
The impression of a bucolic idyll was further reinforced when, at a souvenir shop in Dubrovnik, we bought a spinning wheel authenticated by a government stamp of antiquity. That guarantee was substantiated by the wheel’s coating of dried cow muck and an infestation of wood-boring beetles, which kept us awake during nights spent camping in the car on the way back to England. Bruce Denness, Isle of Wight
THE WEEK
Every summer throughout the 1970s my parents, brother, sister and I travelled by car from Glasgow to Croatia. My Croatian parents made us catch up with
relatives in Zagreb before heading to the real
fun on the coast. The eight-hour drive along endlessly bendy,
potholed roads in a super-heated car with vinyl seats, crammed with relatives, wasn’t much fun. Approaching the coast, however, we found a fantastic new road with no traffic. My father’s mood lifted as he pressed the accelerator
pedal and a cooling breeze came in through
the windows. Thirty miles further on, we stopped for some workmen on the highway. Surprised to see us, they explained
that they were still building the road, that it was closed – and that we
should turn back. My parents appealed vociferously, pointing to the car full of irritable kids. In true Croatian style, we were waved through – and after a bit of off-roading, caught our first glimpse of the sea. Andy Matko, from Dorset, wins an overnight stay for two people worth £250 from England’s Coast i ‘Between a rock and a cool place: the lovely Makarska Riviera
My husband and I motorcycled to Greece for the 2004 Olympics. Camping all the way down the coast of Croatia, we were horribly hot and sticky in our helmets and leathers.
One day an “FKK” (nudist) campsite beckoned. It was an adventurous detour but I will never forget the sheer relief and freedom of peeling off all my clothes and diving into the cool water. Our camp beside the sea was an idyllic place to while away the hot day – and we certainly had no worries about dressing for dinner.
It was just one of many highlights, but I often remember the simplicity of life without the burden of clothes amid the rocky coastline of Croatia. In such circumstances, sand would definitely have been unwelcome.
Zara Urquhart, Wilts
MOUNTAIN NEIGHBOUR
In summer 2019, we spent two weeks in Croatia – our last family holiday preCovid. Brac is an amazing island with beautiful inlets explored by boat. We went ashore and dined in homes transformed into welcoming restaurants serving delicious Croatian food. I was so inspired, I came back and began making treats such as bajadera (nougat with nuts) for our local beach shop.
The second week was spent in the mountains. Our only neighbour lived in a stone hut and washed with soap suds. His only form of communication with the outside world was a crackly radio. With chickens, goats and a fire for warmth, he longed for nothing else. I wonder whether he might be the only person in the world whose life remains unchanged by Covid.
It’s a remarkable country, and one we all long to revisit as soon as possible. Fiona Hughes, Cornwall
I CAME, I SAW, I CONCURRED
“It’s beautiful,” they said, “you have to go” – and they were right. I found beauty, and so much more besides, as a solo traveller seeking adventure on a cycling yacht cruise around the islands of Croatia. The local cabin crew welcomed us as friends, spoke passionately about their country and created incredible Croatian cuisine from the tiniest galley kitchen.
Each day was balm for the soul. We sailed on crystal blue seas, visited quiet coastal towns and swam in secluded bays. It was also a challenge for the body, with 170km of cycling clocked up over the week. But with quiet roads and trails, panoramic views at the tops of hills and the thrill of the descents, no one was counting the mileage.
Yes, Croatia ticks all the boxes for me. Next time, it will be a hiking yacht cruise – and it can’t come soon enough.