The Purity and Beauty of Croatian Beaches

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Due to the beautiful beaches and clear waters, the Croatian coast has attracted more and more visitors looking for fun, rest and recreation. It has been recognized by the world’s magazines, which continually and increasingly place it on their lists of the best summer destinations.

A number of world-renowned magazines included some of the Croatian beaches on their prestigious lists of the best and according to the readers of the British newspaper The Sunday Times Travel Magazine, Croatia was declared the third best European destination in the category ‘European Beach Destination’ for a few years ago, in a strong competition of world famous destinations.

The annual report by the European Environment Agency and the European Commission best speaks in support of the high environmental standards of the Croatian Adriatic. A few years ago, the report showed that Croatian beaches were among the cleanest in Europe, with 97.3 per cent purity, immediately after Cyprus, where 100 per cent of beaches is pure.

Countries which were ranked after Croatia are Malta (95.4 per cent), Greece (94.2 per cent) and Ireland (90.1 per cent). The data for Croatia refers to 913 beaches of which 887 are on the coast. The report stated that not a single beach had an unauthorized amount of Escherichia coli and none had to be closed during the season.

The results showed that the overall purity of European beaches remains high. It was reported that the amount of water that meets the criteria of purity had fallen by 3.5 per cent, while the number of those which meet the recommended criteria was down by 9.5 per cent. In total, across Europe, there were more than 21 000 coastal beaches and inland bathing sites on the territory of the European Union, Croatia, Montenegro and Switzerland.

Another statistic which shows that the sea at Croatian beaches is of high quality and among the cleanest in the Mediterranean is the data of the Croatian Ministry of Environmental Protection, Physical Planning and Construction for last year by which the water was excellent at 94 per cent of Croatian beaches.

Also, from year to year, more than a hundred Croatian beaches and marinas have been awarded the Blue Flag – a guarantee that the beach and the sea are clean and well maintained, that there are lifeguards watching over the swimmers and that you can get ice cream and juice without a lot of walking. At the beginning of the 2012 season, such a flag could be seen at 124 places.

Along with the crystal clear sea, the main feature and speciality of the long Croatian coast with more than a thousand islands and islets are its many and varied beaches, where everyone can find their favourite part of the sea and shore: the shallow sandy or pebble beaches for families with children, romantic and hidden coves or rocks, the already famous beaches with entertainment and nightlife or sports programs, windy bays and channels for windsurfers, quiet bays and reefs for diving etc.

The coast and beaches are mostly stone, gravel and sand with countless bays and rocks.

The vegetation is mainly conifers (pine, larch, cypress), but in some areas of Istria and the Kvarner, one can find shade under pine and sessile oak.

Tides have relatively small amplitudes at approximately 0.5 m.