Countries

Croatia

More than a thousand islands line its Adriatic coast, where Dubrovnik's walled old town and the Roman palace of Emperor Diocletian in Split still stand by the sea. Croatia declared independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, joined the EU in 2013 and adopted the euro in 2023.

Dubrovnik's walled old town of orange-roofed houses on a headland jutting into the blue Adriatic Sea

Dubrovnik old town

Photo: Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 3.0

The red and white checkerboard has been a Croatian symbol for over 500 years. The five shields of its crown stand for historic regions: ancient Croatia, Dubrovnik, Dalmatia, Istria and Slavonia.

How it has changed

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