Geographical position: Croatia extends from the furthest eastern edges of the Alps in the north-west to the Pannonian lowlands and the banks of the Danube in the east; its central region is covered by the Dinara mountain range, and its southern parts extend to the coast of the Adriatic Sea.

Surface: the mainland covers 56,542 km2, and the surface of the territorial sea is 31,067 km2.

Population: 4.437,460 inhabitants; composition of population: the majority of the population are Croats; national minorities are Serbs, Slovenes, Hungarians, Bosnians, Italians, Czechs and others.

System of government: Multi-party parliamentary republic.

Capital: Zagreb (779,145 inhabitants), the economic, traffic, cultural and academic centre of the country.

Coastline: 5,835 km of which 4,058 km comprise a coastline of islands, solitary rocks and reefs. Number of islands, solitary rocks and reefs:1,185; the largest islands are Krk and Cres; there are 50 inhabited islands.

Highest peak: Dinara: 1,831 m above sea level.

Climate: There are two climate zones; a temperate continental climate, locally also a mountainous climate, prevails in the interior, whereas a pleasant Mediterranean climate prevails along the Adriatic coast, with an overwhelming number of sunny days, dry and hot summers, mild and humid winters; average temperature in the inland: January 0 to 2 C, August 19 to 23 C; average temperature at the seaside: January 6 to 11 C, August 21 to 27 C; the temperature is about 12 C in winter, and 25 C in summer.

Currency: kuna (1 kuna = 100 lipa). Foreign currency can be exchanged in banks, exchange offices, post offices, travel agencies, hotels, camps, marinas; cheques can be cashed in banks.

Documents: To enter Croatia, a driver's licence, an automobile registration card and vehicle insurance documents (including Green Card) are required.

Highway toll charges: Zagreb – Karlovac, Bosiljevo – Mala Kapela, Mala Kapela – Gornja Ploča, Gornja Ploča – Zadar 2 –Pirovac, Vrpolje – Dugopolje (Split), Zagreb – Krapina, Zagreb – Bregana, Zagreb – Slavonski Brod – Županja, Zagreb – Varaždin – Goričan, Bosiljevo – Rijeka, Učka Tunnel and Krk Bridge.
www.hak.hr   www.hac.hr  

International airports:Zagreb, Zadar, Split, Dubrovnik, Pula, Rijeka and Osijek. Information:
Zagreb 01 6265 222,
Split 021 203 555,
Zadar 023 313 311.

Croatia Airlines: The national airline company flying to and from Amsterdam, Berlin, Brussels, Duesseldorf, Frankfurt, Istanbul, London, Mostar, Munich, Paris, Prague, Rome, Sarajevo, Skopje, Tel Aviv, Vienna, Zurich and Warsaw. In the high season the Croatian coast is served by air links with cities in Germany, Austria, Italy and other major European centres. All major US carriers connect with Croatia Airlines, national carrier, throughout European getaways.
Information:
www.croatiaairlines.hr  
Tel. 0800 7777, +385 1 4819 633
Reservation:
+385 1 4872 727, 062 77 77 77.

Other airline companies flying to Croatia: Air Adriatic, Aeroflot, Alitalia, Austrian Airlines, Air France, Avioimpex, British Airways, Crossair, CSA, Lufthansa, LOT, Malev i Turkish airlines.

Jadrolinija:
The main Croatian ship passenger carrier maintains the majority of regular, international and domestic car-ferry, ship and high speed shipping lines.
Zadar – Ancona – Zadar
Zadar – Bari – Zadar
Tel: +385 23 25 05 55, +385 23 25 48 00
Fax. +385 23 25 03 51
www.jadrolinija.hr  

Miatours d.o.o. Zadar
Catamaran and hydrofoils:
Zadar – Ancona – Zadar
Zadar – Pesaro – Zadar
Tel: +385 23 254 300
Fax: +385 23 254 400
info@miatours.hr  
www.miatours.hr  

Croatia has direct connections with Slovenia, Hungary, Italy, Austria, Switzerland, Germany, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Crna Gora, and indirect connections with almost all the European countries.

Eurocity and Intercity trains:
EC «Mimara»: Munich-Salzburg-Villach-Ljubljana-Zagreb
IC «Croatia»: Vienna-Maribor-Zagreb
IC «Kvarner»: Budapest-Zagreb-Rijeka
Express: Zagreb-Zurich
Olimpus: Zagreb-Belgrade-Skopje-Solun
IC «Sava»: Munich-Salzburg-Villach-Ljubljana-Zagreb-Belgrade
EC «Zagreb»: Zagreb-Maribor-Vienna
IC «Podravka»: Zagreb-Koprivnica-Osijek

Information:
060 333 444, +385 1 378 2532
www.hznet.hr  
informacije@hznet.hr  

Regular international bus lines connect Croatia with neighbouring countries and the majority of Central European and West European countries.

Information:
060 313 333
International traffic:
+385 1 600 8631
+385 1 611 2789
Zagreb:
www.akz.hr  
akz@akz.hr  
Rijeka:
www.autotrans.hr  
Split:
www.ak-split.hr  

Taxi service exists in all towns and tourist resorts.
Car rental service exists in all towns, tourist resorts and at airports.

The Brijuni – a group of two larger and 12 smaller islands situated off the west coast of the Istrian peninsula.
Information:
www.np-brijuni.hr  

Kornati – the most indented archipelago on the Mediterranean, with 140 uninhabited islands, islets and reefs.
Information:
www.kornati.hr  

Krka – the most beautiful karst river in Croatia.
Information:
www.npkrka.hr  

Mljet – an island southwest of Dubrovnik.
Information:
www.np-mljet.hr  

Paklenica – a national par on the southern side of Velebit, the largest mountain massif in Croatia.
Information:
www.paklenica.hr  

The Plitvice Lakes – the most beautiful and the most popular Croatian national park, listed as a World heritage Site by UNESCO.
Information:
www.np-plitvicka-jezera.hr  

Risnjak – a forested mountain massif to the north of Rijeka.
Information:
www.risnjak.hr  

Northern Velebit – the most valuable and most attractive region of the summit area of Velebit in terms of nature.
Information:
www.np-sjeverni-velebit.hr  

Biokovo – a mountain above Makarska Riviera.
Information:
www.biokovo.com  

Kopački rit – an extensive wetlands area situated at the confluence of the Rivers Drava and Danube.
Information:
www.kopacki-rit.com  

Lonjsko polje – one of the largest wetland areas in Europe.
Information:
+385 44 672 080

Medvednica – a mountain massif overlooking Zagreb to the north.
Information:
www.pp-medvednica.hr  

Papuk – the largest mountain in Slavonia.
Information:
www.pp-papuk.hr  

Telašćica – a narrow bay on the island of Dugi otok, near the Kornati National Park.
Information:
www.telascica.hr  

Učka – a mountain in the east of Istria, above the Kvarner Riviera.
Information:
www.pp-ucka.hr  

Velebit – the largest and most beautiful Croatian mountain.
Information:
www.velebit.hr  
www.pp-velebit.hr  

Lake Vransko (Vransko jezero) – Croatia's largest lake, near Zadar.
Information:
www.vransko-jezero.hr  

Žumberak-Samobor mountains – west of Zagreb.
Information:
www.ppzsg.org  

What to eat?
Except for the standard European cuisine-Croatia offers its most popular dishes and specialties: among the cold dishes, there are the renowned Dalmatian or Istrian prosciutto, Pag or Lika cheese, sheep cheese, the Slavonia paprika-flavoured salami(called "kulen"), renowned Samobor or Zagorje garlic sausages (called"cesnjovka"), fresh cheese with cream...Main dishes depend on which area you are. In Dalmatia, Primorje, on islands and in Istria, the dishes are fish and other seafood dishes, or meat dishes - the so-called "pasticada" or boiled lamb. In the continental art of Croatia, there is a wide selection of meat dishes, with turkey with special pasta called "mlinci", roast lamb, roast suckling, boiled or baked "strukli" (pasta with cheese) being particularly famous. Among desserts, apart from the already mentioned "strukli", there are: walnut loaf, poppy seed loaf and cheese or fruit strudel.

What to drink?
Cultivation of wine grapes and production of sweet and selected wines is several centuries old tradition of Croatian winegrowers-both, in the continental part of Croatia, and at Primorje and Dalmatia. The well known varieties of Croatian wines along the Adriatic coast and on the islands are red wines - Teran,Merlot,Cabernet,Opolo,Plavac, Dingac, Postup, and white wines -Malvazija,Posip,Pinot,Kujundzusa, Zlahtina,Muskat... In the continental parts - Riesling,Grasevina, Burgundac,Traminac...Among the strong drinks, there are various brandies which are well-known -plum brandy, herb-flavoured brandy, grapes brandy, and among the dessert drinks there are Prosek and Maraschino.