Experience the best of Krk Island

Krk lies in the Kvarner Gulf off the Croatian coast, near Rijeka, and an arched bridge links it to the mainland. Krk Town, the island's capital, has Roman and medieval walls, a Romanesque cathedral and the Frankopan Castle. Baška, in the south, has a long pebble beach below bare limestone mountains, and a church nearby once held the Baška Tablet, a twelfth-century stone slab inscribed in the Glagolitic script.

Vrbnik, a walled town on a clifftop above the sea, is the heart of the island's wine country. The monastery island of Košljun sits in Punat Bay and can be reached by boat, and Dobrinj and Omišalj are hilltop villages with views. The neighbouring island of Cres lies to the west, and the mainland city of Rijeka and the resort of Opatija are within easy reach.

Žlahtina, a crisp white wine from Vrbnik, is paired with šurlice, a hand-rolled pasta served with meat sauce, and with Krk lamb, cheese and prosciutto. Fresh fish and Kvarner scampi feature along the coast. Summer is warm and dry, though the bora, a cold north-east wind, can blow in winter.