Island Rab, Kvarner - Top sights and holiday destinations

The island's conquerors have left behind exquisite cultural and historical wealth: a tradition of crossbow use, monasteries, the four bell towers proudly arising above Rab town. Its stone-paved streets invite the visitor into a labyrinth of Mediterranean past. The chief sights are the City Loggia, a former center of public life, as well as the Ducal palace, dominated by the tower with its beautiful windows. In the Supetarska Draga valley, one can see the remains of a Benedictine monastery and the church of Saint Peter, both among the most important eleventh century buildings on Croatian soil. The latter is home to the oldest bell on the Adriatic. From Lopar peninsula, a trip can be made to Goli otok (the Denuded island), the most infamous prison from the Communist period during the former Yugoslavia.

Since the visit of Edward VIII of England at the beginning of the twentieth century, Rab has been known as the cradle of naturism. Favorite spots for clothing-optional tourists are the beaches Sahara, Stolac and Ciganka. On "the island of love", as Rab is popularly called, twenty-two sandy beaches await you on Lopar peninsula. The most famous among them is the mile-long Rajska plaža (Paradise beach).
Rab has kept its wealth of vegetation to the present day, and is considered to be one of the greenest islands on the Adriatic. Of particular note are the Komrčar park, one of the Adriatic's most beautiful green oases, where homegrown and exotic plants grow in symbiosis, and Kalifront, a large forest complex which also "hosts" the protected natural reserve Dundo.

No journey into the history will be complete without attending the Feast of Rab. This event will unlock the doors to ancient skills and products of Rab island. Crossbow tournaments invoke the knightly spirit of the eleventh century, when these weapons were used to defend the town walls.
The island prides itself with the Rab cake, which originated in the twelfth century; since that time, it has been served to popes, heads of state and aristocracy. Organic olives, grapes and honey are delicacies native to Rab, as well as excellent fish, first-rate shrimp and homegrown mutton.