Car Hire Croatia - Mini guide to Croatia

A decade has passed since a bloody war parted Croatia from Yugoslavia and it is once again a surprisingly good tourist destination, boasting medieval cities and the unrivalled Dalmatia coast.

Zagreb can easily be explored on foot, with a few remaining medieval buildings and little evidence from the war except the moving 40,000-brick wall around the former American barracks to commemorate missing persons. There is a good view from the Lotrscak Tower, while the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary has some medieval and Renaissance remnants. Several fine museums are found in the city and there are several lively suburbs by night. Strangely, the Mirogoj cemetery is serenely beautiful with its English garden landscaping and neo-classic mausoleums.

With a lovely promontory setting Dubrovnik is Croatia’s real attraction with its 700 year old Stari Grad (old town), characterized by marble-paved squares, steep cobbled streets, tall houses, convents, churches, palaces, fountains and museums. Its city walls keep out the traffic and are among the world’s best preserved. Much of the war damage to this World Heritage site has been repaired and the Placa, is once again a lively pedestrian promenade. The best of the ancient architecture is the Franciscan Monastery (c1300s), St Blaise's Church, and Gothic Rector's Palace, (c1441).

Split has an esteemed Roman history, and is the main town on the Dalmatia coast. Somewhat industrialised, it still has plenty on display, including the imposing Diocletian's Palace, 15th century town hall and Maritime and Archaeological Museum.