October 15, 2021 – With local seafood currently at its best and cooler temperatures inviting runners, hikers and cyclists to this spectacular location, Omiš in autumn is one of the best destinations of the season.

When temperatures cool on the Croatian coast, the telltale signs of tourism start to fade. Villages that were full of people in summer become very still. Only in the larger places does life go on unaffected.

The seaside city of Omiš is one such place. The charming Omiš Old Town streets hold their special atmosphere throughout the year. Autumn, in particular, is a favourite time for visitors to come.

Earthenware shades of rooftops in Omiš Old Town © Marc Rowlands

Arguably, this is the time of year when Omiš's famous and distinct cuisine is at its best. Omiš's special bounty of seafood comes from its position on the Cetina river. The best-tasting Mediterranean fish and shellfish love these conditions, where the freshwater meets the saltwater. And, in autumn, the prawns, scampi and calamari are at their biggest and best. The restaurants of Omiš offer fresh, seasonal specialties every day. Their tables are taken by relaxed visitors from all over the region, drawn to the city now the summertime rush has subsided.

Seafood is an autumn specialty at sister Omiš restaurants Puljiz and Bastion. © Marc Rowlands

But, in the hills above and behind Omiš, and along the long promenades of the Omiš riviera, different kinds of visitors can be found. The cooler temperatures of autumn are perfect for cycling, running, hiking and walking.

Starigrad Fortress, Omiš © Marc Rowlands

Sitting 262 metres above the city, the 15th century Starigrad Fortress is a mildly challenging hike. But, even older children can easily manage it. And the views from the top are incredibly rewarding. Autumn's cooling winds blow along the water surface, cleaning the vista. You can see so much detail on the islands opposite Omiš when the air quality is like this.

For those who prefer sport and recreation of a different kind, autumn in Omiš holds four of the city's most eagerly anticipated challenges

Omiš in Autumn: Dalmatia Ultra Trail

Omiš in Autumn © Dalmatia Ultra Trail

With between 60% and 80% of its entrants coming from overseas, Dalmatia Ultra Trail is among the most internationally famous of all Croatia's cross country runs. And for good reason. The scenery is spectacular. There are three route options, allowing the race to be accessible to runners of varying abilities.

Mountain Dut

Starting from the Roman town of Solin, just north of Split, Mountain Dut is the biggest challenge of this Dalmatia Ultra Trail. On a course with a total distance of 122 km, runners will ascend to Putalj and Klis, site of the famous fortress, crossing along the Dinaric Alps before dropping down to Gata in the Omiš hinterland. From there, they drop down into the spectacular Cetina river valley and run parallel to the river until Kostanje.

In the hills near the village of Gata, Ivan Meštrović's statue of Mila Gojsalić overlooks the Cetina river and Omiš © Marc Rowlands

Returning up into the hills to visit the traditional village of Zadvarje, the trail next takes runners down to beautiful Brela. Runners will pass by beautiful Brela beaches, then those of the Omiš riviera villages Pisak, Marušići, Mimice and Medići. Then, it's back up to the final stretch of hills, visiting the old village of Lokva Rogoznica on the way, before finally descending to Omiš.

Mountain Dut 2021 starts on Friday 15th October at 9pm from Solin. Trail runners have 32 hours to complete the course. Each finisher will be awarded with 5 ITRA qualification points.

Omiš in Autumn © Dalmatia Ultra Trail

Sea Dut

At 56km in length, Sea Dut offers a challenging trail set before the entire Makarska and Omiš riviera coastline. Starting in Makarska, runners rise up to the village of Kotišina, famous for its botanical gardens and castle. Thereafter, they ascend Biokovo mountain, the trail reaching almost 875 metres above sea level. They stay atop the hills all the way to Brela, where they drop down to the beach. Thereafter, they take the same course as Mountain Dut, past Pisak, Marušići, Mimice and Medići, up to Lokva Rogoznica, then down to Omiš.

Sea Dut 2021 starts on Saturday 16th October at 8am from Makarska. Trail runners have 15 hours to complete the course. Each finisher will be awarded with 3 ITRA qualification points.

Dalmatia Ultra Trail visits some of the most traditional and timeless sections of the Omiš riviera © Marc Rowlands

Ethno Dut

With a total distance of 18km, Ethno Dut is the most accessible of the Dalmatia Ultra Trails here. Starting in Dugi Rat, runners make a moderate ascent into the hills of just under 400 metres above sea level. They maintain roughly the same altitude for the entire trail, passing Jesenice and Tugare, before dropping down into Omiš.

Ethno Dut 2021 starts on Saturday 16th October at 1pm from Dugi Rat. Trail runners have 5 hours to complete the course. Each finisher will be awarded with 1 ITRA qualification point.

Omiš in Autumn: Omiš Half Marathon

Omiš in Autumn © Omiš Half Marathon

With a backdrop of mountains and the Cetina river, the half marathon in Omiš is perhaps Croatia's most spectacular. Where else can you run a virtually flat course with such scenery accompanying you?

Of course, the striking route is facilitated by following the Cetina river canyon. When doing so, runners pass some of the best rafting, kayaking, trekking, hiking and free-climbing locations in Croatia.

In 2021, the event again has two races - the half marathon and a recreational 6 kilometre race. Both take place within the Cetina river canyon.

© Omiš Half Marathon

The Omiš Half Marathon takes place on Saturday 23rd October 2021.

You can register here and entries will be accepted in person between 8 am - 9 am on the day of the race. For more details, check the event's Facebook page.

UEFA Futsal Champions League 2021

Zeleno Plavi © MNK Olmissum

With the tournament celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2021, there's no better time for the Fifa accredited UEFA Futsal Champions League to be coming to Omiš. Better still, the hometown Futsal team, MNK Olmissum are the current national champions. They won both the cup and the league in the 2020/2021 season!

Champions! © MNK Olmissum

It's been two decades since a Croatian team reached the semi-finals of the tournament. Currently, MNK Olmissum are ranked within the top 16 of all European futsal clubs. To proceed in the competition, the hometown heroes will have to come top of their group. They face opponents Leo (Armenia), Diamant Linz (Austria) and KMF FON (Serbia). They will host the group at their home ground of Ribnjak, Omiš between October 26 and 31. The matches will be televised, but what better way to enjoy than in-person?

Omiš in Autumn: Dalmatian Trail League - Mosor Grebbening

© Marko Herman

The spectacular section of the Dinaric Alps that lies to the west of Omiš is known as Mosor. It starts near Klis, above Split, and runs to the Cetina river. Mosor Grebbening is a series of trail runs through this epic mountain terrain. In 2021, it is the 9th round of the famous Dalmatian Trail League.

The event contains a choice of three adult trails and one children's race. All of the races start or end in the village of Gata, in the Omiš hinterland.

© Ivo Pešić

Starting in Klis and finishing in Gata, Sivonja is the toughest trail. It is 37.50km in length and has a 2590m ascent. Runners have 12 hours to complete the course.

Still a tough ask, Tovar is the slightly easier choice. At 17km and with an ascent of 1270m, you're given 8 hours to complete the trail.

At 8 kilometres in length and with a 400 metre ascent, Pule is the most accessible race. It should take way less than the 4 hours allocated. The children's race is an 800 metre dash around Gata.

© Marko Herman

Mosor Grebbening takes place on Saturday 13 November 2021.

Registration for the races: exclusively via the online registration form here.

March 16, 2021 – Croatian city of Ludbreg, also called the center of the world due to its geographical position, becomes the center of sports games in March as the Ludbreg Spring Outdoor Festival begins.

To encourage the development of Ludbreg into an outdoor excursion destination, the new sports festival – Welcome Spring – started last Saturday in this Croatian city, also known as the center of the world. The Ludbreg Spring festival began with an exciting kayak race.

On the river Bednja, which flows through the very center of Ludbreg, the forces were measured by different types of rowers in several categories. The exciting Watermark Kayak Race attracted curious citizens on Saturday morning, who watched the open championship of the Ludbreg city in kayaking on the 300 meters long route.

Ludbreg Tourist Board Facebook

In addition to the kayak race that started the Ludbreg Spring outdoor festival, the Ludbreg Tourist Board tried to bring kayaking closer to people by organizing a free kayak demonstration hour on the island Mladost in Ludbreg.

Ludbreg Tourist Board Facebook

Since this small town in Zagorje is already known for trail running and cycling, as well as for the beautiful nature that surrounds it, the Ludbreg Spring festival is an excellent meeting place for sports fans. To popularize the active outdoor lifestyle, Welcome Spring Festival will attract sports fans to Ludbreg with more sports competitions every weekend in March.

The schedule includes:

Centrum Mundi road running – March 21, 2021

On City Day, Ludbreg honors the entry fees for the already traditional road race "Centrum Mundi." This 10-kilometer race is officially scored for the Northwest Croatia Cup. In addition to the competition race, a 2.5 km long race for citizens will be organized.

Gravel cycling race – March 27, 2021

The beautiful and exciting but also demanding route of the Gravel race around Kalnik (the so-called "up-down" route) requires good preparation. Hence, its trail, as well as other helpful information, are available online. You can buy the tickets here.

Crazy Hill Trail running – March 28, 2021

The legendary Crazy Hill Trail race – now that it is official – will run on three tracks: green (10 km), blue (16 km), and red (34 km) so that runners of all profiles can find their place. You can register here.

Ludbreg Tourist Board

Welcome Spring festival is unique and intended for everyone, which is proved by the fact that there are two races for people with disabilities in wheelchairs. Namely, the road race for people with disabilities in wheelchairs will be held together with the Centrum Mundi road race with a route of 2.5 km, and the cycling race as part of the Gravel race with a route of 10 km.

In anticipation of spring, the positive and active energy of the Ludbreg landscape allows sports competitors and visitors to enjoy sporting events in this charming town. With its flat and hilly surroundings, the landscape of Ludbreg offers a multitude of opportunities for pre-season warm-ups and winter training testing.

Ludbreg Spring outdoor festival is here to encourage citizens to restart with sports activities. At the same time, for those who have diligently maintained their shape, it gives opportunities to show themselves in the best light.

For the latest news from Ludbreg, check out the dedicated TCN section.

After Zagreb, Split, Pula, Opatija, Šibenik, Rovinj, Omiš, Hvar, Munich and Graz, Poreč joined the running cities included in the SightRun mobile application.

The Tourist Board of Poreč presented the new tourist product SightRun - a mobile application of audio running tours aimed at active guests in the city. Visitors in Poreč who enjoy running can now follow five audio running tours, which are all 9 to 9.6 kilometers long, reports HRTurizam on July 15, 2019.

The Poreč City Tour - North and Porec City Tour - South begin in front of the City Hall, while other tours start in front of the Valamar and Plava Laguna hotels. Thus, the Valamar Borik Tour starts in front of the Valamar Zagreb Hotel and the Valamar Diamant Tour in front of the Valamar Diamant Hotel. The Plava Laguna Run begins in front of Hotel Molindrio Plava Laguna. All tours are available in Croatian and English and are free for users.

“We are proud of the results achieved so far, but are also aware of the fact that we cannot leave the development of tourism to chance, so we are seriously planning to establish five-year development initiatives to realize our vision of becoming the leading Croatian destination for family and active holidays, which will offer a wide range of sports and recreational activities alongside the sun and the sea. By introducing the SightRun application, we invest in infrastructure that will raise the ambiance of the cluster and enhance guest experiences and brand our destination as runner-friendly. The slogan of our visual identity "You Complete Us" speaks in favor of the great enthusiasm of all those involved in the tourist offer to provide our guests with unforgettable moments in Poreč,” said director of the Poreč Tourist Board, Nenad Velenik.

Toni Hrvatin, head of destination and product development in Valamar, added that Valamar actively invests in the development of sports infrastructure, programs and a wide range of outdoor events in the destinations in which it operates. 

“We consider that it is necessary to invest in the development of a running segment, which is followed by a rapidly growing trend globally. The SightRun application is a great example of an innovative tourism product and an additional offer for guests and locals. The application paths cover and present all the beauties of Poreč, so we are delighted that we, together with our destination partners in Poreč, supported the development of this project."

Goran Vrus, assistant director of sports operations at Plava Laguna, said that Plava Laguna was aware of the growing popularity of running as a sport and a choice for recreation. 

"For several years we have been the host of the successful Plava Laguna half marathon, and this year we brought the Plava Laguna Triathlon 5150, IRONKIDS and Iron Girl races for the first time to Poreč. It is on that threshold that Plava Laguna complements the offer with the announced running tours for all guests who do not want to give up running on their vacation. Travelers rely on their mobile devices to collect information and many other activities before, during and after a trip, so it's important to recognize their needs and provide them with innovative content and unforgettable experiences - and through their favorite media, available at any time.”

SightRun is a free mobile application that connects running and tours and uses a GPS navigation system for mobile navigation and audio tracking that gives the user interesting information about the city. For this very reason, it does not matter how fast or slow the user is moving. To use the app, the user only needs headphones and doesn't need to look at their mobile device during the run, allowing complete freedom of movement while sightseeing of the city.

"We are extremely pleased that Poreč is joining the Runner Friendly destinations supported through the SightRun application. This cooperation not only contributes to the development of the destination but together, we are building the image that we can be innovative in tourism with our domestic technological solutions as well. I believe that the Croatian startup scene can offer even more interesting solutions, from which all actors in tourism can benefit,” said Sandra Bortek, the marketing director of SightRun.

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

As Goran Rihelj writes for HRTurizam on May 19, 2019, if we want to extend the tourist season, then we have to rely on diverse, authentic and quality content and offers, which do not depend solely on the sun, sea or swimming.

This is only logical, because if we leave the sun and the sea as the primary motive for arrivals, what else remains? 

Thus, we must ask the following questions: Why would someone come to Croatia when they cannot swim? What other content is there? What will work outside of the season? Why should tourists visit Croatia?

Most importantly, to inspire and motivate travelers, we have to think about new tourist products that can be offered to our guests; products that will be available throughout the year.

Running is just one of the active products Croatia can offer.

Namely, over 50 million people are regularly involved in running in the EU, and their annual consumption is estimated at 9.6 billion euros. Some see this as the potential for growth and development, while others may not, but one thing is for sure - running is just one of the rapidly growing trends, both in Europe and the world.

Thus, this specific segment was targeted by the team from SightRun, who points out that after cycling, running could become a new trademark of Croatia if it is done right. 

Promoting running in Croatia seems like a logical and natural conclusion because of its potential. Croatia boasts different types of terrain across a small area, a long coastline and islands, numerous racing events and outdoor festivals, superb and authentic gastronomy, top accommodation, good traffic connections, and a mostly pleasant climate all year long on the Adriatic.

Thus, the SightRun mobile application for running tourists enters a new tourist season with new destinations and exciting tours. The SightRun application combines running and sightseeing for tourists and is intended for those who do not give up their running habit when they are on the road or vacation, especially when they have less time for sightseeing tours. By using the SighRun app, runners can discover a city and visit its many attractions.

After Zagreb, Šibenik, Split, Pula, Opatija, Munich and Graz, the SightRun applications this season is enhanced by three new destinations - Rovinj, Omiš, and Hvar.

The SightRun App includes audio running tours that give navigational instructions and interesting location information while running. All the user has to do is pick their desired pace on the app, get to the starting point, puts on their headset, and hit play. The app uses GPS and follows the runner’s movements. The SightRun application is entirely free for the user and is available on Google Play and the App Store.

SightRun is an excellent tourist story, but it is just the beginning of branding destinations as ‘Runner Friendly’. 

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