The oldest Croatian royal town Nin is one of this year`s 25 ‘European Destinations of Excellence’ which were recently awarded a prize in Brussels at the European Day of Tourism.
Competing this year were tourist destinations located near waters where nature is respected and where the eco system is being preserved for upcoming generations.
Preservation of historical monuments, traditional values and the cultural offer were all taken into consideration in the grading process.
Nin won the prize in Brussels by beating Fužine, Ilok, Karlovac and the island Krpanj on a national level, which were all in the last round of the competition.
Nin is located on a small island, surrounded by clear seas, in the embrace of long sandy beaches, out of which the most interesting one is the ‘Queen`s beach’, 1.5 km long with healing mud - peloid - which cures many diseases.
Plans for the building of a health tourism centre are being drafted for this particular location. Here we have the endemic flora and fauna; the famous Nin salt-pan; the rich cultural heritage : the baptistery of Prince Višeslav, the remains of St. Anselmo`s cathedral, the church of the Holy Cross, the church of St. Nicholas and St. Ambros from the Middle Ages, the remains of sunken ships (Condura Croatica), the Baroque house, the Antic Villa Urbana with mosaics, the remains of the city walls, the Roman temple, the Nin antiques museum and the treasury of the parish church.
With the goal of creating a European network of the most beautiful places with sustainable tourism outside of the usual tourist paths, the EU started a project in 2005 called EDEN, which chooses European destinations of excellence, in which Croatia competes as a candidate, shoulder to shoulder with other EU members.
The first national winner of EDEN, under the theme ‘A Tourist Destination in a Rural Area’ was St. Martin na Muri, then Đurđevac – the town of ‘Picok’ (transl. chicken, relating to the legend about Đurđevac) on the theme ‘Tourism and the Local Non-Material Heritage’, while last year`s winner on the theme ‘Tourism and Protected Areas’ was the National park Sjeverni Velebit (North Velebit).
The Tourist Board of the Zadar County
www.zadar.hr
The Tourist Board of Nin
www.nin.hr