The framework which consisted of large orchestras at the beginning and the end of the Festival was preserved with a rich and various music programme. Zagreb Symphony Orchestra and the ”Ivan Goran Kovacic” Academic Choir will open the Festival with their performances. One of the best known classical pieces, the Carmina Burana opera, will be performed on 11 July in memoriam of a great Croatian conductor Vjekoslav Šutej.

From the numerous concerts included in the programme, we wish to single out the evening of Baroque Handel’s and Vivaldi’s arias performed by the excellent Croatian contratenor Max Emanuel Cencic and a recital by Zoran Todorovich, a tenor who will sing Puccini’s and Bellini’s songs. We should also mention the performance by Stefan Milankovich in an interesting combination with Edin Karamazov, as well as Cellomania, the Zagreb Quartet, the Dubrovnik Symphony Orchestra etc.

A world-known singer Giorgio Surian and Valentina Fijacko will, accompanied by the Varazdin Chamber Music Orchestra, perform Pergolesi’s ”The Servant Mistress“ (”La serva padrona”) and Telemann’s comic cantata ”The Schoolmaster” (”Schulmeister“). Alongside the traditional performances by the folklore ensembles Lado from Zagreb and Lindo from Dubrovnik, the Summer Festival will include many other additional programmes.

Don’t miss out on yet another Dubrovnik summer cultural fever from 10 July to 25 August 2010!

Although Valentine’s Day is celebrated on 14 February, lovers should celebrate their love every day. We must show the person we love just how much we love him/her, do something special and shower him/her with affection. And when you decide to go on a romantic trip, choose Rabac and Valamar Sanfior Hotel and have a great time in the romantically decorated rooms. We have prepared a romantic welcoming package for you which includes flowers, champagne and strawberries with chocolate, romantic bed linen and pillows in the shape of a heart. You can also enjoy the wellness centre and the indoor swimming pool with a beautiful view of the sea. All that will be at your disposal within a special romantic offer by the Valamar Sanfior Hotel. Romantic beaches in Rabac, a visit to the picturesque town of Labin, the traditional Istrian cooking, wine roads and olive oil will absolutely thrill you! Could it be any better or more romantic than this?

Choose a four-day or seven-day programme in one of the afore-mentioned hotels and dance to Latin beats such as salsa, cha cha cha, mambo…. Combine dancing and the Mediterranean atmosphere and discover Istria, its rich historical heritage and culture and homemade products (Istrian specialties and wine).

Here is what we single out from the programmes: dance lessons twice a day, live music at the hotel in the evening, which will be an opportunity to repeat the steps you have learned earlier in the day, a sightseeing tour of the town, wine tasting and, in the event of a seven-day stay, an excursion to the Brijuni Islands.

Alice and Balázs will help all those interested in hot Latin rhythms, beginners and advanced dancers, to discover and perfect their dancing skills. Come and have a great time, dance to carefully selected music and hot rhythms and enjoy great company and lots of great dance moves.

The story of Dubrovnik is also the story of St. Vlaho, a patron saint celebrated by the town for over one thousand years. We have been opening the doors of our town and welcoming guests on this day since 972 and the white doves marking the beginning of the festivity remind us of the value of freedom, the greatest treasure of the Dubrovnik Republic. Towns, whose identities are connected to their patron saints to such an extent, as it is the case with Dubrovnik, are hard to find.

The town of Dubrovnik’s patron saint is celebrated every day on 3 February. The festivity itself lasts for several days, starting with Kandelora (Candlemas), when the festivity officially opens, until the following Sunday when it ends.

Every year St. Vlaho’s festivity gathers a large number of guests, from Croatia and abroad, and it is certainly the most important church and secular event during the winter as well as a unique tourist attraction which best paints the picture of the “Mediterranean as it once was”.

For the purpose of the contest which will be held at the stairs by the Bonavia Hotel, the organizer will bring one hundred cubic meters of snow from Platak and Mrkopalj. After the award ceremony, all viewers are invited to the after party on the Arca Fiumana boat with a rich entertainment programme which will begin at 11 pm.
Apart from promoting snowboarding, the objective is to promote the town of Rijeka as the only town in the region which, alongside the sea, offers its citizens and visitors other types of winter joys, not just skating. This European snow contest is unique for its snow trail which will be located only some 200 meters from the sea. This will be the third contest in a row with the objective of starting a tradition and organizing a recognizable event which will attract numerous fans of this sport, and those who are about to become that, and, since we know how difficult it is to get a large number of people to the snowboarding trail, this is one of the ways to bring at least a small part of this winter sport from the mountain to the very centre of the town.

The quality of olive oil depends on many things; the sort, the soil olive trees have been growing on and the way the olive fruit is picked and treated afterwards. Istrian olive oil has an extremely high content of useful substances because of the way olives are processed. Two basic categories of oil are the sweet and green oils which are determined primarily according to the sort, level of ripeness and the olive grove’s geographical position. The oil can taste sour, bitter, sweet and spicy or like grass, olive fruit, almonds and artichoke. The Greek doctor Galen, also known as the father of medicine, said that olive oil has a beneficial effect on stomach ache.

It is important to emphasize that olive oil was used in beauty treatments to maintain skin elasticity, as s preventive antidandruff lotion and nowadays it is recommended as a cure for treating arthritis and an anti-aging treatment. While visiting the magnificent land of Istria certainly taste the magical olive oil and see the oldest olive tree located on the Brijuni Islands, which is, according to the scientific reports, 1600 years old.

One of the best known Istrian types of honey is by all means the acacia honey which is supposedly good to fight off stress; then there is meadow honey which provides you with additional strength and chestnut honey which is good if you have digestion or other problems. When you’re choosing your favourite type of honey, it is the same like choosing a favourite coffee shop or the way you like your coffee; you chose once and don’t change your mind.

If you want to meet the excellent Istrian honey producers, I recommend going to the Festival of honey, wine and homemade bread which will take place on 6 February in Rakotule, a town located in the vicinity of Pore? (Karojba). You will have the opportunity of learning about the products of the Karojba wine growers and honey producers and tasting the genuine homemade bread.
If you miss out on the festival in Karojba, the next opportunity to try the sweet bee product will be in the town of Pazin on 26 and 27 February. You will learn all about the finished product, honey, as well as the beekeeping terminology and the beekeeping craft in Istria.

Come to Istria and sweeten your life with honey!

An idea of re-establishing the maritime connection with Greece is not new and the number of visitors from Greece in Dubrovnik has grown by 220% in 2009 if compared to the previous year.

Minoan Lines have a whole-year, regular daily line which operates every other day when out of season, linking Patras, Igoumenitsa, Krf and Venice with ferries which can take on from 400 to 800 lorries and personal vehicles, as well as from 1000 to 1600 passengers. The ferries are modernly equipped and sail at the speed over 30 knots. Nowadays they sail on a distance of 15 miles from the town of Dubrovnik and their stop in the Gruž port will prolong the journey only for a small, insignificant period of time.

The arrival of the boat will be easily included into the sailing schedule since Dubrovnik is located on an almost ideal position as a useful inter-stop between Greece and Northern Italy. The new line will certainly contribute to the strong friendly, business and mainly tourist connections between our country and Greece, which are improving every day.