Five quiet nights on Lošinj, among pine woods, harbours and resident dolphins.
Six nights in the northern Adriatic, five of them on Lošinj, an island of pine woods, harbour towns and a resident population of bottlenose dolphins. A day at sea on a private yacht with a local captain, the dolphins with the marine scientists who study them, a bronze athlete raised from the seabed, and a last night in Zagreb.
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Days 1 to 6 · five nights
Out across the islands of Krk and Cres to Čikat Bay. In Veli Lošinj, the Blue World Institute's Lošinj Marine Education Centre, where one of the bottlenose dolphins that live in these waters can be adopted, then out by boat with the institute to look for them; in Mali Lošinj, the Apoxyomenos, a bronze athlete of the 2nd or 1st century B.C. found at 45 metres and shown alone in the Kvarner Palace. For divers, three hours with a private guide in Lošinj's underwater park, where 11 exhibits on the island's history lie between five and 15 metres down, with the dive matched to your experience. In summer, when the hotel offers it, a day on its private yacht with a local captain, swimming in the coves of the archipelago, and further days for the Brijuni islands among Roman and Byzantine remains and the old town of Osor on the channel between Lošinj and Cres. One evening at Alfred Keller, the hotel's MICHELIN-starred restaurant, where Daniel Skokić cooks from the island, with more than 550 wines in the cellar.
Where you stay
Boutique Hotel Alhambra and its neighbour Villa Augusta stand on Čikat Bay, among old pines above emerald water, a property in use for more than a century. Art Nouveau architecture is paired with contemporary design, Restaurant Alfred Keller cooks for both houses, and a private beach and sun deck lie below.
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Days 6 to 7 · one night
Inland to the capital, with a stop at one of the region's natural landmarks on the way. A last night at the Esplanade, opened in 1925 for passengers off the Orient Express, and an evening walk through the city before the flight home.
Where you stay
The Esplanade opened in 1925 to receive passengers from the Orient Express, and reopened in 2004 after a complete renovation. It has 208 rooms and suites in the centre of Zagreb, with Zinfandel's Restaurant, Le Bistro Esplanade and a grand ballroom.
In summer, offered by the hotel as a package for stays of three nights or more, a day aboard its Leader 36 with your own local captain, stopping to swim in isolated coves of the Lošinj archipelago; reserved at the hotel, subject to availability.
The Blue World Institute studies the bottlenose dolphins of these waters from Veli Lošinj; at its Lošinj Marine Education Centre one can be adopted in person, and the institute runs its own dolphin-watching trips.
The Apoxyomenos, a bronze of the 2nd or 1st century B.C., was found at 45 metres off Lošinj in 1997, restored in Zagreb over six years, and now stands alone in its own museum in the Kvarner Palace.
The hotel's MICHELIN-starred restaurant, where Daniel Skokić cooks with produce from Lošinj and the islands around it, from a cellar of more than 550 wines.
A three-hour dive with a private guide among 11 exhibits on the island's history, set between five and 15 metres down, with equipment provided and the dive matched to your experience.
Subject to availability.
This is a sample. The hotels, the pace and the order are where we start, not where we finish: every journey is designed around the people taking it.
Most travel is bought. This is designed.
Before anything is booked, we talk: who is travelling, how you like to spend a morning, and the hotel preferences below the obvious, from the kind of bath you like to the time you wake and how much daylight you need in a room. You see options where options matter and clean recommendations where they don't.
The same person remains your point of contact from the first reply to the trip after next. No handovers. No team.
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