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Spotlight on: Korcula Buggy Official

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This year, Korcula Buggy Official celebrates fifteen years of operating a highly innovative and exciting way of exploring the lovely island of Korcula. Run by Branko and Ana, founders and owners, the company offers the original and best safari experience on Korcula, something you can verify through their reviews – they’re one of the highest-rated experiences in Dalmatia on review and tour websites such as TripAdvisor and Viator! (Wow!) Branko and Ana offer a truly personal experience, going beyond what other companies offer to give guests the ultimate tour of Korcula. So let’s find out a little more about Korcula Buggy Official and what they offer, shall we?

About Korcula Buggy Official and their tours

Branko and Ana really know their stuff when it comes to Korcula. Don’t believe me? Well, both are from the island, with Ana’s family established on Korcula for around 150 years, whilst Branko’s family has been there for around 700 years!

Ana and Branko of Korcula Buggy Official
Ana and Branko of Korcula Buggy Official

Unlike other similar tours on Korcula, the personal experience is what Korcula Buggy Official is all about. One of the highlights of the tour is a visit to their own private estate and winery, which includes a hunting-style tasting room – featuring no less than 165 trophies – and a beautiful terrace overlooking the sea. It’s here that Branko and Ana serve their own, original Dalmatian delicacies – Ana’s homemade bread, prosciutto, liqueurs, and their own wine. Utterly delicious!

Homemade liqueurs and marmalade tasting
Homemade liqueurs and marmalade tasting – how wonderful

Korcula Buggy Official have evolved over the years by really listening to their guests, and Branko and Ana believe that’s helped them make their tours better than ever. Their finely crafted tours mean they explore the best parts of Korcula, with the right amount of activities and just the right tour length to keep everyone happy.

How did they come up with the idea of buggy safari tours on Korcula? The spark was ignited by spotting an open-top car in Split that looked very much like a buggy – that’s what planted the seed.

Unfortunately, four years ago, another agency bought buggies, copied their entire itinerary, and even stole the name. This has sadly led to Branko and Ana’s company sometimes receiving bad ratings from people who’ve been scammed – they find Korcula Buggy Official online, think they’re the ones responsible, and leave a bad review. The other company does all sorts of things online to ride on their reputation and lure guests into booking with them. This other company are frustratingly parasitising their hard work, but…they’ve decided to stop stressing about it. It transpires the other company even offer free bottles of wine in exchange for reviews, but anyone can see that over 60% of the other company’s ratings are fake.

Branko & Ana’s Happy Guests

Korcula Buggy Official have had so many beautiful moments, especially when they see guests leave completely thrilled…and even a little bit sad to be saying goodbye! They especially love their older guests because they truly appreciate the story behind the tour.

Korcula Buggy Official's happy guests
Some VERY happy guests!

Korcula Buggy Official has over one thousand authentic reviews, which clearly demonstrate the fruits of their labour. They always give their guests more than what they pay for. Some even exclaim that Korcula Buggy Official’s tour was the best excursion they’ve ever been on, or that it’s the best tour in all of Croatia.

Korcula Buggy Official
A vineyard tasting stop

What’s the best time of year to tour?

Branko and Ana say the most beautiful months are May and September – or even mid-October. In May, nature opens up with some incredible scents, while October is beautiful because the landscape is resting after the heat of summer; the air is calm, there’s no wind, and everything is quiet – as if it’s waiting for life to begin again.

Prices and booking tours

Prices start at €60 for shorter boat tours, while a standard tour is around €80.

There is really no comparison between their tours (which range from €60 to €85) and the agency that copied them. The other company’s ‘private’ tour, which costs over €150, is barely at the level of Korcula Buggy Official’s €70 tour. Guests often get confused by these manipulations. But you know which one to choose!

You can enquire about tours and book directly on WhatsApp on +385 97 777 7808.

More info & booking tours

You can find out all there is to know about Korcula Buggy Official on their website korcula-buggy.com, or look them up on Instagram at @korculabuggyofficial.

Istria Tours Sini

Get to know Istria Tours and their tours of the region…and Croatia!

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Istria Tours are a Pula-based tour company offering tours of Pula, of Istria and the whole of Croatia! Run by the very friendly licensed guide Sini Sljukic, there’s a whole heap of exploring to do with Istria Tours.

Sini Sljukic, Istria Tours
Sini

The company was started by Sini in 2011 as something he always wanted to do – with an interest in history and culture as well as a wish to work in tourism, after working for other companies and learning the job he decided to try to work on his own! Having acquired the necessary qualifications to be a licensed guide at university, it’s been full steam ahead for Istria Tours ever since! Sini’s tours are offered in English or German, and he runs them year-round, transporting guests in a new, airconditioned van of 8 + 1 seats or a black Mercedes limousine.

Walking Tours of Istria

If you’re heading to Istria in the near future, check out the walking tours of the region’s different towns and cities that Sini offers. There are walking tours of Porec, Rovinj, Pula, Umag, Pazin, Motovun, Labin and Groznjan – as well as Opatija – that last one or two hours (depending on the tour) and are priced at €70-80 for a group.

Sini’s personal favourites are the walking tours of Pula. He says:

It is never the same, different people, different questions…I enjoy it every time!

Istria Tour - Pula
An aerial view of Pula, Istria

Excursions

If you fancy travelling further afield from your Istrian base, it’s an excursion that you’re after! Again, Istria Tours offer a number of different options – whether you’d like to explore some of the peninsula’s inland towns and villages (such as Groznjan – “city of artists” and Motovun – “capital of
truffles”) or perhaps you want an easy way to explore some of the not-too-distant islands such as Krk or Cres. One excursion that we know many travellers to Istria look for – but that is difficult to navigate themselves due to a lack of direct public transport – is a day trip to the Plitvice Lakes National Park. Istria Tours can organise such an excursion which includes transportation, a guide and an entry ticket from 1990 Kunas per person.

Bale
One of the pretty streets in Bale

Sini’s favourite excursions are the van tours are to Rovinj, Bale and Vodnjan and the one to Groznjan, Motovun and Pazin. He says:

There is so much we can do along the way: truffle hunting, wine tasting, olive oil tasting, truffle and cheese tasting… We see the most beautiful sights, we have lunch in the best “konobas” (the Istrian word for restaurant)…culture and culinary highlights of Istria, a great way to spend a day in “Terra magica” (this is how they call Istria)!

Boat Tours of Istria

If exploring by sea is more your kind of thing, take a look at the boat tours that Istria Tours offers. You can visit multiple locations in one day in Istra – for example, setting off from Rovinj to the Lim Fjord, Vrsar and Porec, or from Rabac to visit island locations such as Valun and Cres. These boat tours are priced between €30 to €40 per person (depending on the tour) and boat transport, a guide and lunch and a drink.

The most popular boat tour is the Brijuni Islands tour from Pula, which Sini believes is because of the beauty of the national park and its vicinity to Pula.

National Parks in Croatia - Brijuni National Park
The Brijuni islands

Transfers

If ‘all’ you need is some transport in Croatia, Istria Tours also has you covered! They can organise transfers in a standard car for just 1 or 2 people to larger groups (5-8 or under 20 people) requiring a people carrier or a van, to much, much larger groups that need a coach. Contact sini@istria-tours.hr with the number of passengers you need transporting and the route so they can give you a quote.

Istria Tours Sini
Sini and his van by Pula’s famous Arena

Istria Tours offer tours of Croatia too!

But it’s not just Istria they cover! Istria Tours can also do tours covering the whole of Croatia – for example, Sini has run a 20-day tour of the country for a customer that started in Zagreb and ended in Dubrovnik. A private tour of the country will enable you to see as much of it as possible in the time frame you have in mind for visiting the country (2 to 3 weeks are ideal, although shorter tours are also certainly doable).

More on Istria Tours

Learn more about the company on their website Istria Tours and contact Sini direct at sini@istria-tours.hr or on +385 994 012 153 (via WhatsApp or Viber).

Tour Croatia Online - Stradun in summer

Tour Croatia online from your sofa

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These unusual times due to the coronavirus outbreak mean travel to exciting destinations around the world – Croatia included, of course – is completely curtailed for the time being. We of course hope matters will improve in the not too distant future – for everyone’s health and safety first and foremost, but also so everyone can make a return to doing things they enjoy and love. In the meantime, however, why not tour Croatia online…from the comfort of your sofa!

It’s not quite the same thing but you can catch some glimpses of the Croatia you know and love…and perhaps discover some new places that you can visit in the future!

Tour Croatia Online - Stradun in Summer
How Stradun normally looks in summer – with the bell tower (where the below webcam must be positioned) in the distance

Walk the cobblestones of Stradun in Dubrovnik

This live webcam of Dubrovnik‘s famous thoroughfare Stradun pans around looking down it and also over Orlando Column (sadly, boarded up) and the Church of St Blaise. When we visited it (virtually, that is!) not only was it almost entirely empty (apart from a few people walking solo) but it was also rather soggy and grey on a rainy day. When we revisited a few days later, we have to say that it looked even stranger completely empty in the sunshine. If you’ve ever visited Dubrovnik, compare this to how bustling and busy Stradun normally is – it’s certainly a stark contrast.

Gaze out over Hvar Town and the nearby islands

This one’s a real beauty. This live webcam looks down over Hvar Town and across to the nearby Pakleni islands. Located higher up than the usual lookout point that visitors head to, the Spanish Fortress, you can see almost all of the town, the Fortress itself, the forest above town, the collection of islands nearby and the sparkly sea. It’s even pretty to look at at dusk, with the twinkling lights of the houses seen down below whilst the outline of the islands are still visible in the distance.

Explore the many amazing viewpoints in the Plitvice Lakes National Park

Perhaps the Plitvice Lakes were on your Croatian itinerary this year. Well, hopefully you’ll still be able to visit one day soon – but in the meantime, but not walk through the national park online? Google Streetview lets you “walk” a number of the paths in the park – this is surely one of the best ways to tour Croatia online! Here, we’ve started you at the viewpoint just past Entrance number 1. Head down the paths to reach the lower lakes!

Exploring Plitvice Lakes via Google Earth is also recommended!

Get to know the island of Krk

Krk360.com is an ingenious site – set over a large map of Krk Town, there are numerous places to visit via 360º panoramas. Explore a number of beaches, the main promenade, sights (churches, the Cathedral, the bell tower) restaurants and even the public library!

“Sample” some Croatian wine

If you’re never visited a winery in Croatia, why not drop by the Vuglec Breg winery in the Zagorje region, north of Zagreb. Set in lush green countryside, you definitely have to visit the wine cellar (and in real life too, one day, to sample their wines!) as well as the wonderful viewpoints.

Explore a Croatian castle

Trakoscan Castle (also in the Zagorje region, close to the border with Slovenia) is one of the most impressive of Croatia’s castles. Built in the 13th century as a fortress for monitoring the local road, the castle was nationalised in 1944 and has been operating as a museum since 1954. This walkthrough tour is absolutely wonderful, giving you a near-real-life experience.

Trakoscan Castle
The impressive Trakoscan Castle

Visit one of Croatia’s most famous sights

One of the most famous symbols of Croatia is Zagreb‘s Cathedral. This virtual tour gives you the opportunity to explore the Cathedral in peace and quiet…as perhaps it should be.

Photos of Zagreb - Zagreb Cathedral
Zagreb Cathedral – sadly, the top part of one of its spires broke off in the recent (March 2020) earthquake

Where will you stay? In a hotel? Campsite?

A number of accommodation options in Croatia offer virtual tours of their premises. One of these is the sumptuous Grand Hotel Park in Rovinj. You start off “hovering” above the town on a beautifully sunny day; you then swoop down to the hotel. Enter, take the lift up to the reception and take a nosy around the restaurant and bar (hop out onto the balcony for that famous view of Rovinj!) and then take a look at the different room types. I’ll take a suite, thanks! 😎

The Esplanade Hotel in Zagreb has a similar tour. This famous hotel, first opened in 1925, is housed in a stunning, rather imposing building close to the main train station in the city. And for good reason – the hotel was constructed as a stop off point for those travelling on the Orient Express. The five star hotel has been one of the country’s top hotels for many years – and still is today – and has been a place to stay for all sorts of dignitaries and celebrities. Head into the amazing reception – where there’s even an open bottle of champagne waiting (!) – and check out the lounge areas as well as the stunning Emerald Ballroom (especially so in its wedding setting!). Finally, don’t forget to take a look at the gorgeous rooms.

If camping is more your thing, why not check out the facilities of Camp Cikat on the island of Losinj on its virtual tour. You’ll certainly wish you were there on a beautifully sunny day!

See what’s happening on Split’s normally bustling Riva

Unfortunately, the answer is not much! To round off this guide, we thought we’d return to a view of the sparkling Adriatic sea with a webcam set over Split‘s famous Riva (the promenade by the sea). Nowhere near as populated as normal – just a few pedestrians and the odd cyclist or two; all of the popular cafes are firmly shut – we hope this lovely street returns to full force soon.

Tour Croatia Online - Riva in Split
The sunny Riva – and its bustling cafes – on a day in early May

For other glimpses of the Adriatic, do also take a look at these webcams:

  • The marina and the boats bobbing up and down in Pag Town
  • The famous Kamen Brela in Brela
  • The swaying palm trees by the seafront in Novalja, island of Pag

Or for something a little different, take a look at what the meerkats, sea lions or lions are up to in Zagreb Zoo!

Get a zipline thrill

This one will probably give you the biggest thrill out of all the experiences on this list! Even if it’s not quite the same thing as being there… Zipline Omis have a virtual tour of their up in the air adventure that offers up some totally amazing views of the Cetina River and the forests and rocky hillsides all around. To get more of a feel for the zipline, take a look through their gallery of photos and videos of well – and imagine yourself zipping down that wire!

A nice bit of EDM at a Croatian festival

The Croatian summer events calendar is crammed full of all sorts of music festivals in Tisno, Novalja, Split, Zagreb… One of the largest is the Ultra Europe festival in Split every July; relive Afrojack’s rather spectacular set from this festival from summer 2019 below. Full screen it, get your wireless headphones on, dim the lights…you’ve got yourself a dance party!

Gaze at photos of Croatia

If you’ve visited Croatia, we’re sure you have plenty of gorgeous photos of your holidays to look back on!

If you’d like to look at some of ours see some of the albums featured in our Photos in Croatia section – including those of Dubrovnik, Split, Zagreb, Hvar, Vis, the Plitvice Lakes and more.

We hope you enjoy this whistle stop tour of Croatia from your home!

Zagreb by scooter - Bikini Scooters

A new way to discover Zagreb – by scooter!

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Croatia’s lovely capital city Zagreb has lots going for it – plenty of sights (both old and modern), galleries, museums, shopping, bars and cafes, restaurants, events and much more. It’s an excellent choice for a weekend city break, or as a starting (or end) point for a longer holiday in Croatia. The city also has plenty of ways of exploring it, but now here comes something new – the opportunity to explore Zagreb by scooter!

Launched in May 2019, Bikini Scooters is an agency that offers both interactive guided tours of the capital on electric scooters and well as e-scooter rental. A noise-free and eco-friendly way of seeing Zagreb – that also covers a lot of ground with hardly any exertion…and is of course lots of fun!

Zagreb by scooter - Bikini Scooters
Visitors to Zagreb enjoying a Bikini Scooters tour

Since they started offering their tours, plenty of people have enjoyed seeing Zagreb by scooter with Bikini Scooters – families with children, exchange students, travellers, couples on holiday, professionals in town on business, seniors wanting a new kind of sightseeing experience and many more!

Guided Tours – Zagreb by Scooter

Bikini Scooters offer 90 minute guided tours of Zagreb by scooter, which are available in English or Spanish. Their tours cover most of Zagreb’s main sights, including Kaptol and the Cathedral, Ban Jelacic Square, the Green Horseshoe of Zagreb/Lenuci’s Horseshoe (the parks of downtown Zagreb), the Croatian National Theatre, and the Upper Town. All tours are conducted by a licensed guide.

Zagreb by scooter - Bikini Scooters
Visiting Zagreb’s Cathedral by scooter!

Three tours show off Zagreb’s sights – the Start Your Day Tour; the Afternoon Tour; or the Zagreb by Night Tour. The Zagreb by Night Tour is an excellent choice in summer when the cooler evenings offer some relief from the hot days. Not only this, but the Zagreb by Night Tour has the added bonus of a complimentary drink in Tkalciceva Street. Here your guide will also be able to point out the best nightspots, bars and restaurants!

Bikini Tours also offer private tours which can be customised to visitors’ tastes and interests.

Riding E-Scooters in Zagreb

For anyone nervous about riding an e-scooter, don’t be! The scooters are easy and fun to ride, don’t require any previous experience and can be mastered in just minutes.

Children aged 12 years and older can ride a scooter by themselves. Younger children can ride on a scooter with an adult.

All scooter riders are provided with helmets.

Scooters are permitted to be ridden on pavements and in pedestrian areas in Zagreb.

Zagreb by scooter - Bikini Scooters
A Zagreb by Night Tour in front of the Music Academy

About Bikini Scooters

Bikini Scooters was formed by a team of like-minded professionals from diverse backgrounds. They all like to show off Zagreb to visitors in an enthusiastic and exciting way!

The company are also planning lots more exciting tours of Zagreb, including covering the New Zagreb (Novi Zagreb) area, sports themed tours, and showing off green areas such as Maksimir Park, and around places such as Lake Bundek and Lake Jarun. Watch their website for news!

More info

You can find all details about the tours Bikini Scooters run on their website. Do also check them out on Facebook and Instagram as well!

Bikini Scooters
bikiniscooters.hr/tours/

Sirana Gligora Cheese - Paški sir - World Champion Cheese

Tour the world-renowned Sirana Gligora cheese dairy on Pag

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Many of you may well have heard of the famous dairy Sirana Gligora – regardless of whether you’ve travelled to Croatia or not! Based in Kolan on the island of Pag, this family-run company have been making Paski sir (Pag cheese) since 1918 and currently produce no less than four world championship winning cheeses and as well many other highly decorated products as well.

Sirana Gligora Cheese - Paški sir - World Champion Cheese

Paški sir – World Champion Cheese

Paski sir is one of the most famous products of the island of Pag, and possibly of the whole of Croatia too – a cheese that is hand made from the richest local milk from sheep that are free to roam on rocky pastures, foraging amongst hardy grasses and wild herbs. We would highly recommend that you try this wonderful and unique cheese if you come across it when visiting Croatia – you won’t be disappointed.

Pastures above local beach Sveti Duh

Pag sheep on the rocky pastures

But if you’re visiting Croatia and the north Dalmatian region – including the island of Pag – in particular this summer, you may well like to participate in one of the Cheese Tasting Tours that the Sirana Gligora dairy runs. These tours will teach you more about the history of the cheese and the production processes involved in making it, and well as giving you a prime opportunity to taste the different varieties right where it’s made!

These daily tours start off with an introduction to the heritage of cheese making on the island of Pag, as well as a history of the dairy and the cheese. You’ll then be led by an expert guide through the production rooms of the dairy, before going underground in the maturing caves. These caves house up to 200 tonnes of wall-to-wall cheese that’s at various stages of maturing, with the famous local sheep’s milk cheese sitting side by side with assorted cow, goat and mixed milk cheeses. Part of the caves are set aside as an experimental corner where you can examine mouth-watering prototypes that are awaiting official grading and tasting by affineurs. Whilst here, your guide will fully explain the laborious process and care involved into making each wheel.

A guided tour at Sirana Gligora

Aged Paski sir

After the first part of the tour (which takes around thirty minutes, although this depends upon the size of the group), you’ll then be taken to what must be the most exciting area of Sirana Gligora for many people – the tasting room! Resting on top of the dairy – with fabulous views of the island – you’ll be able to sample the award-winning Gligora cheese, washing it down with some wonderful wine.

Squid stuffed with Prušut and Paški Sir – how amazing does that sound?!

Tickets for the tours are available from Sirana Gligora’s two Cheese and Wine shops in Novalja and Kolan on the island of Pag – both of which are well worth a visit in their own right, even if you can’t make a tour. Alternatively, email Sirana Gligora direct on info@gligora.com or contact them on Facebook or Twitter for advance bookings for the tours – as they can get full up rather quickly! Tours are available in English, Croatian and German.

Paška skuta and Paški sir

Ivan Gligora and current MD Šime Gligora

Do also visit Sirana Gligora’s website to find out more about the dairy, and check out all the latest news on their blog – which also has a more in depth look at the tours they offer. Or, to check out the full list of what they produce, click here: Sirana Gligora Product Brochure.

If you’re not quite able to make it down to the island of Pag for these tours, Sirana Gligora also have Cheese & Wine shops in a number of locations across Croatia – including in Zagreb, Rijeka, Opatija, Pula, Zadar, Split and Dubrovnik. See this list for full addresses.

But I know I’d love to head to Pag for a tour at Sirana Gligora!