Croatia Holidays: I'm lovin' it

Croatia's leisures and pleasures are more ageless than trendy. down its thousand-mile coast a glistening sea winds around pebbly coves, reach at pine-fringed beaches. Istrian ports buzz with fishermen while kids jump into the shiny water. In Dalmatia, cities throb with nightlife amid ancient Roman ruins. So, it is time to plan for a two week long holiday in Croatia

Yachts fly up the shore movie stars discreetly arrange to buy one of Croatia's 1185 islands and no Mediterranean cruise is complete without a stop in Dubrovnik. The interior scenery is as captivating yet though less visited. immerse in a thermal spa at Istarske Toplice in Istria. Hike through unspoiled forests watered by mountain brooks in the west. Let the waterfalls of Plitvice moisten your face. And then there's the traditions. The people that endured Roman, Venetian, Italian and Austro-Hungarian power has a unique and slightly odd character. You'll find a sharp central European flavour in the flamboyant structural design of Zagreb, and Italian devotion to the good life percolates up from the shore permeating Croatian food and style. During holidays and festivals the country's Slavic character surfaces as brightly costumed dancers twirl about to a traditional folk melody.

Croatians retain a strong attachment to the land and habits that nurtured the vision of autonomy for so long.