Sunday, November 11, 2012

Conde Nast 2011: Croatian Island of Hvar in Europe's Top Ten


The island of Hvar's high profile tourist season continues as it is voted in Europe's Top Ten Islands in the Conde Nast 2011 Reader's Choice Awards.
Conde Nast 2011: Croatian Island of Hvar in Europe's Top Ten - Hvar Town Tourist Board
The beauty and quality of tourism offer of the island of Hvar was once again recognised in the prestigious Conde Nast Readers' Choice Awards on October 11, 2011, as Croatia's premier island was voted the eighth most best island in Europe.
Record Number of Votes Cast
The awards, announced in New York are now in their 24th year, and a record 28,876 readers cast more than eight million votes for the 2011 winners, ranking the world's best cities, islands, cruise lines, hotels, airlines and resorts. A full breakdown of all the winners will appear in the November edition of the upmarket travel magazine.
Hvar finished eighth in the European islands category, behind the winning island Bozcaeda, in the Turkish Aegean. Mykonos was the runner-up, followed by Madeira, Mallorca, the Shetland Islands, Capri and the Isle of Skye.
Hvar Voted Top Destination by Vecernji List
This international recognition comes on the heels of Hvar - famed for its stunning beauty and average of 2718 hours of sunshine a year - being chosen as the top destination on the Croatian coast by the Vecernji Tourist Patrol, a 40-day undercover survey of the country's Adriatic resorts by national newspaper, Vecernji List, who summed up Hvar as "the town has everything and then something on top of that."
It has been a high-profile summer for the Adriatic island, which also boasts the oldest organised tourism in Europe with the founding of the Hvar Health Society in 1868; in addition to the usual celebrities and super-yachts, the island made global headlines twice towards the end of the season.
Busy Celebrity Summer on Hvar
Prince Harry's decision to jump fully clothed into the swimming pool at top open air nightclub Veneranda was caught on video and beamed around the world, while Beyonce took the opportunity to show off her baby bump to the world at the trendy Hula Hula Beach Club in Hvar Town in September.
While Hvar is perhaps best known for the party atmosphere of its main town, a stunning Venetian stone town with commanding Spanish Fortress overlooking the picturesque Pakleni Islands, there is much more to discover that the beach and vibrant nightlife. It also boasts a rich cultural hertiage dating back to Neolithic times and has the largest cultivated field on the Adriatic, the UNESCO-protected Stari Grad Plain, where agricultural practices have remained largely unchanged and uninterrupted for 24 centuries.
UNESCO also protects the 500 year-old Easter Procession of Za Krizem, a 22 km procession following the cross through the night every Maundy Thursday, while the island's aromatic flora and fauna is another draw, in particular the annual lavender festival, is another draw to this versatile and thriving island.

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