GEOGRAPHY

To many people Croatia is an unknown country, but it has long been a favorite destination for travellers and tourists. As the crow files, the coastline is only 600 km in length, but is so indented with bays and inlets that there is, in fact, nearly 2000 km to explore. If you include the coastline around the hundreds of islands, the figure is closer to 6000 km.

When you come to live in Zagreb you have an opportunity to see far more than the average tourist. Bordered by Slovenia and Hungary to the north, Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina to the south and east and Montenegro to the south, Croatia covers nearly 57000 km2 and is where Central Europe meets the Mediterranean. Austria and Italy are also within easy reach. To the west and north-west of Zagreb there are gentle hills and mountains, with a rich network of hiking trails and historic castles. To the north-east the flat Pannonian plain sweeps almost to Budapest. Much of the interior of Croatia is mountainous, some of it densely wooded with rivers and waterfalls. There are eight National Parks, and the lakes and falls at Plitvice (2 hours away) are a UNESCO world heritage site. The limestone (karst) mountains, with their bare peaks and dramatic scenery, drop straight into the sea along much of the coast.