Opatija is the largest city on the eastern coast of Istria and one of the best summer tourism resort on the Croatian coast of the Adriatic and it is centrally located on the northern part of the Croatian Adriatic Sea along the so-called Kvarner Bay.
Opatija - tourism in Kvarner bay
Opatija - by Wikipedia: (Italian: Abbazia, German: Sankt Jakobi) is a town in western Croatia, just southwest of Rijeka on the Adriatic coast, population 7,850 (2001), total municipality population 12,719 (2001).
Opatija is situated in the Gulf of Kvarner (Quarnero or Carnaro) in a sheltered position at the foot of Učka mountain (Monte Maggiore), with Vojak peak at 1401 m. Opatija is located 90 km from Trieste by rail and 82 km from Pula by road. The city is geographically on the Istrian peninsula, though it is not in Istria county, but Primorje-Gorski Kotar county.
How to reach Opatija
The Italian and Slovenian borders are nearby. Bigger cities near Opatija with international airports are Rijeka with airport on the island Krk (city 15 min., 45 min. to the airport), Pula on the Istrian peninsula (~1 hour), Triest in Italy (~1 hour), Ljubljana in Slovenia (~1 hour) and Zagreb, Croatia's capital (~2 hours).Bus transportation is very common in Croatia. Rijeka and Opatija have regular local and regional transportation. From Zagreb's main bus station several bus companies connect the capital with the major seaside resorts. The busses either have their final stop in Rijeka (more frequent service) or they will continue via Opatija to Pula (less frequent). There are busses which only make a few stops on the way and take about 2.5 hours from Zagreb to Rijeka, and busses which stop at several cities and take up to 5.5 hours! Make sure you catch the right bus and that you have some Croatian Kuna to pay for taking your luggage!.
Climate in Opatija
The climate varies from Mediterranean along the Adriatic coast to continental inland. The sunny coastal areas have hot, dry summers and mild, rainy winters. The high coastal mountains help to shield the coast from cold northerly winds, making for an early spring and a late autumn.
May to September are the best months to visit Croatia weather-wise, though July and August can be busy along the Adriatic coast. September is probably the optimum month since by then the crowds have thinned out, off-season rates apply and fruits such as figs and grapes are abundant. In April and October it may be too cool for camping, but the weather is usually fine along the coast and private rooms are plentiful and inexpensive. You can swim in the sea from mid-June to late September.
History of Opatija
Opatija and its name derives from the Benedictine abbey of St Jacob. It is first mentioned during the middle of the 15 th century. As a citiy grew out of its role as a tourist destination which it had become by the middle of the 19th century.When in 1843 it was connected by road to Rijeka the first architecture for tourist purposes began to be erected. In 1844 Higinio Scarpa an inhabitant of Rijeka (angl Fiume) built the vila "Angiolina" with a nicely cultivated park growing subtropical vegetation. The intensive building of tourist facilities, hotels, villas, sanatoriums, baths and parks dates back to the year 1882. The hotels "Kvarner" (1884), "Imperial", "Opatija" (both 1885) and the villa "Amalia" (1890) were built durin this period.
Holidays to Opatija
An almost 12 kilometers long promenade alongside the sea, the famous Opatija "lungomare", stretch along the Opatija coastline from Volosko to Lovran (see the map of Ucka) and gives a particular charm to the city and its riviera. When you want to have a vacation with beautiful views of nature and unique design of buildings and houses, then Croatia an its tourism it is. You can enjoy Croatian delicacies while visiting.
Croatia hotels have unique characteristics and the service is as friendly as the people are. In order to enjoy the perfect vacation, you can stay in luxury hotels where you can have a fun and relaxing vacation. If you feel that staying in Opatija hotels with 4 or 5 stars is too expensive, you can choose to stay in budget hotels or vacation rentals