October 18, 2021 - Located on the banks of the Korana river in Karlovac, the Aquatika Freshwater Aquarium seeks to educate about the rich flora and fauna of the river, as well as the environment preservation. This weekend they will celebrate five years of existence with a varied program of fun and educational activities.

As Turitičke Priče reports, the Aquatika Freshwater Aquarium, located on the banks of the river Korana in Karlovac, dedicates five years of its existence to the importance of preserving the environment. The central part of the celebration will last from October 22 to 24. Walking through the River of the Future, visitors will have the opportunity to learn more about the history of Aquatika and the topics of sustainable development through various programs. Educational programs will try to draw attention to the environment and the preservation of freshwater ecosystems, and various lectures, plays, animations, holograms, quiz and programs for children and the whole family have been selected.

In anticipation of the birthday celebration, Aquatika Freshwater Aquarium Karlovac will offer visitors a pre-program "Aquatika in the city" at several locations throughout the city of Karlovac. The Katzler Pavilion has turned its exhibition space into a large aquarium. The themes of the exhibition include the Karlovac rivers and their fish stock, and they will be on view until 31 October. The Karlovac City Museum will be able to visit the ichthyological collection as part of the "Aquatics in the Museum" program.

Aquatika in the City Library Ivan Goran Kovačić will mark the presentation shelves with books about fish and workshops for children, and the play for children "On the trail" will play for free in the theater as part of the Aquatika program in the City Theater Zorin dom on October 24.

On October 22, entry to Aquatika is free

The main part of the program will last from October 22 to 24 at Aquatika Freshwater Aquarium Karlovac. It will consist of a program on the aquarium square and a program on the River of the Future (promenades along the Korana). Visitors will be able to see the aquarium at promotional prices, see several plays, attend various educational lectures and workshops, participate in educational and quiz walks along the Korana, listen to stories, animations, and programs for children and experience the holograms of Aquatika Freshwater Aquarium Karlovac.

Zoran Vakula's lecture "5 to 12" should definitely be singled out, which will introduce visitors to climate change. Aquatika invites all citizens to get acquainted with the river world, and the first 500 visitors on October 22 are expecting a special gift.

It is important to emphasize that on October 22, entry to the Aquatika Freshwater Aquarium will be free, and on October 23 and 24, tickets will be available at 50% lower prices.

Aquatika has hosted more than 320,000 visitors in five years

Public institution Aquatika Freshwater Aquarium Karlovac was established five years ago as a result of a project co-financed by the European Union. Already in the first year of its existence, it has largely fulfilled the goals set in the project itself. So far, the aquarium has been visited by more than 320,000 visitors, mostly families with children, school groups, groups of retirees, hobbyists, nature lovers, and students and scientists.

The aquarium is an ecological, educational, tourist, and scientific attraction. It exudes originality considering that it is about almost all Croatian freshwater fish species, in a city on four rivers in the heart of Croatia. Through his work, in addition to the function of the aquarium, he has the task to present the traditional culture, geological past, and way of life along the rivers and collaborates on various projects with the scientific sector.

For more information about the event and other upcoming activities, as well as learning more about Aquatika Freshwater Aquarium in Karlovac, be sure to check their official Facebook page.

A beautiful city of beer, four rivers, promenades, parks and 10, 000 trees. For more about Karlovac, be sure to check Total Croatia's complete guide, Karlovac in a Page, here. Now in your language!

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May 21, 2021 - A special program was prepared by the Aquatika Freshwater Aquarium Karlovac every day this weekend, to celebrate different but special occasions.

Turistickeprice.hr reports that, to mark the Day of the Natura 2000 ecological network, which is celebrated today, the Croatia Nature Protection Day on Saturday, May 22, and the World Turtle Day, on Sunday, May 23, the Public Institution Aquatika Freshwater Aquarium Karlovac have prepared a special program.

Credit: Aquatika Freshwater Aquarium Karlovac Facebook Page

Natura 2000 is an ecological network made up of areas across the European Union inhabited by animal and plant species that are endangered, vulnerable, or on the verge of extinction for various reasons. The European Union has established the Natura 2000 ecological network, and all members of the European Union are obliged to protect such endangered habitats and animal species.

The goal of the ecological network is to preserve or restore favorable conditions for more than a thousand endangered and rare species and for about 230 natural and pre-natural habitat types. This ecological network includes about 20% of the territory of the European Union, or about 27,500 areas, which makes it the largest system of preserved areas in the world. The Natura 2000 site has its own special day, and it is May 21st. On this day, in 1992, the European Habitats Directive and the LIFE Program were approved. With the Birds Directive, they form the basis for the European Natura 2000 network.

To commemorate the day the United Nations adopted the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in 1992, May 22 is celebrated as International Day for Biological Diversity. All signatory countries to the Convention, including Croatia, have committed themselves to take the measures necessary for the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity. This day is also celebrated in Croatia as Nature Protection Day.

On the Aquatika Square and on the promenade created within the project "Encounter with the River", the Karlovac Freshwater Aquarium is organizing an event as part of the "Spring in Karlovac" event. Thus, on Saturday, May 22, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., educational animation for children will be organized on Aquatika Square. The topic will be the biological diversity of our rivers and nature protection. On the promenade, three educators with two holograms and a stand with promotional materials will promote the ecological network Natura 2000 and educate visitors.

Credit: Aquatika Freshwater Aquarium Karlovac Facebook Page

Aquatika will mark another important day, World Turtle Day on Sunday. On that occasion, they will have turtle feeding with education about their life habits, as well as the artistic expression on the topic of turtles.

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The public institution Aquatika in Karlovac and Una National Park in Bihać, Bosnia and Herzegovina signed an agreement to cooperate on tourism, promotion, scientific work and monitoring, among other projects, reports HRTurizam on February 2, 2019. 

This cooperation is significant as it finally presents a positive example of synergy and the importance of connecting two tourist destinations from two neighboring states, Croatia and Bosnia.

“We believe that we will succeed in increasing the number of visits and exchanging visitors through various joint activities. We will invite our visitors to the National Park, and they will present Aquatika to their visitors,” said the Director of Aquatika, Margarita Maruškić Kulaš, before adding: "Within this Agreement, we will arrange joint promotion and cooperation on the various project activities of both institutions. In this cooperation, the most important three points are joint projects in the field of promotion, science and research, and especially the fish species that inhabit Una, and promotion on the development of tourism in both regions. I believe that together we will realize more and more visits ", emphasized Marusic Kulaš.

The Una river runs in Croatia and is a natural border between BiH and Croatia. The Una National Park desires to develop a unique continental riviera that would stretch across the entire river, regardless of the state border.

"We can say that this natural sequence has connected our regions since ancient times, especially Bihać and Bosanska Krajina with Banja and Kordun, namely Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Una River which is our common resource, our common river, and largely the border river. However, we believe that rivers connect and must connect people and this is our contribution to show that we are ready to cooperate but also to connect in different areas, especially when it comes to nature conservation and, of course, creating an environment for sustainable development,” Mulić said.

But this not the first time Aquatika has shown their willingness to cooperate with others. Last year, they collaborated with three public institutions in Karlovac County in the area of tourism: the Barać Caves, Ivana's House of Fairy Tales in Ogulin, and Plitvice Lakes National Park. 

Synergy is crucial for tourism and tourist destinations - and if there is no synergy and cooperation, there is no quality tourist product. What is most important in this story is that the motive for travel is not accommodation, but quality, varied and authentic content.

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3LHD's “Aquatika” freshwater aquarium in Karlovac won two A + Awards by one of the world's leading architecture portals.

"Piran Days of Architecture", which will take place on November 19, is an international architectural conference that started back in 1983. The conference is held in Piran in Slovenia each year, and evaluates current trends in architecture.