With the most wonderful time of the year just around the corner, Rijeka is full-on getting into the Christmas spirit. Everything is ready for the 2018 Rijeka Advent festivities, reports Rijeka Tourist Board on November 30, 2018.

As Christmas draws near, we are delighted to announce the opening of Rijeka Advent which is to take place tomorrow, December 1, 2018. Advent in Rijeka traditionally begins with lighting the first Advent candle on the Ivan Kobler Square followed by the ceremonial illumination of the city's holiday lights which are guaranteed to give Rijeka an instant festive makeover. This year, we will see an upgrade of Rijeka's holiday decor with brand new 7,458-meter long string lights and lighting decorations in 20 different designs.

Since last year's edition, Rijeka Advent has also grown in size. The 2018 event features new locations like TunelRi, the city's first underground tunnel that was built beneath downtown Rijeka in 1942, and served as an air raid shelter during WW2. Because of its special vibe, this 350-meters long tunnel is expected to be one of the most frequented attractions of this year's Rijeka Advent. It will be hosting various events like food fairs and wine exhibitions, but also theater shows for children, and for grownups, there'll be music events and parties on weekend nights.

Another novelty is the month-long Rijeka Gastro Advent which will be held at the Rijeka Resolution Square. Make sure you do regular rounds of this market because Gastro Advent is expected to offer various street food extravaganzas as well as traditional homemade specialties, artisan products, mulled wine, craft beer, etc.

And although there will be stands and stalls popping up everywhere, the city's largest Christmas market remains the one located downtown – whether you’re looking for decorations, handmade arts and crafts, or that perfect last-minute gift, you'll probably find it in one of the wooden chalets lined all along Rijeka's main pedestrian street Korzo. Also, another Christmas Art Bazaar has been announced, and with more than 30 independent designers and artists taking part, you're bound to pick up some really unique gifts you won't find in department stores.

The magical Trsat Castle will host Advent on Gradina which had its premiere last year, and in 2018 it boasts an even better program, while its biggest surprise is definitely the beautiful outdoor ice rink nestled in the heart of Nugent Park that overlooks the Kvarner Bay.

To find out more, check out the entire program here; there's definitely something for everyone! So just put on your ugliest Christmas sweater and come immerse yourself in the festive atmosphere of Rijeka Advent...

For more related news, make sure you follow our dedicated lifestyle page.

Fancy spending part of the festive season in a rather unusual location? It isn't Split, Dubrovnik, Zadar or Zagreb, but Knin, one of Croatia's most historically important cities, located in the rugged hills of the Dalmatian hinterland. Advent in Knin is, just like other locations across the country, looking like it's definitely worth a visit.

While Croatia is continuing to struggle with the self-limiting chains summer tourism places on the country, winter tourism has been helped hugely by Zagreb's advent success over the past three years. The Croatian capital has come on leaps and bounds, going from all but overlooked tourism wise, to being voted Europes best Advent destination for three years running. A title the city wants to win again this year.

The capital's continued success has rubbed off on other towns and cities up and down the country, with Dubrovnik's winter festival drawing more and more visitors each year, Split putting on an equally impressive show, and locations like Zadar, Rab and Pag following suit. It's not enough to say that Croatia desperately needs to try harder to free itself from the clutches of the three to four month long ''sea and sunshine'' destination box, but the chains are beginning to loosen with each passing year, and thanks to Zagreb's popularity at this time of year, other more overlooked Croatian cities are beginning to find their place.

As SibenikIN writes on the 28th of November, 2018, Advent in Knin is set to kick off very soon. The ice skating rink in front of the Franjo Tudjman school will be officially opened this coming Sunday at 17:00, and Knin's city administration, as well as the organisers of Advent in Knin have invited all those interested to be there.

In addition to the official opening the ice skating rink, the Christmas lights placed across the city will be turned on, and all the events for Advent in Knin 2018 are set to begin on Sunday, according to Huknet.

The ice rink will remain open until January the 2nd, 2019, and on Sunday a festive cottage serving drinks and food located next to the ice rink will begin its work. Advent in Knin will see to it that ice skating, as well as all of the required equipment for skating will be free for everyone.

The remaining five festive cottages partaking in this year's Advent in Knin festivities will be located in the park below the school playground and they will open considerably later, on December the 21st, when numerous cultural events are set to begin in the same location, also as part of Advent Knin's event programme for 2018.

Make sure to follow our dedicated travel and lifestyle pages for more news on the numerous advent programmes for various locations across the country.

Nov. 20, 2018 — Advent in Zadar will begin on Nov. 24, as one of Dalmatia’s coastal gems is getting an early start on an emerging Croatian holiday tradition.

The City of Zadar’s official day will overlap with the start of Advent in Zadar, with local institution Klapa Intrade playing at 11:30 a.m. The festivities will carry on through the night, with Croatian pop staple Magazin performing in the evening.

The million-kuna event will last until New Year’s Day, with daily musical guests, outdoor space for dancing, drinking and eating, as well as holiday favorites such as “fritule” and cooked wine served from one of “Advent Houses” lining Petar Zoranić Square.

Every Friday through Sunday morning, Advent in Zadar will also feature children’s workshops and performances.

There will also be ice skating open to the public (at a cost, of course) at the Sports Center Višnjik, just outside of the old town. It costs 20 kunas an hour to ice skate, plus 10 kunas for rental skates.

The fourth-annual iteration of Zadar's Advent will have daily “themes”, ie: hometown heroes, a capela groups, etc. Every evening will end with a performance by one of a long list of many Croatian pop stars booked for the event.

For a full list of all the events scheduled, including workshops and performances, check the link here or on Advent in Zadar’s Facebook page.

You can follow all of TCN’s coverage of Zadar here.

Advent in Pag is said to boast a very rich program this year!

Winter is just around the corner, and that means that numerous cities across the country are turning the page from summer tourism to winter tourism and opening up their respective Advent programs. With Advent in Zagreb, the winner of the best European title for three years running, boasting the best Advent festivities yet, and Advent in Split and Dubrovnik doing the same, what can other, smaller destinations offer this winter season?

Pag has become a hit destination in recent years, with tourists flocking from all around to this other-worldly looking island in the Northern Adriatic sea during the warm summer months. As Croatia's fifth largest island, and the one with the longest coastline of them all, Pag has a lot to offer its visitors during the summer, from history to one of the world's most famous beaches and party destinations, Zrće, in the town of Novalja in the island's northern region.

That being said, Pag is much more than just sea and sun on an island with a bizarre and unusual landscape that looks as if it fell from Mars.

As eZadar/Radio Pag writes on the 14th of November, 2018, Pag is set to put on a proverbial show for Advent in Pag this festive season, and for the first time ever, an ice skating rink will be placed on the island for locals and tourists alike to enjoy. 

Under the organisation of the Tourist Board of Pag and the City of Pag's administration, this year Advent in Pag will boast a very rich festive program for all. In addition to the new ice skating rink which will make its Pag debut this winter, there will be much more content including festive cottages and stands with traditional food.

Pag's old streets will be richly decorated, as will the squares and the waterfront. Pag's mayor, Ante Fabijanić, has stated that this year, Advent in Pag will be even better than previous ones held on the island.

Make sure to keep up to date with our lifestyle page for more.

Could less be more for Advent in Zagreb this year? This year's five-week-long Advent celebrations in the capital are set to have a smaller offer and less ''cottages'' in order to reduce consumerism and improve the overall quality of what is on offer.

As Marta Duic/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 11th of November, 2018, at the presentation of this year's Advent in Zagreb, which has held the title of the best in Europe for three years now, it has been announced that the emphasis of the event, which will last from the 1st of December to the 6th of January, will be placed more onto cultural events in order to reduce the atmosphere of consumerism and restore the true Christmas spirit.

The novelties this year will be the city's various locations,  Advent in Maksimir, Advent on Old Tkalča, where traditional crafts will go hand in hand with the spirit of some of Zagreb's oldest townhouses in Gradec and Kaptol, and the ''Film Advent'' in Kino Europa will be presented. As they say from the Zagreb Tourist Board this year, there will be three locations less than last year, and although they couldn't precisely quantify the number, there will be a decrease in cottages in the city.

During last year's Advent, 110,707 people spent up to half a billion kuna in Zagreb alone, with most of them spening as much as 139 euros per day, the number of overnight stays and arrivals was also 23 percent higher in the first thirty days of Advent in Zagreb than in 2016. Poslovni Dnevnik asked those who earn their money during Advent in Zagreb what they think about reducing the number of cottages, but it seems that everyone involved understands the good intentions of the organisers, as they themselves think the crowds are by far the biggest problem.

Saša Frid, who for three years at Advent in Zagreb recalls that the sheer wave of people is what is causing "chaos" for those working, and most of those with stands and/or cottages simply cannot produce the right quantities to meet the wishes of all of those visiting.

"The first three weekends are a real hit, and only when that crowd goes down is there any room to improve the offer, since it was physically impossible and technically hard to do before then. It would be great to have as few industrial and as many domestic products as possible, but I think it will be difficult to change all of that because to most, Advent still looks like a chance just to make money,'' noted Frid.

Matej Đorđević, co-owner of the Time restaurant, who will also take part in Advent in Zagreb this year, argues that the problem is not really to do with stands or Advent cottages, but the fact that this event in Zagreb brings "a sea" of people into Zagreb from all over Croatia and Europe.

"Our city is simply incapable of dealing with such a massive inflow of people and it's therefore necessary that the city infrastructure itself is gradually adapted. However, the fact remains that Advent in Zagreb has ''made'' the city (in touristic terms) and that's an immense tourist achievement for this city, for which the leadership of the Zagreb Tourist Board is the most deserving,'' stated Đorđević.

Want to keep up with what's going on across Croatia for Advent this year? Make sure to follow our lifestyle page. If it's Zagreb you're interested in, make sure to follow Total Zagreb.

Click here for the original article by Marta Duic for Poslovni Dnevnik

Advent in Zagreb has seen Croatia's capital go from strength to strength in terms of tourism over the last few years.

Attracting visitors from all over the world and gaining the title of the Best European Advent Destination for three years running, Advent in Zagreb isn't messing around when it comes to turning the city into a winter wonderland to get you ready for the most wonderful time of the year. Scrooge or not, it's hard to resist Zagreb at this time of year.

As 24sata writes on the 3rd of November, 2018, Zagreb's tourist board has its fingers crossed that this year will also be a great one, with the aim of attracting a record number of arrivals and overnight stays. 

This year, the much loved Advent in Zagreb will begin on December the 1st, and as Martina Bienenfeld, the director of the Zagreb Tourist Board told RTL, the christmas spirit and cheer is spreading out over the city much more, and advent will also take to some new locations across the capital.

Advent in Zagreb's organisers are already claiming that this year will be the most beautiful to date, and things have already got started.

There are already decorations being readily put up along the streets of Zagreb, given the fact that, as previously mentioned, this year things kick off as early as December the 1st with a little warm up taking place just a few days earlier.

As Bienenfeld stated, Advent in Zagreb will take to some brand new locations in the city, and owing to that some of the locations people have frequented in the past few years will naturally be overlooked, therefore they will be shut down.

To briefly recall Advent in Zagreb's incredible rise to fame and recognition, Zagreb's advent has been proclaimed to be the most beautiful in Europe for three years running and continues to attract very high numbers to Croatia's previously very much overlooked capital city. The Christmas spirit will stay in the capital in the form of advent for five weeks.

Want to stay up to date with Advent in Zagreb and what's going on in the capital? Make sure to follow Total Zagreb and keep yourself in the loop.

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