Croatia is located on the northeastern shore of the Adriatic Sea, bordered by Slovenia and Hungary to the north, Yugoslavia to the east and Bosnia-Hercegovina to the south and east. The republic is twice the size of Belgium and swings around like a boomerang from the Pannonian plains of Slavonia, across hilly central Croatia to the Istrian Peninsula and the rugged Adriatic Coast. The southernmost portion of Croatia’s Adriatic Coast, including the town of Dubrovnik, is separated from the rest of the country by a knuckle of Bosnia-Hercegovina.

Croatia’s main tourist attraction has always been its beaches. The country has 1778km (1103mi) of coastline; 5790km (3590mi) if you count the islands. Most of the beaches, however, are slabs of rock rather than sand. The country’s offshore islands are as beautiful as those in Greece. There are 1185 of them, 66 of which are inhabited.

Croatia has seven excellent national parks. Brijuni, near Pula, is the most carefully cultivated, with well-preserved Mediterranean holm oak forests. Mountainous Risnjak National Park is home to lynx, while the dense forests of Paklenica National Park harbour insects, reptiles and birds, including the endangered griffon vulture. At Plitvice Lakes National Park you’ll find bears, wolves and deer.