June 13, 2019 - The popular CBS series The Amazing Race aired a brand new episode in the United States on June 12, 2019. Namely, the 9th episode of season 31 (yes, you heard that right) titled ‘Let’s Split’ discovers Croatia, and primarily the former home of Emperor Diocletian - Split. 

“Teams take a bumpy ride in Split, Croatia and try not to get tongue-twisted reciting poetry while in motion,” writes CBS about the episode, which saw the remaining six teams travel from Brienz, Switzerland to Croatia to begin their mission at Bačvice beach (though they call it Kašjuni in the show).

The episode follows the teams from Bačvice, where they are tasked with serving drinks to groups of beachgoers (who are hiding the Travelocity gnome) at cafe bar Žbirac. From there, the mission takes them to Marjan hill and the famous church built into its cliffs. And the task? Delivering bread, of sorts. 

The next stop of the mission is Kašjuni beach, where the competitors chose between two challenges - “Poetry in Motion” and “Washed In from the Ocean”. Namely, the teams could opt for memorizing a poem while riding on a flying tube and proceeding to pronounce it correctly to pass, or snorkeling with metal detectors to find a golden goblet and five coins to get their next clue. 

From Kašjuni the team sped to Diocletian’s Palace, where the competitors had to carefully follow the quick-moving formation of 18 Roman soldiers.

To get to the finish line, the teams rowed from the Split port to Matejuška where they were greeted by a group of Dalmatian dogs.

You can see episode 9 in its entirety below. 

To read more about lifestyle in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page. 

Summer is right around the corner, and one of the most beautiful beaches in Split, Kaštelet, which is better known as Obojena, will shamefully welcome the new season. The Split Obala firm, as far as their workload is concerned, did only what was needed to upgrade the beach before the season, and did not even bother to fix the broken stone shower which was set up last year, reports Dalmatinski Portal on June 4, 2019. 

Milan Šabić

The entrance to the sea is disastrous - it is bare, with sunken in puddles, broken walls, and graffiti.

Milan Šabić

Obojena was one of Split’s most popular beaches, and thanks to Dragan Jurišić Jenki, the concessionaire at that time, the soul of the beach was not sold to lounge chairs, allowing it to remain mostly untouched. However, after the demolition of the illegally constructed buildings last year, Obojena now looks a bit desperate. Apart from asphalting the access road, the beach saw few cosmetic upgrades. 

Milan Šabić

There are no concession permits in the Maritime Management Plan, although the city, under the euphoric impression of Žnjan's design, announced identical modules in Kaštelet.

Milan Šabić

However, it seems that Obojena has been forgotten.

Just down the road at Kašjuni, we might add, preparations are in full swing for swimmers. Namely, the entrance to the sea has been fixed up with the help of excavators, and sand has been brought in to level the ground around both catering facilities.

The lounge chairs and canopies are ready to go. 

Recall, in Žnjan, works have been ongoing to prepare the beach since March. Last year, eight catering units, each made up of two modules (12 × 12 meters) plus storage space and 300 to 400 square meters of terrace, was implemented last year. The popular Split beach opened their doors to caterers after all illegal facilities were removed in the fall of 2017. Cafes are expected to have better traffic than last year, as they didn’t begin operations until the middle of the 2018 season. 

According to the announcements, the final solution to Žnjan should be implemented in the summer of 2020. 

To read more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page 

We know that many of us like to rush into summer, and with the weather as good as we have been having here in Split, we’d recommended you run, and don’t walk (or drive, for instance) to your favorite Split beaches.

What do the busiest Split beaches offer?

With summer still in full swing and the weather warming up this week, we thought we’d encourage you to be outside and by the sea as much as you can. What better way to persuade you to do so? Here are some of the top beach clubs in Split where you can lounge in the sun, drink by the sea, and eat your hungry hearts out.

As the temperatures are surely beginning to rise on the Croatian coast this summer, giving us 30°+ days with scorching sun and sweat filled clothes, we know we are in for another heater. Luckily for those of us living in or visiting Split, we have many options to cool down when we’re feeling that we’re really in need of a freezer.

Ultra Europe: Three days of explosive headliners, mind blowing visuals, intensive dancing and 40,000 of your best friends. Poljud Stadium in Split has created the perfect atmosphere to sweat it out under the hot summer heat in a pristinely ancient European city. Although we know the festival will take up most of your time in Split, it would be a shame not experience the plethora of built in amenities the city has to offer. Understanding your tired bodies will be in need of some daily R&R, here is a list of activities for you, whether you’re nursing a hangover or resting your tired legs. We promise we aren’t asking too much of you to fully imbibe in the Dalmatian experience.

Our beloved Kašjuni beach has gotten a new flair, and we are happy to welcome Joe’s Beach Lounge & Bar to the neighborhood!