Omiš

In the former pirate stronghold of Omis nobody needs to be afraid of raids any more - anyone not averse to a little adventure, however, gets their money's worth in full: climbing walls on the Mosor mountains at the town's back promise exactly the same thrill as the rafting route on the river Cetina. It is worth exploring the town at leisure on foot, which can however be very strenuous for older people, since the situation is not exactly visitor-friendly: the pirates naturally wanted to remain as undiscovered as possible and therefore settled among the rocks of the steep Cetina gorge. At least a bridge connects the two parts of town, so that during your visit you have to neither swim nor climb! But anyone who wants to, can.

Besides mountain climbing, however, hikes, canoe tours, paragliding, diving and further sports are also on offer, so that in this town of 6,000 inhabitants one can spend, according to one's wishes, either an active or a swimming holiday. For the Croats the aspect of relaxation is clearly in the foreground here, since in Omis there is one of the few sandy beaches of the Dalmatian coast - and many are certain: the most beautiful!

In front of the limestone Mosor range, facing the sea, lies Omiš. To Split it is 28 kilometres along the coast in a northerly direction, and anyone heading east is at the national border within half a day. You are best off reaching Omiš by car; then you can stop at the numerous viewpoints along the route and choose a pace that suits you on the serpentine roads cut into the mountain massif. The practised Croatian locals, well versed in the course of the road, set an apparently breakneck speed which you should on no account take as your guide!

The rushing river Cetina tears stones along with it up in the mountains, whirls them about, grinds them into sand and loses it as soon as its descent into the valley slows down. This washed-up sand forms the beach of Omiš, which can certainly hold its own - all the more so as, compared with larger and wider beaches nearby, it is the only one that is simply a cosy sandy beach.