SIGHTS
Unique natural, landscape and cultural heritage
The long-distance hiking trail Via Apsyrtides offers many unique sights. The landscapes, panoramas, natural and cultural curiosities invite you to learn and experience new worlds. Your journey will let you get acquainted with islanders and variety of local products and customs. Search for and marvel at plants and animals, which are part of the high biodiversity rate of the archipelago. Relax and recharge your internal energy along the trail
Theme viewpoint Providenca combines the 300 m long educational trail Apsyrtides and a viewpoint bar with local specialties.
Named after the Greek term for the islands of Cres and Lošinj, the Apsyrtides, this educational trail provides a deeper understanding of the islands that can be seen from the very viewpoint.
28 textual interpretations with photographs show the island for what it really is – unique and unrepeatable.
Spend 3 hours on a boat on the open sea in the company of our skipper and encourage yourself to go in search of dolphins!
Dolphin watching tour lasts for 3 hours and it is designed for max 12 persons. In case you do not see the dolphins, you get the possibility to go one more time for free.
In cooperation with Blue World, Institute of Marine Research and Conservation, we have created a program in which you will have the opportunity to learn more about those wonderful creatures, and also learn how to behave in the vicinity of the dolphin.
The Museum of Apoxyomenos is a unique archaeological and architectural cultural institution in our region and it is entirely dedicated to only one exhibit – the bronze statue of a young athlete, the Apoxyomenos. The statue was discovered in 1997 by a Belgian tourist at the depth of 45 m. In 1999, it was taken out of the sea where it spent nearly two millennia.
Garden of fine scents – a plantation of island’s medicinal herbs in Mali Lošinj.
Accompanied by a professional guide, visitors are able to learn about the abundant flora of the island and medicinal properties of herbs, and purchase original island souvenirs.
The garden features over 250 species of wild aromatic herbs enriching the Lošinj-Cres Archipelago.
Over 100 of these allochthonous plant varieties complement the scented picture of the garden.
Plant habitats in the garden are enclosed by dry stone walls. The garden provides a magnificent view of the most beautiful bays of Lošinj and beyond, all the way to Mt. Velebit.
Visitors can try homemade food products between 6 p.m. and 11 p.m.
Get your VR headset and enter a new dimension of the past by visiting 11 locations in Osor !
• Did you know that the islands of Cres and Lošinj used to form a single island called Apsyrtides?
• Did you know that Osor (ancient Apsorus) had several thousand inhabitants at its heyday?
• …And that thanks to the canal Cavanella, Osor used to be the island metropolis of Kvarner and the essential link in the trade chain of the ancient world?
• Did you know that there are no venomous snakes on Cres and Lošinj thanks to St. Gaudentius, the patron saint of Osor?
• Do you know what is the connection between Osor and martens? (Quick! Find the marten sculpture and stroke its tail for good luck!)
Find the answers to these questions at the Osor Archaeological Collection of the Lošinj Museum, get your VR headset and enter a new dimension of the past by visiting 11 locations in Osor!
Vrana Lake, the most important natural reservoir of drinking water on our islands, is a unique hydrological and hydrogeological phenomenon of karst. This largest crypto-depression in Croatia is located in the central part of the island and covers an area of 5.75 km2 (5.5 in length and 1.5 km in width) and an accumulation of 220 million m3 of fresh water of exceptional quality. The lake is home to several species of freshwater fish, crabs, and shellfish. Vrana Lake is the only source of drinking water for the entire Cres-Lošinj archipelago, so the area around the lake is marked as water protection area with forbidden access.
Location: in the central part of the island Cres, near the village Vrana
Stage of the trail: 6 Martinšćica – Ustrine
Located in the village of Beli, in the Centre you can see and learn all about the largest birds in this part of Europe.
The griffon vulture is one of the symbols of the island of Cres – an island of exceptional and well-preserved biodiversity. The Beli Visitor Centre and Rescue Centre for Griffon Vultures is the place where you can find out more about the millennia-long coexistence of local people and griffon vultures. The Centre is located in the former school building, which has been recently refurbished and whose ground floor now features a multimedia exhibition about griffon vultures and the life of the inhabitants of Tramuntana (the northern part of the island of Cres). The Centre occasionally hosts other interesting events such as photo exhibitions and various workshops for children, and also provides visitors with information about the Rescue Centre for Griffon Vultures, which is an integral part of the Centre.
Location: in the village Beli
Stage of the trail: 1 Jablanac- Beli
Cres Museum is situated in the Arsan Palace, a Gothic – Renaissance palace, which is a protected cultural property. It was built by Bishop Antun Marcello Petris in the early 16th century, and its reconstruction was completed in 2006, when it was opened to the public. The museum explores, preserves and presents the rich heritage of the city and the island of Cres. With new exhibitions every season, the Museum strives to present the local community, which has lived since ancient times in the specific, closed island environment.
Location: in the town of Cres
Stage of the trail: 3 Predošćica – Cres
The Cres-Lošinj archipelago is widely known for its biodiversity and has over 1,300 plant species, many of which are endemic, rare, and medicinal. In 1903 Andrija Linardić, a modest cooper and self-taught botanist from the village of Grmov, living in Martinšćica, started exploring the potential hidden in these fragrant plants of the island. Family Kučić, continuing this centuries-old tradition of picking and processing medicinal herbs, today processes a dozen types of medicinal herbs into essential oils and hydrolates in their distillery, whose top quality is recognized worldwide.
To visit the distillery, please contact magriz.cres@gmail.com or phone number 098 715 856.
Location: in the village MArtinšćica
Stage of the trail: 5 Valun – Martinšćica
The natural amphitheatre valley surrounding the town of Cres is filled with vast expanses of olive trees that have been planted for centuries by hardworking Cres farmers on terraces surrounded by kilometres of dry stone walls. Today, olive groves on the terraces that descend through the slopes around the city seem to be a unique landscape. In such modest conditions of very shallow soils, only the autochthonous olive variety (Simjaca) can be grown, which today makes up 80% of the trees. In 2015, the EU recognized the uniqueness of the island’s olive oil and registered the protected designation of origin Extra virgin olive oil Cres. Agricultural Cooperative Cres gathers more than 50 cooperatives that produce olive oil. During the summer, visitors are offered a guided oil tasting in the oil mill area with an introduction to the tradition of olive oil production through the screening of a documentary film and a tour of the oil mill.
Location: in the town of Cres
Stage of the trail: 3 Predošćica – Cres
