June the 20th, 2025 – Not all beaches in Croatia are by the sea, some are far, far inland. The popular Osijek Copacabana beach is set to be renovated with a substantial sum thrown at it.
As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, summer is here and with hotter and hotter days on the horizon, eastern Croatia is preparing to keep its population cool. After all, summer in Croatia isn’t just the Adriatic coast, and Slavonia and Baranja also have “beaches” of their own. Sand filling has begun on the popular Osijek Copacabana beach ahead of the peak of the swimming season. 1,100 cubic metres of sand will be poured onto Kopik, and the works will be completed on Friday, according to Osijek Mayor Ivan Radić.
“We’ve started sand filling on the banks of the Drava River on Osijek Copacabana beach, which we’ve been doing continuously since 2021. We expect a large number of swimmers, beautiful pictures and a full beach this summer, as has always been the case in previous years,” said Radić, adding that the swimming season got started on June the 15th at the Kopik swimming pool complex. The facility was visited by 1,417 people on the first day alone, not counting children under seven who don’t need to pay admission, reports Glas Slavonije/The Voice of Slavonia.
The mayor pointed out that prices on Osijek Copacabana beach have remained unchanged compared to last year, and special emphasis was placed on safety. Rescue teams, security services, emergency assistance and regular water quality testing have all been provided. He also noted the major renovation of the swimming pool complex back in 2022, the first in 50 years. Osijek thus received an Olympic-sized swimming pool, a pool with water attractions and a new water filtration infrastructure, which protects the Drava River itself.
“The public procurement procedure is currently underway for the contractor for the second phase of the Copacabana beach development. We’ve secured 7.4 million euros, of which 4 million euros come from EU funds. After the end of this swimming season this year, we’ll start work, and next summer we expect the swimming pool section to be completely completed,” announced Radić, adding that 200 trees and 1,800 shrubs will also be planted.
