The elegant town of Opatija under the Christmas lights

Christmas markets are a big thing for Europe and its cities. All around Europe, you will find big and famous markets like the ones in Budapest, Vienna and Zagreb, but almost every city has its own markets that are bigger or smaller in size. Last weekend, the weather forecast was excellent, and we’ve decided to spend a weekend by the sea. Why not combine it with a visit to a smaller Christmas market? Opatija, a popular tourist resort in Kvarner Bay in Croatia sounded like a great idea.

We had a late morning departure, which was partly due to the fact that my son forgot to pack a part of his clothes and we had to return home to pick them up (luckily, he remembered it when we were still close to our home), and we arrived at the seashore right for lunch time. My wife planned the lunch stop in advance and booked a nice and cosy restaurant in the small town of Volovsko. A tiny village by the sea, quite calm, and with few nice restaurants.

We had a light, but delicious lunch with a fish menu.

In the early afternoon we reached our hotel and went for a walk along the town of Opatija. In winter, the days are short, so around 4 PM, it was slowly getting dark and the lights and Christmas decorations came alive.

The Christmas decorations and the Christmas markets were located in different parts of the town. Opatija itself has been a popular tourist destination since the 19th century. The area has a pleasant climate and beautiful landscapes, and it was an ideal location for the summer residences of the European nobility. Many of the buildings are still well preserved, have also been transformed into hotels, and today create a romantic and nostalgic atmosphere. When walking through Opatija, a visitor immediately notices not only the imposing buildings but also the numerous parks.

In December, with all the decorations, the town is even more appealing for visitors. My wife said that in her opinion, that was one of the nicest decorations she has ever seen, since all was done in a moderate way, not exaggerating but creating a warm and pleasant atmosphere.

We wandered around the seashore and along the main street, first entering Sv. Jakov Park and passing by the Helios and Selena fountain.

Right on the seashore, there was a small Christmas market offering hot drinks and street food.

We continued our walk along the seashore and passed “the symbol” of Opatija, the Maiden with the Seagull.

The Christmas decorations were going on all along the Lungo Mare, and we walked down to the Hotel Savoy, where we made a short stop for hot wine and hot chocolate.

We walked back the same way and continued to Angiolina Park, which is the biggest park in Opatija. The park was illuminated with special light effects, and there was also live music. At the bottom of the park, we noticed a small skating rink, also surrounded by some Christmas market stalls. Right time for another hot wine and "fritule,” a traditional Istrian dessert.

A part of the park was dedicated to the dwarfs, making it very attractive for smaller kids and offering some nice photo point opportunities.

At the end of our evening walk through Opatija, we stopped at the small chocolate shop located in the basement of one of the hotels. They call it “Choco World,” but it is just a small shop where they can also organise demonstrations of chocolate making and tastings. We just tasted a small piece of chocolate, bought one as a souvenir and slowly went to our hotel.

The next day, we had a sunny and super-warm Sunday in front of us. It was surprisingly hot. I think it was around 13 degrees Celsius, and on the sun even more... We took a relaxing walk along the seashore, had a nice coffee, and did some sunbathing.

Then we noticed that something was going on at the nearby beach. We heard some laughter, music and a small bell. Then we found out that a local club of enthusiasts is practicing winter swimming in the sea. I grabbed my camera and we want to take a look at the courageous Croatians ready to get into the cold sea.

I was surprised to see that almost all were mature men.

They were making a small show. They were dressed in old-style swimming costumes and they were singing a traditional song, but aside from the show and laughter.

I can just say “chapeau” that they were so courageous and that they went in the sea.

But what surprised me even more is that they stayed in the water for quite a long time; they were swimming and having fun.

We preferred to stay on the beach and enjoy the warm winter sun 😀

Thanks for reading,
feel free to leave a comment, I will be glad to reply to.
Best regards, @miljo76