The Croatia national team has chosen their digs for the World Cup next summer.
Football fans are the world are patiently waiting for the World Cup in Russia to begin next summer. The highly anticipated tournament, which is held from June 14 to July 15, 2018, will take place in cities across the country – and for those of you familiar with just how big the country is, countless hours of travel time to follow your team from one match to the next must be considered when making your World Cup plans.
Because the country of Russia is that big, it could not have been easy for national teams participating in the competition to choose the camp they would call home for the next month.
Croatia, for example, is playing games in Kaliningrad, Nizhny Novgorod, and Rostov-on-Don. Kaliningrad, located in an exclave between Poland and Lithuania, is about a 22-hour drive from Nizhny Novgorod (1,684.9 km). Nizhny Novgorod to Rostov-on-Don, in southern Russia, is another 16-hour drive and 1,305.7 km.
With those distances in mind, the Croatia national team has chosen a camp in the village of Ilicevo in Zelenogorsk, 60 kilometers from St. Petersburg, reports Index.hr on December 8, 2017.
Since Croatia plays two games in the north of Russia, in Kaliningrad and Nizhny Novgorod, it was logical that the base is stationed in the north. From St. Petersburg, which is just 50 minutes away from the Croatian base, the team can catch a flight that would get them to the games against Nigeria and Argentina in one hour and 20 minutes.
According to Booking.comm the camp, which is called “Forest Rhapsody Resort”, is “4 minutes walk from the beach. Forest Rhapsody Resort is located on the shores of Lake Bolshoye Simaginskoye, surrounded by a vast pine forest. It offers an indoor swimming pool with a glass roof and a spa centre with massage services.”
Necessary for the Croatia national team, the resort has a gym, tennis courts, swimming pools, three restaurants, and the stadium is just 15-minutes away on the highway. And not that our national team will have time, but the resort is excellent for fishing and hiking, and they also organize music nights with live bands and DJs.
An overnight stay for one person costs around 150 euros.
You can find more photos and information on the resort here.
