Camping Straško, Novalja, Pag Island

I had mixed feelings when I checked in at Camping Straško, at the end of a long Day 8: Novalja on Pag is one of Croatia’s biggest tourism centres, Camping Straško is a HUGE, resort style, campsite, and resorts and “big” tourism are not normally my scene. However I was very pleasantly surprised, though it was, of course, off season and not the buzzing “party town” it would be in high summer. I paid a little extra for my pitch and was right by the sea, next to a very long beach, with only a few distant neighbours.

There were quite a few nice touches such as the coloured lines on the road which helped you find your pitch…..

…. and the adaptor at the end of the hose for the chemical toilet which stopped it dripping and splashing everywhere.

The pitches were a good size and well demarcated with trees and walls, and I also liked the water taps which were in the middle of little “tables”, with a rustic stone exterior and stainless steel tops, so you could put your water bottles on them.

 

On the downside it was “raining” seeds and leaves from the many Sycamore trees around and many of the peripheral facilities weren’t quite open for business yet.

One of the restaurants, Buffet Straško, was open and, in the end, I had a really good meal but the first sea bream that arrived was not cooked inside. I strongly suspect it came out of the freezer, rather than being the “catch of the day” but did not get a direct answer to that question! Unfortunately, especially when there are not many tourists about, the restaurants have to use frozen fish. I understand that but wish they (Croatian restaurateurs in general) would be more open about it and not insist on passing it off as Class A fresh fish and pricing it accordingly.

There was no argument from the chef and waiter, who dealt very diplomatically and expertly with my irritation and intention to leave, and eventually produced two slightly smaller, beautifully cooked, sea bream to replace the bigger half frozen one. I seem to recall I was also mollified with another glass of wine, on the house. One nice and relatively unusual touch (unless you are a local or specifically ask for it) was a little bowl of olive oil and chopped garlic to drizzle over the fish.

All in all, prices were reasonable – fish at 220 Kn per kilo – mine was 88 Kn, based on the weight of the original fish I think, a very good house wine at 80 Kn per litre, and “blitva s krumpir” at 20 Kn - a common Dalmatian vegetable side dish of swiss chard and boiled potatoes, with garlic and oil. The total came to 146 Kn, including a Prošek aperitif and the one small glass of red wine I was charged for.

In general, it was a good stay – a great location with plenty of beach, good modern washrooms (but the dreaded timer button on the showers), a friendly ambience in the restaurant and plenty of evidence that it would be very well maintained in all seasons, however busy it was – bins everywhere, for all kinds of recycling as well as normal rubbish, emptied daily it seems, even in May.

A night’s camping cost me 130 Kn in total, again a little above my average, but it would have been 7 Kn less if I had not gone for a premium pitch. My pitch was 84 Kn, taxes etc 12 Kn, and the rate for one adult was 34 Kn. I was not charged anything extra for the dog or electricity.

There is an FKK (nudist) area and the campsite also offers mobile homes which vary in price from 266 Kn per day to roughly 1,330 Kn per day, depending on size, location and season.

Needless to say there is a full range of facilities and activities in the high season – shops, bakery, rent a scooter/segway/boat/bike/etc, diving and submergible trips, massages, sports centre, pizzeria, tavern and more. There’s free WiFi too which is relatively unusual for Croatian campsites.

And it’s good for sunsets too!

Like most other campsites in big tourist centres, it is a little way away from the centre of town, and therefore aims to make sure all the basics you need for your holiday are on site.

GPS co-ordinates are  44° 32.70' N 14° 52.85' E

For more information and photos, have a look at the Camping Straško Website

Eurocamp Raca

I’m not quite sure what to make of Eurocamp Raca, also known as Autocamp Raca and “Moko”, though the latter may just refer to the bar and restaurant. Like many campsites, small and large, in early May it was not yet ready for visitors but the “For Sale” notice on the reception window might be a clue. Similarly, I couldn’t find a website for the campsite itself, when I googled it, and the Facebook page, featuring an “Endless Summer Open Air Party”, was last updated in 2013. It is, however, in the 2016 camping guide I received from the Croatian Tourist Office and that does provide a website – www.sojat.net - which has a very informative video about, firstly,  a roadside restaurant in nearby Sv Juraj under the same ownership, and then the campsite. The video shows the campsite and the on-site restaurant and cocktail bar in full swing with plenty going on – boat trips, pool table, tennis, diving – so it might be a great place for an extended stay. I THINK you would either have to get a boat or walk along the main road to Sv Juraj and it’s a few kilometres away – see Croatia Online - Sv Juraj for more information on the village.

The access is very easy if you are on the “sea” side of the main coast road and it’s just 100 metres down a gradually sloping slip road to the campsite. The first part of the site, with the restaurant and bar, is right by the beach and then you go under a little bridge and under the coast road to the other half. I saw quite a few campsites making use of this kind of arrangement, using both sides of the coast road via a track underneath it and perhaps it’s easier to describe clearly in pictures! The main picture above shows the first part, before you go under the bridge. The next two photos, below, show the bridge and then the “inland” part of the campsite, nestled into the hills, where most of the pitches and the bungalows are located.

Apart from in the high season, the coast road won’t be that busy but you probably will hear an occasional lorry thundering past, wherever you are on this small camp site.

The pitches are well marked out with little stone walls and the white building to the left of the bridge, in the photo above, houses the washrooms which looked fine.

There’s a pier and a slip for small boats and the bar and restaurant furniture were just awaiting their spring clean!

Example prices are as follows with the first price being for May, June and September and the second for July and August:

Campervan                           35 Kn/40 Kn

Adults                                  30 Kn/35 Kn

Dog                                     15 Kn/20 Kn

Electricity                             25 Kn/25 Kn

Registration & Taxes             13 Kn/14 Kn

A bungalow is 360 Kn/460 Kn per day and sleeps five according to the Senj Tourist Board website page listing the campsite - http://www.tz-senj.hr/en/eurocamp-raca/ At the time of writing, the website link it provides for the campsite is not working.

I would have paid 118 Kn if I had stayed there, based on those prices, which puts it just a little above my average.

GPS 44° 54.98 N 14° 54.87 E

Camping In Croatia Arrives In The 21st Century

As already mentioned in earlier postings, I was expecting to be disappointed by Croatian campsites in general, when I embarked on my last trip in May, but could not have been more wrong. My general impression of a few years ago was that many campsites were a little “tired”, in need of renovation, were mostly of the holiday resort type and somewhat overpriced for tourers (rather than pure holiday makers) like me. Admittedly it was a bit of a sweeping generalisation, as I’d spent a lot of time, on that earlier trip, on private premises close to friends, but the campsites I did stay at, for example Borik, did fit the bill (and still does I’m sorry to say). This time, I visited scores of campsites the length and breadth of coastal Croatia, and a few inland, and really noticed how many had gone up market and how the newish minicamps had quickly found their niche.

That focus on quality, reflective of the new style of Croatian tourism in general, may be arriving relatively late in some quarters, but is really taking hold now in much of the camping world. Pictured above is the reception at Camp Belvedere, Seget Vranjica, near Trogir, a camping destination that really exemplifies the best of 21st century camping in Croatia. There’s clearly been a massive investment in upgrading existing facilities and providing new ones, and it shows.  Swimming pool, bar, restaurant, arrival, reception, new holiday homes and toilet blocks all ooze class, and it’s still great value for money with a friendly and efficient service. It’s had some international recognition too and been awarded 4.5 stars by ANWB & ADAC – amongst the largest Dutch and German auto-clubs and camping associations. More on Camp Belvedere when we “get there” on our trip, but here’s the website link if you’d like more information now Camp Belvedere, Seget Vranjica

Another example of this new approach to camping is a smart, “portal type” website called AdriaCamps, which aims to help those considering a Croatian camping holiday in the very early stages of the process, walking them through the process of selecting and booking their campsite or campsites via a one stop website and call centre. This might save a lot of time and anxiety, particularly if, for example, you’re looking to find a campsite in the high season, when most Croatian campsites are fully booked. The website will also help you search for campsites or holiday homes by theme – pet friendly, sandy beaches, campsites near towns or with wellness facilities, etc., and it’s a growing resource for locating campervan, caravan or camping related services and information.

Founded in 2015 and run by a small friendly team of travel professionals with plenty of experience in the camping industry, AdriaCamps aims to help overcome any camping challenges with ease and should be a real boon to first time visitors as well as more seasoned travellers.  I‘m sure we’ll be writing plenty more on AdriaCamps as it grows but in the meantime have a look and see what it’s got to offer for yourself by following this link - AdriaCamps

Kamp Škver, Senj

Today was one of the very many very happy days of a very happy trip! I know there are a lot of “verys” in that sentence but, even without considering this was a working trip, it’s difficult to imagine a better way of exploring or passing the time.  The weather was great, the roads nice and quiet, we’d researched a handful of campsites on the way, and were just thinking that it might be time to stop in an hour or too when we discovered Kamp Škver in Senj. We liked it so much we decided to stop early and enjoy our position on the front row to the sea. And it also became the main photo for this blog as, to me, it depicts exactly what a trip of this kind to Croatia is all about – parking up after a hard day’s work, opening the campervan door and having a refreshing swim before a delicious fish supper.

I wasn’t quite sure about having a swim to start with – the sea still seemed a little cold but it was too good an opportunity to miss and, once I had braved it, a German lady then decided to try and everyone else followed! The dog, of course, never misses an opportunity and we found him a little spot, away from everyone.

The campsite has a lovely rustic restaurant – Konoba Gajeta - with great food. I had a fisherman’s gnocchi, a mixed salad and a beer which was 117 Kn, including 3 Kn for bread which is always a bit irritating but quite common.

Then it was a short walk, past the restaurant and under the stone arch, to go and investigate Senj itself and admire another amazing Croatian sunset.

I’ll be writing more, on Senj itself, on sister site, Croatia Online in due course. Its a lovely “spacious” and atmospheric town with plenty of history and a castle high up keeping an eye on everything. It’s not a prime tourist spot for lazing around on the beach but it’s my kind of place and the small campsite is superbly located, both in terms of being right next to the sea and also right next to the town.

Kamp Škver has all the facilities you need – not overly modern but not overly old either and it was one of the real bargains of the trip at 88 Kn including 20 for electricity and the dog thrown in during early negotiations. The staff are friendly and business like and it was the perfect staging post for me to start getting into “Mediterranean” mode. It has an unassailable place in my top ten campsites for location, value for money, the restaurant and a quirky kind of exclusivity.

 

The stone building is the restaurant and just behind that is the arch which separates the campsite from the town centre. 

 

For contact details and more information go to Tourist Board Senj - Skver Campsite

Four Croatian Campsites In French Top Twenty

Croatia Week has a great knack of spotting good news stories on Croatia and has come across a French Magazine, Le Monde du Plein Air (which roughly translates as The World of Fresh Air), which features four of Croatia’s campsites in its European top twenty.

We’ve visited two of them already and don’t entirely agree with their inclusion but, clearly, it’s a very subjective thing. Similarly it seems rather odd that all the campsites chosen are situated north of Zadar when there are some excellent campsites in the Šibenik, Split and Dubrovnik regions.

However….we’re in the process of compiling our own top ten of purely Croatian campsites so we’ll let you know the results of that in due course. We might be a little biased but there’s a good case for the European top ten being full of Croatian campsites and nothing else!

Follow this link for the full story  Croatia Week - 4 Croatia Campsites In European Top Twenty

Today’s main photo shows the dog exploring one of the Croatian campsites included in the top twenty – Camp Šimuni on Pag island. It’s huge and has some very modern toilet blocks and a special, brightly coloured kiddies toilet – see below.

It also has a vast selection of activities and peripheral facilities on offer though not that many were “open” when I was there in May. I can see, however, that it would appeal to those who want a resort-type holiday and to stay in the same place for a couple of weeks though it would be absolutely packed in summer. We’ll be doing a more detailed report on Camp Šimuni when we “get to it” on our trip in just a few days time.

Camp Bunica, Near Senj

We’d had an early start  on this our second whole day in Croatia, and we were getting tired after researching so many campsites. That and the rather steep and narrow access road meant that we didn’'t feel like going all the way down to inspect Camp Bunica up close. Of course Murphy’s law means that this is the only campsite of the day that does not seem to have its own website, or much information at all on the web so I’m afraid we can’t tell you about the prices.

We did, however, take some photos from the top of the access road which suggests a small, family owned campsite, right next to a splendid beach and a little bar/ restaurant, as well as some rooms to let too, We also took a GPS reading from the top of the access road: 45°01.475’ N 14°53.114 E

I  found a few reviews but all in a foreign language. The gist of those I could understand was that it was perhaps a little on the expensive side but very peaceful, with friendly owners, and a lovely place to swim and relax.. Obviously you’ll need your car or motorhome to get to shops, or into town (Senj,) as there’s nothing within an easy walk..

The photo below shows the beach and campsite right next door.

This next photo shows the top of the access road.

The contact details, from my Croatian National Tourist Board free Camping Guide, where its listed under Mini Campsites, are:

Address: Bunica V, Bunica b.b. Senj, HR 53270.

Tel: +385 ( 0 ) 53 616 718

Email: atomljanovic@yahoo.com

My experience is that if an organisation does not have a website, and sometimes even if it does, your chances of getting a response to an enquiry in English by email is pretty slim. However, just in case I am doing Camp Bunica a disservice, I have emailed to ask for a price list and will add a comment to this posting if I get anything back.

Next stop Senj and what a find that was – we liked it so much its the main photo for this blog.

Camping Sibinj

Day seven of our trip (but only our second whole day in Croatia) has turned into a campsite visiting one! One of the joys of this trip was that no two days were the same – sometimes we had a big town to revisit that took all day, sometimes a handful of little settlements, each of which we could walk around in twenty minutes., occasionally not a campsite or anything else of interest for quite a few miles so we could just drive and admire the views, and, on a day like today, a campsite around almost every corner.

Our next campsite, Camping Sibinj, was a real treat, not least because there was a tiny little church in the middle of it. I thought that made it pretty unique but I do seem to recall another one towards the end of the trip – we shall see.

As you can see from the main picture, the campsite is quite close to the main road. That means access is pretty easy but of course the downside is that you will probably hear the lorries rumble past, wherever you are. It’s not a huge campsite but it has all the basic facilities – again the toilet block looked a little “rustic” from the outside but was clean and reasonably modern inside. For electricity, there are both Croatian and standard European sockets.

The campsite also has a shop, free WiFi, a bus service to Senj and its own restaurant, with a no dogs sign fairly prominent, (though they are otherwise allowed on the campsite but perhaps not on the beach when it’s full of people). There is another restaurant directly opposite on the other side of the road.

As you can see from the photo of the campsite restaurant below, this campsite is like all the others so far - still working hard to get everything ready for the summer, though I’m sure they would have taken my money if I’d wanted to stay!

The beach looks great and is quite long with white pebbles that look as if they may have been brought in.

And if you want to meet any sailing friends for lunch, there are a couple of concrete mooring blocks on land with some buoys out to sea. Depths around four metres we were told.

There seems to be one price for the whole season (May to August) rather than the usual higher price for July and August: per day, a motorhome less than 5 metres costs 48 Kn; over 5 metres 58 Kn. Add to that 28 Kn for an adult or 14 Kn for a child between 5 & 12; under fives presumably free, electricity 32 Kn, dog 20 Kn, taxes 2 to 6 KN per day depending on age and season. I would have paid 143 Kn including dog and electricity which, again, is just above my average. For more information (but not prices) and some photos of the campsite in full swing, go to Apartmani Sibinj As the website name suggests, the owners (very helpful and friendly even while they were busy with all their maintenance jobs!) also have apartments to rent and we saw some new mobile homes in the campsite – see picture below -  so no doubt they’ll be for hire too.

Of the three campsites I’ve seen so far today I would say this would be best as an overnight stop, mainly in terms of access and not being as huge as the others which are more focused on longer stays, but we’ve a couple more to come on day seven, including one of my very favourites of the whole trip.

Camp Kozica

Those that read our previous posting on nearby Camp Klenovica will know that Camp Kozica is part of the same organisation – Luje. It’s a similar type of campsite too – covering a large area with its own stretch of beach and intended to be a kind of self contained holiday village with all the essential facilities on site. Again, it’s clear from the long grass and closed supermarket that Camp Kozica is not quite ready for the start of the season but that was a similar story throughout the early weeks of our trip (May and early June).

The access road is good and, though the facilities look a little tatty from the outside, the washrooms and toilets were modern and clean.

Prices are the same as Camp Klenovica so I’ve repeated the information below:

“a pitch costs from 70 to 96 Kn, one adult from 31 to 46 Kn, registration, insurance and taxes 11 to 14 Kn, a dog 13 to 21 Kn and electricity a flat 30 Kn. If I’d stayed there in May it would have cost me 159 Kn in total including the dog and electricity – on the slightly high side of the average I paid throughout the trip, particularly with some of the facilities not yet open.  “Pitch” is a bit of a misnomer as the camping area is not divided up and you just select a spot. This is quite common in Croatia and has its advantages and disadvantages!”

There’s a slip for launching small boats and though some of the electricity supply units looked a little in need of attention I’m sure that’s something that will be on the list of “pre-season” work.

For more information and pictures link to Camp Kozica Website

Camp Klenovica

We found the steep narrow road that takes you to Camp Klenovica as we were driving back up to the coast road from the centre of Klenovica. It takes you past reception and check in (main picture) and you then drive down to the campsite itself which covers about 30 acres and has a long pebble beach pretty well all to itself. It’s close to the islet of Sv Anton., south of the centre., and you can walk into town via the gate that’s obscured by the large tree on the right in the photo below.

We were there in early May and the season hadn’t started properly so it wasn’t really open (Open May to October according to the website). However a very nice lady allowed us to wander round and I’m sure we could have stayed if we’d wanted to. The toilets and washing facilities looked fine ….

….. and there;’s a supermarket and two restaurants – fish restaurant and self service buffet.

There’s also a little outdoor pool complex which was added in 2014 and was about to get its spring cl;ean and fill up for the summer season.

.As with most places, prices depend on the season with a pitch costing from 70 to 96 Kn, one adult from 31 to 46 Kn, registration, insurance and taxes 11 to 14 Kn, a dog 13 to 21 Kn and electricity a flat 30 Kn. If I’d stayed there in May it would have cost me 159 Kn in total including the dog and electricity – on the slightly high side of the average I paid throughout the trip, particularly with some of the facilities not yet open.  “Pitch” is a bit of a misnomer as the camping area is not divided up and you just select a spot. This is quite common in Croatia and has its advantages and disadvantages!

If you don’t have a caravan or motorhome with you then fully furnished mobile homes are also available, about 150 metres from the sea. Fully air-conditioned, each one is 24 square metres with two bedrooms sleeping up to 5, kitchen with dining room, bathroom, terrace with table, chairs and awning/shade, and a parking space. Basic prices are between €45 and €120 per day (again, depending on the season) excluding cots, pets, cleaning, bedding, taxes etc.

Klenovica itself seems like a pleasant, old fashioned, type of tourist village and you can read more about it on sister sites:

Croatia Online – Klenovica

Croatia Cruising Companion - Klenovica Harbour

The campsite is part of the Luje group which also owns nearby Kamp Kozica, which we also visited and will report on soon, as well as a hotel, villas and restaurant.

The group website Luje.hr is in Croatian only but there’s a separate website for Camp Klenovic.a. Camp-klenovica.com

Selce And The Crikvenica Riviera

Every settlement on the Croatian coast seems to be part of a “Riviera” these days and Selce is no exception, being part of the Crikvenica Riviera. When we wrote about nearby Crikvenica itself, on sister site Croatia Online (Croatia Road Trip Day 6 - Crikvenica) , we referred to a bygone era and indeed the area seems to have had its heyday as a spa retreat in the early 20th century. When we visited Selce in early May it gave the impression of a slightly sleepy but very endearing small town with everything needed in terms of basic facilities. It also has two campsites:

Autokamp Selce is part of the huge Jadran Hotels and Campsite Resort. We didn’t visit it and the website http://www.jadran-crikvenica.hr/autokamp-selce seems to be mostly in Croatian only so we’ve had to hunt around for corroborated facts. Its own website suggests it’s a 3-star site but others give 2 stars. Like most coastal campsites of the resort variety, it’s pretty huge and has a sizeable stretch of beach to itself. Dogs are allowed and facilities like shops, restaurants, bakery and mini golf aim to provide everything you will need while you’re there. This link will take you to the price list which does have English translations - http://cms.jadran-crikvenica.hr/uploads/2/9389a5cb91-kamp-selce-hr.pdf - and if you can work your way around of the rest of the website, you’ll recognise the style of site as of the holiday camp variety and likely to be pretty packed with families in the high summer.

Uvala Slana is about half the size of Autokamp Selce but of a similar style and also part of a hotel group which has not yet invested in full translations on its website. This link will take you to the price list in kunas http://www.club-adriatic.hr/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/6.-INDIVIDUALCI-PARCELE-KAMP-UVALA-SLANA-2016-KN.pdf and this one http://www.club-adriatic.hr/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/6.-INDIVIDUALCI-PARCELE-KAMP-UVALA-SLANA-2016-EUR.pdf to the price list in Euros. It has similar facilities to its neighbour (details on the pricelists) and both also offer holiday homes if you want the camping lifestyle but don’t want to tow or drive your accommodation with you..

Be warned that in this more traditional resort area of Croatia, you’re unlikely to find any of the newer breed of mini camps.

Camping Oštro, Kraljevica

After an eventful day (see Croatia Online - Trip Day 5), with our third disaster yet to come, we found Camping Oštro just after 6 pm. It’s of the “holiday camp” variety of campsite but was pretty deserted when we were there in early May and was not quite ready for the holiday season. This was to set the scene for things to come and came as no surprise – despite tourist board campaigns like Croatia 365, which aim to promote Croatia as an all year round destination, many campsites along the coast (and hotels, restaurants, cafés, etc) are struggling to break the habits of a lifetime. The “just in time policy” of getting venues ready for the historically short summer season of July and August continues and the “natural” sounds of May and June in Croatia feature the clattering of hammers on nails and timber, as well as the sound of birds tweeting!

It wasn’t a problem for me, here, that just a few of the leisure facilities weren’t ready, but it did become rather annoying, as the trip progressed. The degree of “unreadiness” could sometimes be quite major, and very few of the campsites were up front in telling you when you arrived, let alone offering a reduction in prices. One notable exception to this was Camping Split who were probably amongst the “readiest” of all the campsites in the pre season and yet had the decency to offer a small discount on checkout because some of the  peripheral “extras” weren’t quite ready.

However all the essentials were there, we had a great pitch, a lovely sandy beach nearly all to ourselves and a beautiful sunset.  The whole site was renovated in 2010/2011 and the facilities were modern and clean.

The view was interesting too – across the bay is the Rijeka oil refinery which, as these kind of installations go, is weirdly attractive..

The pitch itself, one of about 200, backed onto the beach, though there was a chicken mesh fence directly behind which was quite useful. A few strides away were some steps down,.

Price wise, it was higher than average. I paid a total of 162 kunas – pitch 103, 1 adult 35, insurance 1, city tax 4, registration 7, dog 12). I did stay in the best area – Zone A – and, all in all | think it was good value for money, even without all the high season activities. Like everywhere else, prices change, in phases, according to the season.

My grilled chicken and vegetables (simple but delicious) was 60 Kn and I washed it down with a glass of house red wine at 18 Kn.

The campsite is dog friendly though they’re not really supposed to go on the beach. Generally, if you have a well behaved dog, you and those around you will use their discretion – I just make sure there’s no one around who might get upset and NEVER leave a mess or allow the dog to approach anyone! Some people of course can’t resist his charms and ask to say hello which he loves.

As far as location goes (circled below) it’s designed to be a holiday destination in its own right and not, so much, a transit camp. It’s some way from the motorway but close to the main coast road and not much of a detour if you’re on your way to Krk island. It has the relatively remote Ostro headland pretty well all to itself and so it needs to be fairly well contained in terms of food, drink and entertainment.

For more information go to:

Camping Ostro Website

Croatia Camping Union – Ostro

Croatian Tourist Board Info - Kraljevica

And for those of you who want to enjoy the camping lifestyle in a little more luxury and/or don’t have a caravan or motorhome with you, there are twenty two-bedroom holiday homes available..