General Information About Croatia

Geographical position

Croatia extends from the furthest eastern edges of the Alps in the north-west to the Pannonian lowlands and the banks of the Danube in the east; its central region is covered by the Dinara mountain range, and its southern parts extend to the coast of the Adriatic Sea.

Surface

The mainland covers 56,542 km², and the surface of the territorial sea is 31,067 km².

Population

4,437,460 inhabitants; composition of population: the majority of the population are Croats; national minorities are Serbs, Slovenes, Hungarians, Bosnians, Italians, Czechs and others.

System of government

Multi-party parliamentary republic.

Capital

Zagreb (790,017 inhabitants), the economic, traffic, cultural and academic center of the country.

Coastline

5,835 km of which 4,058 km comprise a coastline of islands, solitary rocks and reefs. Number of islands, solitary rocks and reefs: 1,185; the largest islands are Krk and Cres; there are 50 inhabited islands.

Climate

There are two climate zones; a temperate continental climate, locally also a mountainous climate, prevails in the interior, whereas a pleasant Mediterranean climate prevails along the Adriatic coast, with an overwhelming number of sunny days, dry and hot summers, mild and humid winters; average temperature in the inland: January 0 to 2°C, August 19 to 23°C; average temperature at the seaside: January 6 to 11°C, August 21 to 27 °C; the temperature is about 12°C in winter, and 25°C in summer.

Currency

Kuna (1 kuna = 100 lipa). Foreign currency can be exchanged in banks, exchange offices, post offices, travel agencies, hotels, camps, marinas; cheques can be cashed in banks.

Official language

Croatian, written in Latin alphabet

Time zone

GMT + 1 (GMT + 2 from last Saturday in March to Saturday before last Sunday in October).

Electricity

220V, 50Hz.

Important Phone Numbers

International telephone access code for Croatia is +385. The area codes for the largest cities and their surroundings areas are as follows: Zagreb 01, Split 021, Rijeka 051, Osijek 034. Omit the 0 when dialing from abroad. To place an outgoing international call from Croatia, dial 00 plus the relevant country code and number.