OPATIJA, a colorful town in the Northern Adriatic, is often referred to as the Queen of Croatian Tourism, the Old Lady or the Adriatic Pearl. And rightfully so. The town boasts over a century and a half long tradition in tourism. This tradition is considered to have started some 160 years ago when a Rijeka native, Higin Scarpa, built a remarkable summer house, the Villa Angiolina, which has till this day remained one of Opatija's most renowned landmarks.

In 1884, forty years after the construction of the Villa Angiolina, the Vienna Southern Railway Company built and opened the first tourist establishment on the eastern coast of the Adriatic - the Kvarner Hotel, now celebrating its 120th anniversary. The first famous guests who came to stay overnight in Opatija were friends of the owner and members of the Austrian Emperor’s court in Vienna. The construction of the hotel marked the beginning of the area’s economic blossoming and in the following years more hotels, villas and summerhouses were built. Opatija has since become a favorite excursion destination for tourists from all over Europe. 


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