Opatija

Opatija is the grand old resort of the Kvarner Riviera, where the Austro-Hungarian aristocracy came to winter by the sea after the railway linked it to Vienna. Belle Époque villas and grand hotels still line the shore beneath the green slopes of Mount Učka. The Lungomare, a promenade of about twelve kilometres, follows the coast from the fishing village of Volosko through Opatija to Lovran. Villa Angiolina, the first villa built here, stands in a park of exotic trees, and the statue of the Maiden with the Seagull looks out to sea from a rock by the promenade. Rijeka and the hiking trails of the Učka Nature Park are close by.