I am still smiling from my 6-day trip to Slavonia and eastern Croatia back in November. Such an incredible, action-packed trip, and I genuinely think it was my most enjoyable week exploring of my 18 years in Croatia.
In Slavonia.
In November.
Osijek in particular opened my eyes to a truth that they are not telling you in Zagreb – that Slavonia is actually VERY Full of Life. Or perhaps they don’t know. This is entirely possible when the Croatian National Tourist Board publishes ‘promotional’ articles on inflight magazines and cannot even find the right river that flows through Osijek. Read more in A Slavonian Geography Lesson for the Croatian National Tourist Board.
You can read about the magic of eastern Croatia and our 6-day trip in Time to Tell the Truth about Slavonia Full of Life. I encourage the Kings to read it as well – they might learn a few things about Croatian tourism in the east.
Thankfully, Slavonia does not have to rely solely on the Croatian National Tourist Board to get its message across, and a very nice bit of PR, powered by the voice of the people, as Osijek has been voted the Most Beautiful Advent in Croatia 2021.
The vote, organised by the website Gradonacelnik.hr (the Croatian word for Mayor) held a 9-day poll of Advent in Croatia in 44 cities and towns, but there was only one winner with the most likes – Osijek.
Closely followed by another continental Advent in Croatia – Varazdin. I visited both last month, and both were very impressive.
And with Vinkovci in third and Slavonski Brod in fourth, it was a strong showing for continental and eastern Croatia. Having travelled a lot around Croatia, I can honestly say that the Advents away from the coast in general have a lot more soul, and apart from Zagreb, no other city comes close for winter living and life than Osijek.
There is a LOT of ignorance about what can be found in eastern Croatia, both in Zagreb and the rest of the county. There is SO much more to the east than war, Vukovar, and emigration. It is time that that story was told in full. Small little awards like this are one tiny step in that direction. Congrats to all concerned.
To learn more about Osijek, check out the Total Croatia Osijek in a Page guide.
