Place In The Sun

Croatia, which already draws tourists by the millions, can expect a bump in popularity in the wake of its stunning World Cup showing.

- Louise Chunn

Everywhere I turn, I see Croatia. Its national football team, selected from a population of only 4.17 million, got to the final of the Fifa World Cup, defeating England along the way. Its glamorous president, Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović, dressed in the red-and-white team jersey, watched them play in the early games from the stands before Russian President Vladimir Putin invited her into the VIP box for the final. After the disappointing result, she shook the hand of every member of both teams and became a byword for “good sport”.

Well known as one of the stunning Game of Thrones locations, Croatia has now hit the big screen as the setting for Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, out this week to rave reviews. And if that’s not enough, UK tabloid readers learnt the whole Beckham family holidayed this month on a Croatian island.

For a country that was created only in 1991, Croatia has come a long way. Visitor numbers are predicted to hit 20 million this year, and tourism now brings in more than €8 billion ($13.77 billion) a year. In the past five years, it has featured widely in travel magazines’ lists of the hottest European spots to trot off to.

So, last summer, we joined the crowd – without huge expectations. I grew up spending summers at Bethells Beach (Te Henga) on Auckland’s west coast and tripping around the Coromandel and Northland, and have often found the Mediterranean disappointing for a beach break. Italy has sun, culture and great food, but many of its beaches are rocky. In Spain and France, unless you’re ready to get off the beaten track, the beaches are lined with loungers, and hundreds of people stand knee-deep in the water clinging to their mobiles. Hawkers selling tat along the shore are a constant bother.