The main event of spring 2019 on Korčula will probably be the food and wine festival Korčulanske pjatance, and TCN has written about the appeal of the festival. But, this year late April and May will be filled with various interesting events on Korčula, inviting you to visit the island before the craziness of the high tourist season starts and enjoy the island and the town of Korčula in all its glory.
One of the traditions observed in Korčula for centuries is the celebration of the Holy Week, or as the people of Korčula call it “Vela setemana” (obviously, a combination of a Croatian word for big and an Italian word for week). All three of the confraternities of Korčula (The Confraternity of All Saints, the St. Rocco Confraternity, and the confraternity of St. Michael) participate in the procession of the Holy Friday (April 19th 2019), one of the biggest such processions in Croatia.
Not often does it happen that the big processions around the Korčula Old Town take place not even a week apart, but this year, since the Easter is so late in the spring, the festivities of the day of Saint Mark take place just a few days after Easter. The procession and the celebration of the saint to whom the Korčula cathedral is dedicated will happen on Thursday, April 25th. It is also a great opportunity to visit the Cathedral itself, a gothic-renesanse monument built in 14th, 15th and 16th century by Italian masters and local builders, first and foremost master stonemason Marko Andrijić.
If you’re not into food, wine or religious celebrations, maybe you’re into sports and recreation. If that’s the case, Korčula has got something for you too: Marco Polo Challenge Triathlon, which is taking place on April 27th this year, for the ninth time. There are several disciplines to choose from, either the olympic triathlon (1500 m swimming + 40 km on a bicycle + 10 km running) for the most fit, sprint triathlon (750m + 20km + 5 km), sprint triathlon relay (one athlete doing each of the disciplines), super sprint triathlon for the kids under 19 and under 16 (375m + 10 km + 2.5 km) and a fundraising 5 km street race open for everyone. Korčula Marco Polo Challenge triathlon is the first race of the triathlon season in Croatia.
And, finally, after the triathlon and all that racing has made you hungry, the Croatian Island Products fair will open in Korčula on April 27th as well. It’s an established event, promoting the flavours of Korčula in the location accessible to tourists throughout the tourist season once a week until the late autumn, helping local producers present their products to a wider audience.
