January 23, 2019 - Suncani Hvar Hotels announces the opening of luxury 5-star Palace Elisabeth for Summer 2019. 

The good news keeps on coming from the island of Hvar. 

Last month, the Sunshine Island completed its 150th birthday year, celebrating the oldest organised tourism in Europe. It is just one of a few rather unusual facts about Croatia's premier island, which is famed for its lavender, beaches, nightlife, culture, and the island with the most sun in Europe and the most UNESCO heritage in the world.

Just as one might not perhaps expect organised tourism in Europe to have started on the 'Austrian Madeira' with the founding of the Hvar Health Society back in 1868, another spectacular claim to fame for Hvar is the fact that Europe's oldest public theatre opened on the main square, back in 1612.

The historic theatre, which is housed on the top floor of the historic Arsenal building which guards the entrance to the square, has been closed for renovation for many years. It was announced recently that the theatre will reopen this year, with the first performance planned for May. The theatre has already been opened up to the public to see the results of the renovations. 

The theatre is not the only piece of Hvar heritage around the main square which is undergoing a new lease of life in 2019. 

Meet Suncani Hvar Hotels' Palace Elisabeth, the first 5-star hotel on Croatia's premier island. The hotel group confirmed Palace Elisabeth's opening this summer earlier today on social media. 

Palace Elisabeth will be the first 5-star hotel on the elite island, finally bringing luxury hotel standards to the level of its high-spending guests. And, just like its famous theatre across the square, Palace Elisabeth has quite a history of its own, its real estate dating back to the 13th century. 

(Photo credit Secret Hvar)

Indeed, the new luxury boutique hotel is on the same location as the original structures used by the Hvar Health Society, which opened its doors on May 15, 1868, as a place of rest and recuperation on a fair Dalmatian island with a very agreeable climate. The sich and infirm of the Austro-Hungarian aristocracy came to stay and left much healthier. Hvar as a tourist destination became widely known. And the rest, as they say, is history. 

Construction of the first health hotel began in 1881 after the previous decaying palace was destroyed. It took 17 years to complete and finally opened in 1899. The Spa Hotel Empress Elisabeth was named after the Austrian Empress Elisabeth 'Sisi'. Sisi was a generous sponsor who financed the hotel construction. And so it is perhaps fitting that the memory of the generous empress lives on more than 100 years, as Palace Elisabeth once more takes her name.

The luxury boutique hotel is a significant upgrade on the previous version, the 2-star Hotel Palace. it also represents the latest significant investment from the Suncani Hvar Hotel group. After a major overhaul of its main hotels back in 2006, Suncani Hvar has invested heavily in the last couple of years to upgrade its flagship hotels Adriana and Amfora. Added to the chic Hotel Riva on Hvar's fabled waterfront, Hotel Palace Elisabeth will form a quality quarter of hotels in the town, to give its guest a wide range of choice. 

The boutique heritage hotel will boast 45 luxury rooms and suites, as well as an indoor pool, terraces and spa. In terms of location, there are few places better than the San Marco Terrace, which overlooks the elite waterfront and faces the historic theatre. A new addition which will be a popular place to escape the crowds will surely be the new Cigar Lounge Bar.

Full details of the renovation, as well as the exact opening date, have still to be released, but keep an eye on the Suncani Hvar page for Palace Elisabeth for the latest news. 

And watch out for those theatre performance dates. Imagine being able to stay in a luxury boutique 5-star hotel where organised tourism in Europe began, before strolling across the square to enjoy a play in Europe's oldest public theatre. You don't get THAT on many islands in the world... 

To learn more about Hvar, check out our new sister website, Total Croatia, which brings you everything about the island in one place - meet Hvar in a Page.

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