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Climate and weather in Croatia

Author: excursor team

Generally speaking, summers in Croatia are hot and dry and winters are mild. Temperatures drop slightly as you move inland where the climate is moderate and continental. In Croatia, there are three types of climate:

1. Mediterranean climate – mild climate of Istria, Adriatic coast and the islands

2. Climate of Dinaric Alps – cold and snowy during winter and cool in the summer

3. Continental climate of inland Croatia

Croatian coast

If you are a tourist, you are probably heading to the coast which has a pleasant Mediterranean climate with high number of days of sunshine per year. The island of Hvar is famous and long known as the sunniest place in Croatia and Europe but this title actually (since 2012) belongs to Lastovo – a small island which has 2700 sunshine hours per year.

During summer, temperatures officially range from mid 20⁰C to 30⁰C (68⁰F to 86⁰F), so the weather is warm and sunny. We are all aware of climate changes in the past few years and it is no longer uncommon that the temperatures raise above 30⁰C. Summer often lasts longer and the sun can be very strong even in November. Main swimming season lasts from May to October.

In August 2019, temperatures in Knin measured 40,2⁰C, in Šibenik 37,1⁰C and Split recorded 36,6⁰C. The highest ever temperature recorded in Croatia was 42,8⁰C in the town of Ploče on August 4th 1981.

Coastal areas are a bit colder and usually offer a nice breeze so many claim it is nicer to sleep there during the summer.

Winters here are mild with an average temperature around 5⁰ or 6⁰. However, don’t be surprised if you visit Dalmatia or even Dubrovnik in the winter time and experience snow. Although this happens very rarely – last time Dalmatia was covered in snow was in February 2012, when the mayor of Split declared a „Snow day“.

Regardless of the area where you plan to go, sometimes there can be cool days with rain and north wind bura. Wind is another story, quite interesting if you ask us. There are several types of winds, but the two main ones, which often come up in conversation, are bura and jugo.

Inland Croatia

Snow is very likely to fall in the inland Croatia, where the winters can be quite cold with temperatures often falling below 0 degrees. Winters are considered cold although night temperatures are rarely lower than -10⁰C. If you are visiting Croatian inland during the winter, don’t forget to bring gloves and a warm jacket.

Summer temperatures are similar to the ones in the coastal area, so it can be very hot, especially since there is no sea breeze or the sea itself. Although, the summer nights are quite pleasant.

If you are planning your trip to Croatia, DHMZ is a Croatian Meteorological and Hydrological Service where you can find all relevant info about the weather and the forecast as well as sea temperatures.

You will probably find this information useful, but note that air conditioning is common in hotels and private accommodation as well as in cafés, restaurants and shops.

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