The island of Krk - golden island and tourist pearl of the Adriatic

The island of Krk is located in the heart of southern Europe, in the northern Adriatic, approximately in the central part of the Kvarner Bay. Out of the 1,244 islands, islets, cliffs and reefs that numbers vast Croatian coast on the warm Adriatic Sea, the island of Krk is its second largest island. Its surface area is 405.78 km2 and is only slightly smaller than the largest island in Croatia, island Cres. One of the most important features that contributed greatly to the development of the island of Krk is its proximity to the mainland and the bridge across the sea that connects it with the countryside of Croatia.

Since the ancient times, the island of Krk has been called the "Golden Island", and for such a luxurious and proud name there are many reasons. Mild climatic characteristics and relief features as well as lush vegetation have created great conditions for settling the population. Therefore, the island of Krk is traditionally among the most populated island areas of the Adriatic Sea. Thousand years of settlements favoured the diversity of the wealth of social and cultural heritage.

Due to its excellent geographical position, natural beauty and cultural wealth, the island of Krk attracts visitors for centuries. Therefore, the island of Krk also in the modern era represents an attraction to numerous visitors and achieves remarkable tourist results. With the growth of tourism on the island, the number of hotel and private accommodation capacities continues to increase, the consumption and price are also increasing, leading to a general increase in living standards of the domicile population and accelerated development of this area.

The area of the island of Krk is administratively divided into 6 municipalities and the town of Krk, which are ideally interconnected and progress very rapidly. Progress is reflected in numerous infrastructural benefits such as excellent transport links to the island and within the island, as well as a well-arranged urban and spatial planning system. It worth emphasizing that all municipalities year after year invest additionally in arranging beaches and promenades and compete with their care to preserve the natural beauty, the coast and the purity of the sea. In support of this, it is sufficient to point out that the area of the island of Krk is predestined by systematic waste classification and application of the latest waste management technologies in the Republic of Croatia.

It is clear from the above that the island of Krk has the exceptional potential that its inhabitants are jealous by preserving, and with great care are using it in a clear intention to rank among the economically most developed and at the same time the most natural areas of Europe. Well-developed, administratively arranged, natural and socially rich, the island of Krk is interesting for investors in all types of real estate.

Despite a steady increase in prices, Krk has for years been the leading area in Croatia for the number of real-estates sold, as evidenced by over 40 specialized real estate brokerage agencies operating on the island. Although the previous text has just briefly highlighted the key features of the island of Krk, answers to the question - why this is exactly destination where you should buy your real estate and do a real job - you can find below.

Geographical position of the island of Krk

First of all, the first thing that will make you to think about investing in real estate on this island is its main advantage over most of the islands - the proximity of the mainland and road bridging the sea and the fast traffic link to your place of residence. The island of Krk is located in the heart of the Kvarner Bay, which is almost certainly one of the closest summer tourist destinations in the continent. From any continental place in Croatia, Slovenia or Europe generally, you are coming from, there is an immediate vicinity of the Krka Bridge at the moment you enter the highway. Therefore, it is not surprising that the island of Krk has been the most desirable weekend destination in Croatia and Slovenia, and more and more for Austria.

Indeed, do you have a cottage or apartment on the sea, have you ever wondered how many days you spent there? Since each property has a market price, simply divide it with the approximate number of days of your stay and figure out how much you spend on a property daily which, due to your distance, is not suitable for frequent arrivals on weekends.

Climate and vegetation of the island of Krk

The Krk area is located in the area of moderate Mediterranean climate, making it a pleasant combination of a coastal environment, a mild climate and a lush vegetation, certainly a specialty that will attract you. The Mediterranean climate of the island of Krk is characterized by mostly hot and sunny summers, mild and windy winters, warm and slightly rainy falls and exceptionally pleasant spring. The described climate and the combination of karst and plain relief features favoured the development of lush vegetation with more than 1400 different plant species, dense forests and the cultivation of traditional Mediterranean cultures such as vines, vegetables and olives.

The average summer air temperature on the island of Krk is approximately 26 °C, while the sea temperature measured on the beaches during the summer months is about 24 degrees. The bathing season for most residents and tourists lasts from May to September, and the island's tourist community proudly points out that Krk offers its residents an incredible 2500 sunny hours a year.

Settlement on the island of Krk

The described geographical, climatic relief-geological and other coastal features have created on the island Krk excellent conditions for a pleasant life of the population. Today, the island of Krk with about 20,000 inhabitants divided into 68 inhabited places and a dozen hamlets is among the leading Croatian islands by population. Interestingly, the number of inhabitants on the island of Krk has been growing continuously in the last thirty years, and from 2001 to 2011 the island population grew by 8%. This, according to the growth of the population on the islands in Croatia, puts it in the second place behind the island of Pag.

The island of Krk is administratively belonging to the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, and as mentioned in the introduction, it is divided into seven units of local self-government, Krk, Omišalj, Malinska-Dubašnica, Dobrinj, Vrbnik, Punat and Baška. By number of inhabitants, the most populated centres of the island are the Krk town, Omišalj (which also includes the settlement of Njivice) and Malinska. You can find a better insight into their natural vision and more specific information on the so-called social and administrative centres of the island by clicking on the link of a particular place on the map above this text.

The cultural heritage of the island of Krk

The symbiosis of the described geographic features and millennial settlements of this area as well as social events during a number of geopolitical changes on the island of Krk and its surroundings through various historical periods have led to unmatched wealth of social and cultural legacy.

In addition to numerous and well-preserved remains of Roman and early Christian architecture that has origins in the early Middle Ages, there are findings suggesting the existence of city-dwelling villages on the island of Krk since the 6th century BC. Historical turmoil caused numerous mixing and population changes. Since the 7th century and the settlement of the Croats in this area, the most important historical testimonies of settlement on the island of Krk are considered the medieval forts of the Frankopan princes and the monuments written with the old Croatian letter Glagolitic Baška tablet (“Bašćanska ploča”), "Krčki natpis" and "Jurandvorski fragment" dated from the 11th century. On the Glagolitic legacy are especially proud not only the inhabitants of the island of Krk, but the whole Croatia, as this area marks one of the oldest centres of literacy in this part of the world.

Tourism on the island of Krk

If you have read only some fragments of the pre-text, the purpose of which is only to provide concise information about the island of Krk, it will not be difficult to conclude with which attributes the island of Krk attracts visitors. The beginning of tourist development on the island of Krk is historically linked to the 19th century and the massive arrivals of members of the Austrian and Hungarian aristocracy for the purpose of summer rest and hunting. At the beginning of the 20th century, the first hotels, motels and well-kept baths were built, creating the technical conditions and the material basis for further development of tourism.

Since then, the island of Krk continuously intensifies, enhances and improves the offer of accommodation facilities, gastronomy, cultural sights, social content and access to the sea and natural beauties. According to official statistics, on the island of Krk every year the number of tourists and their consumption increases, despite the continuous increase in the price of goods and services. Given the continuous centennial development of tourism, today the island of Krk abounds in various tourist and hospitality facilities of high standards, from hotels and camps to elite private accommodation facilities as well as restaurants, beach bars and nightclubs. Therefore, investing in tourist capacities across the island, along the shore and more and more inland, in the previous years has resulted as an excellent move for numerous profiles of big and small investors. In the context of spending and investing in real estate of a tourist type, the island of Krk is due to the profitability and time of return of investments among the leading destinations in the Republic of Croatia.

Infrastructure and spatial planning on the Island of Krk

Excellent tourism development and the fact that the island of Krk attracts many visitors, immigrants and investors has a great influence on the fiscal power of the local self-government units of the City of Krk and in each of the 6 municipalities; Omišalj, Malinska-Dubašnica, Dobrinj, Vrbnik, Punat and Baška. The aforementioned administrative units are very determined and synchronized in the implementation of small separate or larger joint development and infrastructure projects across the island.

As the main determinant of the long-term development of the island, the inhabitants of Krk have recognized the traffic connections. The proximity of the island to the mainland was inspired by the idea of building a bridge built in 1980 and at that time was the largest bridge on the world with 1430m long concrete port. The Krk bridge has provided good traffic connection with the mainland of the Republic of Croatia which makes an additional advantage compared to other Adriatic islands.

In addition to the key factor connecting the island of Krk to the mainland, a comprehensive renewal, extension, branching and construction of new local roads that link island settlements has been carried out. Apart from road links, the island of Krk is connected with numerous European destinations through the construction of the Rijeka Airport in Omišalj, and in addition, from the area of the island of Krk, there are regular ferry lines to the neighbouring islands of Lošinj, Cres and Rab. Since it is well-populated and attractive to tourists as a long-term or weekend destination all year long, there are countless daily bus lines connecting the island of Krk with larger land-based towns.

Units of local self-government separately, but in mutual consensus, adopt spatial and urban plans in a timely manner, which prescribe the harmonious development of the settlement, taking into account the balance of the island's construction. Good and transparent work of administrative bodies in island community centres enables quick realization of public and private works, which is particularly important for investments in the construction sector.

Wisely using its own resources and funds available to the Republic of Croatia on the basis of membership in the European Union, the Local Self-Government units carry out revamps and enlargements of squares, streets and sidewalks year after year. New and existing promenades are being built and renovated as well as bathing resorts, pedestrian and cycling trails around the island, the most modern piers for nautical traffic and in the entire area of pond network for electric vehicles. Additionally, a new and expanded existing water and sewerage infrastructure is being built and the network for electricity supply is expanded and improved.

Since this is only an article of informative character, a series of infrastructure projects that are in the implementation process have been omitted. That is why one thing is certain: anyone who once was on the island of Krk, long time ago or late last year, has certainly noticed the speed this island develops. You can see the development nearly with your naked eye.

Care for nature conservation and ecology on the island of Krk

Given the concluding remarks of the previous section, one could get the impression that the island of Krk is rapidly developing losing its former dimension of natural oasis. But you would be wrong because local governments are struggling to preserve its natural beauty, nurturing the natural potentials it possesses.

First of all, it should be emphasized that the municipalities of Krk plan their area with the rarely seen unity and consensus while simultaneously taking care of the island's uniform development and the preservation of space. This in practice means that municipalities that have a period of intensive construction introduce more restrictive construction conditions so that the focus of investing in construction may be transferred to municipalities with less interest from builders. In this way, naturally more attractive areas are kept from accelerated utilization and overhaul, and at the same time, through the collection of fees for the improvement of communal infrastructure, stimulate revival and development of neglected areas.

In addition to the care for urbanism, space planning and land-based protection, the island of Krk has been campaigning for years to preserve the purity and quality of the sea and safety in public bathing areas. This is manifested by the number of baths that have the Blue Flag, the internationally founded symbol of sea and coast purity, environmental conservation and safety, and a sustainable coastal tourism management system. The island's tourist community proudly points out that out of 37 beaches in Kvarner, which have received this award, 15 are located on the island of Krk.

In the same context of environmental cleanliness, in mid-2005, on the island of Krk, an ecological waste management system was introduced, "Eco Island Krk". This system is the first ecologically based model for the complete disposal of all types of waste in the Republic of Croatia. For the implementation of Eco Island of Krk system, 8,000 tanks were distributed to 1,500 locations on the island.

Domestic waste is classified into five containers (bio-waste, paper, PET, glass, etc.) and each of the seven local self-government units (Omišalj, Malinska, Krk, Punat, Baška, Vrbnik, Dobrinj) has one special collection point where citizens are free to leave bulky household waste and hazardous waste. Within the described project, a special collection point in Krk is organized to purchase various types of metal, plastic, glass and aluminium packaging. About 18,000 tons of municipal waste are collected annually on the island of Krk, out of which 2/3 of which are collected during the tourist season, and currently about half of the total waste is collected in a separate way.

In a recycled yard, the recyclable waste stream is sorted and recycled, while the unregulated part is handled by latest methods at the Treskavac landfill. The aim of the local utility company Ponikve d.o.o. is the annual increase in the share of classified waste by 2 to 3%. Therefore, significant efforts are being made to promote the system and educate the population by sending info material along with invoices, giving gifts, comparing with schools and kindergartens and working with children within the framework of organized workshops, presentations and visits to the recycling yard and landfill.

Finally, in accordance with the general environmental protection concern, in mid-2016, eleven powerboats for electric cars were built along the entire island as a joint project of all island local self-governments. It is the most recent completed engagement in a series of launched programs related to public lighting, energy efficiency, renewable energy sources, electronic communications infrastructure and e-mobility. All of them are intensively carried out within the framework of the project "ENO Krk", which by 2030 aims to make Krk an entirely energy-independent and viable island.

Real estate on the island of Krk

Finally, the characteristics and features described in the previous sections have led to a strong interest in investing and buying private and business real estate on the island of Krk. According to the number of real estate purchases annually, the island of Krk stands along with bigger Croatian cities such as Rijeka and Split, although the difference in the size of the population is unimaginable.

Apart from the general attractiveness of the island of Krk, the key factors that have favoured this kind of investment trend for many years have been public administration transparency, legal certainty as well as good arrangement and promptness of administrative services. All this leads to the possibility of simpler and faster turnovers of invested funds and a shorter return on investment time. That is why on almost every island, Krk is building and selling real estate of different types, different quality standards and of course a wide range of prices.

In general, real estate prices range from medium to extremely high. What is most important to the general standard of the island of Krk is the fact that property prices have been growing steadily for twenty years. There are no cheap real estate on this island. The reason for this is not the seller's ambition, but a simple fact: real estate on the island of Krk is on average of a much more quality than in most other coastal places that (unfortunately, only) with beauty can compete with the island of Krk.

This kind of setting others may not like, but it is very difficult to break it down. Why? When we talk about quality, we do not focus solely on the quality of construction and materials being built, but on the overall decorative environment in which the real estate is located.

First and foremost, it is about real estate that are largely legally constructed, because there is a significant improvement in this area of public administration compared to the rest of Croatia. Then, it is about real estate that is not only in the most developed part of the Republic of Croatia, but in a part that progresses faster than any other part of this beautiful country. This is apparent from the features of the island we have described before, and yet; you have a whole range of features that we did not manage to cover. Finally, most importantly, real estate on the island of Krk almost always has a buyer.

So, if you want to buy a real estate or invest in a project on the island of Krk, be prepared to pay a lot for what you are buying. The real estate offer on the island of Krk will include from a range of middle-standard real estates to new luxury properties built at elite locations. The average real estate on the island of Krk is legal, of a good quality, in a good location (because there are no bad locations on the island of Krk), it is of a high demand and holds a high price that is slowly but surely growing. That is why it is no surprise that an increasing number of foreigners, driven by low interest rate savings in domicile banks, decide on individual or group savings through the acquisition of elite real estate on Krk. Such real estates can be put into tourist traffic and achieve a solid return and can be sold relatively quickly due to the need.

It follows from the foregoing that the profitability of investing in real estate in the area of the island of Krk is more than obvious. The only thing you need is a good strategy and decision. The rest you can leave to us.