General info about Croatia
| CROATIA IN GENERAL | The Republic of Croatia is a democratic European state. |
| AREA | 56,691 square kilometers of land, and 31,067 square kilometers of sea. |
| LENGTH OF THE COAST | 5,835 kilometers - with 4,057 kilometers of the island coastline, reefs and cliffs. |
| ISLANDS, REEFS AND CLIFFS | There are 1,185. Out of 66 inhabited islands the biggest are Krk and Cres. |
| POPULATION | 4,784,000 (according to the 1991 census). Most of the population are the Croats. The national minorities include Hungarians, Serbs, Czechs, Slovaks and Italians. |
| CAPITAL | Zagreb (almost one million inhabitants). |
| OFFICIAL LANGUAGE AND SCRIPT | The Croatian language and Latin script. |
| RELIGION | The majority are Roman Catholics, and there are some of the Orthodox, Muslim and other Christian followers. |
| STATE SYSTEM | Multi-party parliamentary republic. |
| PASSPORTS | Passports or other identification documents recognized by international agreement. Tourists may stay for up to three months. A driving license, traffic license and the relevant insurance documents (except for countries that have other regulations) are necessary tour entry into Croatia with a vehicle. |
| CUSTOMS | Customs duties are not paid on personal objects. Radios. telephones, sporting and professional equipment may be brought into the country after having been registered at the border. |
| MONEY | The official currency of the Republic of Croatia is the Kuna which has 100 Lipa's. Foreign currency may be exchanged in banks, exchange offices and post offices in accordance with the valid exchange rate. All major credit cards (American Express, Diners, Eurocard/Mastercard, Visa) and Eurocheques (after being changed in banks) are accepted. |
| TOURIST HEALTH INSURANCE | Foreign tourists do not have to pay for medical services if there is a signed health insurance convention between Croatia and their country of origin. Health care costs for tourists from a country that does not have a signed convention with Croatia are paid directly by the user in accordance with listed prices. |
| CLIMATE | Northern Croatia has a continental climate. Central, semi mountainous and mountainous regions, as well as the entire Adriatic coast. have a Mediterranean climate. Spring and autumn are mild along the coast, while winter can be cold and snowy in central and northern regions. |
| PUBLIC HOLIDAYS | January 1st - New Year's Day January 6th - Epiphany April 12th and 13th - Easter May 1st - Labor Day May 30th - National Day June 22nd - Anti-fascist Day August 5th - National Thanksgiving Day August 15th - Our Lady of the Assumption November 1st - All Saints' Day December 25th and 26th - Christmas |
| WORKING HOURS | Banks and post offices are generally open from 7 AM to 7
PM without breaks Public offices work from Monday to Friday from 8 AM to 4 PM. During the tourist season, post offices are generally open until 9 PM, including Saturdays. Shops and department stores work from 8 AM to 8 PM without breaks. |
| IMPORTANT TELEPHONE NUMBERS | 92 - Police 93 - Fire-brigade 94 - Ambulance 987 - Breakdown service 01/4640-800 - Croatian road service/auto club - road information 981 - General information |
| PROGRAMMES IN FOREIGN LAUNGUAGES | On the first channel of Croatian Radio, on 92.1 MHz, news is broadcast every day at 8.03 PM and 0.10 AM in English and Spanish, and at 8.03 AM, 10.03 AM and at 2.03 PM in English only (on Sundays, the first news begins at 9.03 AM) throughout the year. On the second channel of Croatian Radio, on 98.5 MHz, from 1 July to 15 September, every full hour from 8 AM till 8 PM, the information about road conditions, ferry connections and brief news for tourists in English, German and Italian is broadcast. There are also reports for nautical tourists at 12.15 and at 6.15 PM in English and Croatian with introduction to one marina every day. |
| ROAD ASSISTANCE | Is organized by HAK (Croatian Automobile Association) - phones: 01-461-0987 and 455 4433 and operates on major roads and in towns by dialing 987 (car tow around the clock, technical repairs not during the night). Members of ADAC and OAMTC can also contact their representative at 01-363-666, 01-363-6000 or 01-363-6500. Monday to Saturday from 9 AM to 5 PM (in high season Monday to Saturdays from 8 AM to 8 PM, Sundays from 9 AM to 5 PM). Since HAK is a member of AIT and FIA, repairs can be paid with credit letters of foreign automobile clubs. |
| TELECOMMUNICATIONS | One may call abroad directly from any public phone. They can be used only with phone cards. These can be bought in post offices, and at news-stands, hotels and tourist complexes. Croatian Telecom has a commercial arrangement with 79 GSM operators in 43 countries around the world. Guest users of GSM can call the GSM information service on + 385 1 9120 for further information. |
| NATURISM | Croatia is one of the world pioneers of naturist movement. There are numerous camps and hotels/hotel settlements reserved for naturists only. |
| INTERNATIONAL AIRPORTS | Zagreb, Osijek. Pula, Rijeka, Zadar, Split, Brač, Lošinj and Dubrovnik. National airline company: Croatia Airlines. |
| MINOR AIRPORTS | Vrsar, Grobnik, Otočac, Varaždin, Pribislavec (čakovec), Lučko and Sinj. |
| TIME ZONE | GMT + one hour (Summer: GMT + two hours). |
| ELECTRICITY | 220 V, 50 Hz. |
| WATER | Tap water is safe for drinking in all parts of Croatia. |
