Geographical location
According to COUNTRYAAH, Croatia lies east of the Adriatic Sea (colloquially the Adriatic Sea) and is predominantly part of the Balkan Peninsula.
It borders Hungary and Slovenia in the north, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina in the east and Montenegro in the south. Croatia has a total of around 4.2 million inhabitants, the capital and largest city of the country is Zagreb with around 800,000 inhabitants.
In terms of landscape, apart from the Adriatic coast, two other forms of landscape can be distinguished, the lowlands in particular in northern Croatia along the Sava and Kupa rivers, including the capital Zagreb, and the Croatian hill country in central Croatia.
The Adriatic coast with its offshore islands is particularly popular with tourists. From Istria over the Kvarner Bay to Dubrovnik, Croatia offers excellent water conditions and beautiful bays.
The main airports in the Croatia are Zagreb, Rijeka, Split, Dubrovnik, Pula and Zadar.
- Abbreviation Finder: Check to see national geography, brief history, society description, domestic politics, economy overview, and a list of widely used acronyms about Croatia.
Climate in Croatia
The climate in Croatia is regionally quite different according to the three characteristic types of landscape. While the typical north Mediterranean climate prevails on the coast of Croatia with mild, rainy winters and hot summer months, the north-east and east of the country have a more moderate continental climate.
This is defined by very hot and dry summer months and a rather cold winter. Basically, the Adriatic region is more humid than the interior.
Nevertheless, ideal conditions prevail in summer with up to 11 hours of sunshine a day at an average of up to 30 degrees. The water temperatures are between the end of May and mid- Octoberat 20 to 24 degrees. In autumn, temperatures can still be 20 degrees during the day, but then drop to 12 degrees at night.
When to go to Croatia
Due to its mild climate, Croatia can be visited all year round. Anyone planning round trips or sightseeing can arrive in spring or autumn and relax and explore the highlights of the country at pleasant daytime temperatures of 15 to 20 degrees.
In winter it can get very cold, inland frost between December and February is not uncommon. For a classic beach holiday, summer is the best time to travel to Croatia.
From the end of May the thermometer reaches around 26 degrees and mostly stays pleasantly warm until the end of September. July and August are the warmest months, because of the European summer holidays they are also part of the absolute high season with correspondingly high prices.
Optimal travel time for the regions
In the following overview you can see the best travel time depending on the region (Croatia).
| Place | Best travel time |
| Zagreb | June, July, August and September |
| Split | June, July, August and September |
| Dubrovnik | June, July, August and September |
| Zadar | June, July, August and September |
| Pula | June, July, August and September |
| Plitvicka jezera | May, June, July, August and September |
| Rovinj | June, July, August and September |
| Brac Isla | May, June, July, August and September |
| Krk | June, July, August and September |
Temperatures, precipitation, sunshine in Zagreb (Croatia)
| Jan | Feb | March | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
| Daytime temperature | 3 ° C | 5 ° C | 11 ° C | 17 ° C | 21 ° C | 25 ° C | 27 ° C | 27 ° C | 22 ° C | 16 ° C | 9 ° C | 5 ° C |
| Night temperature | -3 ° C | -1 ° C | 3 ° C | 8 ° C | 12 ° C | 15 ° C | 17 ° C | 16 ° C | 13 ° C | 8 ° C | 4 ° C | 0 ° C |
| Precipitation in mm | 56 | 54 | 47 | 59 | 86 | 95 | 79 | 74 | 70 | 88 | 89 | 67 |
| Rainy days | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 7 | 9 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 8 |
| Hours of sunshine | 2 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 |
| Sunrise | 7:35 | 7:00 | 6:10 | 6:10 | 5:25 | 5:05 | 5:20 | 5:55 | 6:35 | 7:10 | 6:55 | 7:30 |
| Sunset | 16:40 | 17:20 | 18:00 | 19:40 | 20:20 | 20:50 | 8:45 pm | 20:05 | 19:10 | 18:10 | 16:25 | 16:10 |
Temperatures
The annual average temperature in Zagreb is 11.3 ° C. For comparison: Munich reaches an average of 8.6 ° C, in Berlin it is 9.6 ° C. The warmest month is July (21.2 ° C), coldest month of January with mean values of 0.2 ° C.
Precipitation
The annual precipitation is 864 mm on 97 days with precipitation. For comparison: In Munich, 967 mm, in Berlin 570 mm, precipitation is measured annually. There is no rainy season, i.e. months with more than 175 mm of precipitation. In the months of January, February, March, November and December is possible snowfall.
Sunshine
As our climate table shows, July is the sunniest month with an average of 8.6 hours of sunshine per day. On average over the year the sun shines for 4.9 hours per day. For comparison: In Munich and Berlin, the sun shines an average of 4.7 hours per day throughout the year.
Highlights and attractions
An absolute must for all nature lovers in Croatia is a visit to the Plitvice Lakes. The beautiful nature park offers a lot of natural spectacles with picturesque lakes, breathtaking waterfalls and a scenery like from a picture book. Other natural highlights await in Krka, in the Paklenica National Park and on the small island group of Brijuni.
The Diocletian’s Palace in Split’s old town is just as worthwhile as a visit to the historic city of Dubrovnik in the far south of the country. The amphitheater in Pula is also not to be missed. A bizarre highlight is the unique Hum, with around 25 inhabitants, probably the smallest “town” in the world.
For water sports enthusiasts, the Adriatic is a great area for sailing, surfing and diving.
