It is hard to imagine the Adriatic Sea without recalling the scent of olives and the flavor olive oil. Olives are greatly appreciated in the Mediterranean cuisine, and it is therefore not surprising that each year in October an event called ‘Olive Days’ is held in Punat on the island of Krk where guests are presented with all the lavishness of this healing fruit. This is a unique opportunity for interested guests to participate in the olive harvest and get the feel of everyday life on the island. While harvesting, the hosts serve farmer’s brunch accompanied with the sounds of ‘sopile’ (a traditional woodwind instrument). In the evening there is a sumptuous feast – a gastronomic promenade through Punat’s restaurants where guests can taste all kinds of delicacies made from olives.
Olive Days, held 1-10 October, is an event at which the people of Punat promote olive growing and olive oil as an indigenous product that is highly attractive to tourists.
The people of Punat have in the past two decades, restored numerous abandoned and decades-old olive groves. They have also raised many new ones. Today, this olive oil is well known outside the Croatian borders and is regarded as extremely high in quality. The fact that almost every family in Punat is working in this branch of agriculture shows exactly how developed the olive growing business is, in this village on the eastern coast of Punat Bay, located on the southern coast of the island of Krk.
Punat is located 8 kilometers from the town of Krk and has a mild Mediterranean climate, coastal atmosphere of narrow streets and taverns, natural beaches, vineyards and olive groves.
Rich cultural heritage is felt every step of the way: in the parish church with a Baroque altar, in the medieval chapel of Sv. Juraj (St. George), in the
Pre Romanesque church of Sv. Dunat (St. Dunat), on the promenade overlooking the sculptures of the Way of the Cross, and on Košljun, an islet in the middle of the bay known for its Franciscan monastery, where a unique harmony of natural beauty, rich culture and history has been created. The Franciscan monastery holds ethnographic and religious items as well as a valuable old library.
Boaters can use one of the largest and best equipped Croatian marinas in a sheltered natural bay of the Adriatic.
Punat is first mentioned in written documents in 1377 under the name Villa di Ponte.
Punat is well known for its beautiful sandy beaches that are located near the center. Some hidden, secluded, quiet beaches can be reached only by sea, so tourists are offered a taxi boat service.
On the island of Košljun there is a museum with an ethnographic collection containing numerous items belonging to Krk’s fishermen and farmers as well as folk costumes from across the island. The monastery also has a rich zoological collection consisting of a large collection of seashells and unique specimens of animals and a rich library with about 30,000 books. Among them is the Ptolemy atlas printed in Venice in 1511, which is one of three preserved copies in the world. It takes about two hours to tour the island and there are no catering facilities.
The Island of Krk is the closest island to Central and Western Europe. It is connected to land with a bridge, and has an airport that can accommodate international flights of high-capacity aircrafts.
The Tourist Board of the Primorsko-Goranska County
www.kvarner.hr
The Tourist Board of Punat
www.tzpunat.hr