I’ve been on holiday for the past week. We (me and my girlfriend Rebecca) went to Croatia for a week. It was a great trip: flawless weather, gorgeous scenery, friendly people, boats, islands and seafood, lots of seafood.

We flew to Zadar, a nice enough coastal town in Northern Dalmatia, before travelling down to Split, the region’s largest city.

Zadar's old and not-so-old churches

Split was home to the Roman emperor Diocletian’s holiday palace, which now serves as the city’s tattered but charming centre. It’s also a good base to explore some of Croatia’s many islands. We caught the ferry for a day trip to Brac, which boasts one of the country’s best beaches near the town of Bol.

Street market at dusk, Split

Finally we headed further south to Dubrovnik, which is a stunning, magical place, despite being heavily shelled during the Balkans war less than 20 years ago. Its massive walls have sustained centuries of attacks, so it’s fitting that it’s back to its former glory.

Dubrovnik old town from one of the wall forts

Stradun, the main street in Dubrovnik

Looking down on Dubrovnik from the towering city wall

Anyone stopping in Dubrovnik for more than a day or two should make the short boat trip to Lokrum island. Aside from the fact that it’s full of peacocks, it has rocky coves to explore and good swimming (as long as you stay clear of the sea urchins).

A resident peacock lords it over Lokrum

We had booked our plane tickets with no preconceptions about Croatia other than that it was an up and coming destination. The part of the country we saw would suggest that it’s already a worthy rival to the likes of Italy and Spain. It’s not particularly cheap, and the kuna currency takes a bit of getting used to (around 8 to the pound), but the Adriatic coast has to be seen to be believed.

Sunset from the Brac-Split ferry