1. No visa is required for entry into Croatia for citizens of Europe, the USA, Canada, Australia or New Zealand.
2. No special vaccination is required.
3. Croatia boasts, with reason, the best drinking water in Europe.
4. Croatia has on average 3000 sunny hours a year! That is out of a possible 4380 daylight hours in a year!
5. On the coast winters are very mild, rarely falling below 10ºC. One can see lemons on the trees in February!
6. In summer it's hot but not too hot, the average July temperature being 29ºC.

Driving to Croatia
Despite the relatively short flight times (no more than 2.5 hrs from the furthest European airport, if flying direct), a lot of people do consider driving to Croatia. How long it takes depends, of course, on your country of origin. From the UK it is a particularly long trek, not least because you have to cross the Channel to France orHolland first. From France or Holland you will have to count two days for the trip, and a further day if you are planning to go to the south of Croatia - this is driving sensibly, at legal speeds and at 8 hrs a day. The most direct route from the north of France, which happens also to be the most picturesque, is to head for Lyon, then toGeneva across the Alps and cross the French-Italian border via the Mont Blanctunnel (the toll is about 28 €). Once in Italy it’s practically a straight road all the way to Croatia, going through Milan, past Venice and ending up at Trieste on theAdriatic, after which you then have a short stretch of Slovenia to cross and you’re in Croatia. The route doesn’t actually go through Venice, but a nice idea, to break the journey up a bit, would be to plan a day at Venice - it seems crazy to go all that way and pass Venice! 

For folk living in the South of France, in Austria, in Switzerland or in southern Germany you can knock a day off these journey times. If you live in northern Italy the journey is a cinch and you would probably only ever consider driving to get to Croatia. From all other parts of Italy catching a ferry to Croatia is probably the best option. 

It is always advisable to consult one of the many route planners on the Internet and print out your route before departing. For English speaking people the AA’s route planner is excellent which you’ll find at: www.theaa.com

Driving in Croatia
Firstly, it should be mentioned that Croatians drive on the right side of the road.

If you’re headed for the Dalmatian Coast you could catch a Jadrolina car ferry from Rijeka to many of the major Dalmatian towns. The ferry leaves Rijeka at 6 pm and gets to Split for the next morning, Korcula for midday and Dubrovnik for mid afternoon. The return trip including a cabin costs 360 €

A big motorway building program is underway at the moment which will connect all the major coastal towns from Rijeka in the north to Dubrovnik in the south. At the moment only a 20 km stretch north of Zadar is open but it is hoped that the Rijekato Split stretch will be open by 2005, and the Split to Dubrovnik stretch by 2007. This will cut a sizable chunk off the journey times to the coastal towns. Until the motorways are built you’ll have to put up with the existing coastal road which wind around the countless bays and indentations of the Croatian coast with very little opportunities to overtake. Croatian lorry drivers are very considerate, if they see a clear passage ahead for you to overtake they will flash their indicators, but many drivers take horrendous risks overtaking and you always have to expect that a car may come round the bend on the wrong side of the road! Saying all that, the journey south is spectacularly beautiful and the biggest hazard to the road will probably be yourself, because your eyes will be fixed on the scenery rather than on the road! 

Do remember that in summer the roads around the coastal resorts will be very busy indeed and if you can see a route to your destination on the smaller inland roads it is definitely worth considering. Similarly with parking, in summer finding places in the town centres can be very difficult, so if you can find a place further from the centre it would be advisable to take it - a lot of Croatia’s historic towns, such as Trogir,Hvar and Dubrovnik, don’t allow cars in and the car parks outside are not really large enough to cater for everyone. In out-of-season periods, however, finding a parking place is not normally a problem. 

Drinking and driving laws
The legal limit for blood alcohol content in Croatia is .05 %. There is quite a big police presence on Croatian roads and they routinely spot-check motorists for drinking and driving. The procedure and laws governing this are exactly the same as in any other European country except that drivers who refuse a breathalyser are automatically presumed to have admitted to driving while intoxicated.
 

Den kroatiska valutan heter Kuna och förkortas med HRK eller Kn (den lokala förkortningen). En kuna motsvarar 100 lipa. Centralbanken ger ut sedlar i valörerna 500, 200, 100, 50, 20 10 och 5 kuna. Mynten finns i valörerna 5, 2 och 1 kuna samt 50, 20, 10, 5, 2 och 1 lipa.

Kroatiska banker har betydligt generösare öppettider än i Sverige: 08.00-17.00 måndag till fredag och 08.00-12.00 på lördagar. På turistorterna vid adriatiska havet har bankerna ännu generösare öppettider på somrarna. Då är 08.00 - 20.00 måndag till fredag och 08.00 - 13.00 på lördagar vanliga öppettider.

I större orter och städer kan man ta ut pengar i uttagsautomater med de internationellt kända uttagskorten. Kortet går att använda om kortets logotyp finns på uttagsautomaten, som även i Kroatien heter bankomat.

Man kan växla pengar på banker och auktoriserade växelkontor. På växelkontoren tar man ut en kommission, som ligger mellan 0,5 och 1,5 procent. Om man växlar pengar på banken är avgiften lägre, eller så tas ingen avgift ut alls. Man kan också växla in utländsk valuta på postkontor och turistbyråer. Under högsäsong håller många växlingskontor öppet till 22.00.

Resecheckar går bara att växla in på banker. De kontokort som går att använda på flest ställen är Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Diners och Sport Card International. De här korten godtas på de större turistorterna, särskild vid kusten och på stora hotell och restauranger. Om man blir av med sitt kort är det mycket viktigt att anmäla det omedelbart, så att kortet kan spärras.

Adriatiska Havet med de förföriska "Tusen öarnas kust" är en idealisk skärgård med över 6000 km kustremsa, 1158 öar med nästan orörda naturhamnar, små fiskebyar och samhällen med tusenårig kultur. Den gamla handelsvägen mellan greker och romare bär fortfarande tydliga spår efter den antika kommersen. 

Oräkneliga bukter, vikar, sund och fjordar. Klippor och stränder. Byar med utsökt venetiansk arkitektur och ofattbar renhet. Vacker vegetation. Ljumma vindar och evigt strålande sol. Azurblått varmt kristallklart vatten med rik fauna fullt synlig ner till stort djup.

Intrycket "ANNORLUNDA SKÄRGÅRD" kommer helt spontant. Alla som söker alternativ till hemmavattnen kan knappast undgå att imponeras av denna bokstavligt talat bländande skönhet som möter ögat. 

En uppräkning av sevärda platser skulle mer än väl fylla denna faktainformation. Låt oss därför istället inleda med att säga; Var du än befinner dig utefter den Adriatiska kusten, speciellt för dig som söker det lilla extra av kultur- och skönhetsupplevelser, måste denna skyddade skärgård i detta lilla Adriatiska Hav vara nära nog det perfekta svaret. Fortfarande okänt för alltför många. En upplevelse för finsmakaren. 

Det behagliga vädret präglas under sommarhalvåret till 75-80 % av "Maestralen". En lätt havsvind från NV-SV med vindstyrkor från morgonbrisens 4-5 m/sek kulminerande i 8-9 m/sek för att avta fram emot eftermiddagen. "Maestralen" kan ibland på morgnarna föregås av "Levanaten", en kustvind från O med vindar upp till 10 m/sek, eller mer vänliga "Juzin" en SO kustvind. Fram emot kvällen följer gärna "Burin" efter "Maestralen". "Burin" är en lätt landvind från NO. 

Under hösten är vindarna stundtals mycket svaga och kommer upp ganska så sent. Vintersäsongens väder präglas av "Bura" och "Jugo".

"Bura" är en torr kall landvind från NO, berg och alpregionerna. Denna vind är den starkaste, oberäkneligaste och mest plötsligt återkommande med starka byar och vindstyrkor mellan kuling och storm. I norra delen av den Kroatiska kusten uppnår "Buran" stormstyrka genom den tratteffekt sunden skapar mellan öarna. Det kan, i norra delen blåsa så vattnet verkligen ryker. 

"Tramontana" är en annan vind med "Burans" karaktär. Den är kylig och kommer från N. Gemensamt för båda dessa vindar, "Buran" och "Tramontana" är att de sällan håller på längre än 2-3 dagar för att lämna sol och fint väder efter sig. 

"Jugo" är en varm och fuktig kust/havsvind från OSO-SSO som utvecklas under en period av 36-48 tim. och blåser längs hela kusten med vindstyrkor mellan 10-20 m/sek. Den kan förekomma lokalt, men relativt sällan. Under tiden mars-juni med vindstyrkor mellan 8-18 m/sek.

In the coastal regions of Croatia the cuisine has a rather Mediterranean flavour, as you would expect, with lots of olive oil used in the preparation. However, Croatian cuisine does have its own distinct identity, especially in regards to the cooking of fish. The tradition of grilling and roasting fish and delicacies of the sea has been carried down from generation to generation, where the taste of the fish depends on the grilling technique and the type of wood chosen. There is also the tantalising Dalmatian olive oil method of cooking, gradelavanje, which gives the fish a particular and fantastic taste. All along the coast and the isles, the fish menus are unrivalled - even the humble sardine will never taste quite so delicious. Many Croatian fish restaurants have their own fishing boats, so you can be assured of the freshness of the fish. Also, it is not uncommon to choose your own fish from a selection of different species kept on ice in the centre of the restaurant.       

Croatian cuisine isn’t restricted to fish, there are many delicious meat dishes too. Grilled pork and roasted lamb are common dishes, and beef too, which is often cooked in a delicious tomato sauce, although you can, of course, have your steak ‘straight’. Regional differences in Croatian cuisine are quite evident and in the north of Croatia Austro-Hungarian culinary influences are strongest. One finds meats cooked in bread crumbs, goulashes served with stuffed cabbage, and a dish called sarma, a winter delight of a rare excellence. In the region around Zagreb, strukli, thin sheets of cheese cooked in water, is a speciality. In Slavonia, the speciality is kobasice, or pork sausages. Along with the many types of delicious sausages on offer, there is the famous kulen, which is very similar to salami.

Connoisseurs of cheese must try all the different cheeses on offer. In the markets one finds a thick white cheese svjezi sir sold in little plastic sacs and usually eaten, as an accompaniment to a salad, with salt and pepper. Paski sir, a hard cheese from the isle of Pag, is an excellent cheese and one of the most reputed.

Part of the magic of Croatia is its food. Its wines and beers are good too.

Those who have sweet teeth will not be disappointed when it comes to choosing something off the shelves of the slasticarne. So many different influences: cream cakes of Austrian inspiration, nut cakes of eastern influence, kremsnites dripping in honey, rozata egg cakes, savijace strudels, delicious cakes oozing with cream, or one of the rich Dalmatian tarts.

The wines & beers of Croatia
        
Among the top quality red wines are Postup, Faros, Babic, the Dingac red from the Peljesac peninsular, and the Teran wine of Istria. Among the first class whites are Posip, Grk, Bogdanusa, and the well known sweet desert wine, Prosek. Even the region’s drinking water, which flows from the rivers Jardo and Cetina, is a speciality. Thanks to its purity and pleasant taste it is considered not only to be healthy, but is also mixed with wine to create Bevenda.

Not to be forgotten is the wine, known for its special taste of the warm south. Croatian wines were already reputable but they are becoming more and more renowned.
        
The Croatian beers most frequently drunk are Ozujsko pivo and Kariovacko pivo, both of which are excellent. Foreign beers tend to be more expensive, so unless you have a preference for a particular foreign beer you’ll do no wrong choosing Croatian.

Finally you must try, before or after enjoying one of the many varied dishes from the Croatian menu, the different sorts of schnapps. ‘The water of life’, Rakija, when made from a base of plums is Slivovica, from grapes is Loza, and from herbs is Travarica.

Cheers: Zivjeli!