The island of Pag is located in the southernmost part of the northern Adriatic. Separated from the mainland by the Velebit Channel, the south-west coast of the island is bordered by Kvarnerić while at the North side the island is only 5 km away from the island of Rab and on the south side only 300 m away from the mainland and northern Dalmatia. This position of the island, between Kvarner and Dalmatia classifies it according to the "necessary" both as the a northern Dalmatian island or an island in the Kvarner region and as such it essentially determines its climatic, cultural and historical characteristics.

The landscape of Pag is of unique beauty and as such it certainly is amongst the most interesting landscapes of the whole Adriatic region, the main characteristics of its diversity are; the bare rocky pastures - bounded along and across with a vast network of stone walls, the olive fields planted in the bare rocky soil, the fertile vineyards and the mild climate south-western coast covered in bushes and holm oaks. This nature as such it really is quite unique in Croatia and therefore the island of Pag in the broad sense represents a particular brand in Croatia, in the Adriatic, and nowadays this island is gaining increasing attention in Europe as well!

The island of Pag is amongst the most bare islands in Croatia. Sparse vegetation consists of small rocks and the vegetation adapted to the drought; such as the sage (Dalmatian sage), absinthium, dwarf ever lasts and true grasses. After the sudden bloom in the spring, these plants, gray and burnt by the summer drought fill the environment with their strong and austere scent. The salty but juicy pastures are the secret to the great taste of the Pag cheese, which is highly appreciated not only within Croatia but also way beyond Croatian borders. The climate of the island is Mediterranean, which is specific for all the islands in the Adriatic, and in particular for the islands of Kvarner and of Northern Dalmatia, it is characterized by dry summers and mild and rainy winters. Pag is also characterized by its famous wind 'bura' which blows down from the Velebit and at the same time pushes strongly the coastal waters and scatters salt. It appears as a white salty layer coming down on the island and it is the main reason why the northeastern part of the island is so bare and deserted. This natural phenomenon is a characteristic of Croatian soil, as well as of the islands of the Kvarner and Dalmatia.

As with many of the other nearby islands, there is evidence in the history of Pag to suggest that there were settlements on the island from as far back as the Stone Age. The Liburnians, an Illyrian tribe, were also present on the island in the 2nd century BC. The Romans made their presence felt in the 1st century BC; although the island wasn’t particularly prominent at that time, its name stems from the Latin word pagus, meaning village. Following the influx of Slavic peoples to the area of what is now the Croatian coast, some also settled on the island in the 6th and 7th centuries. Different sections of the island came under the control of the churches of Rab and Zadar.

The island sought to wrestle control from Zadar over the centuries, successfully at times, although various battles saw it return to Zadar’s control as well. Like its neighbouring islands and much of Dalmatia, Pag came to be under Venetian rule from 1409. Having suffered and been badly damaged during the assorted battles in the previous centuries, the island’s main town (named Cissa then) was moved in the 15th century from where it was to its present-day location. In 1797, Pag became part of the Austrian Empire, as did much of the Croatian coast.

Following brief Napoleonic rule in the first part of the 19th century, the island of Pag prospered economically under Austrian rule, with investment in the island’s production of salt. The island came to be part of Yugoslavia in 1918, although was occupied first by Italy and then Germany during World War II. The island was liberated on 5th April 1945, becoming part of Yugoslavia once more, before being part of the Croatia that declared independence in 1991.

We’ve decided to create a special nightlife on Pag page for the island, as it’s one of the top clubbing spots in Croatia. If a holiday of partying it up at night and relaxing by day on the beautiful Adriatic coastline sounds like the thing for you, you should definitely consider paying the island of Pag a visit! The island’s famous Zrce Beach in Novalja, to the north of the island, boasts a number of excellent beach clubs. Kalypso is one of the most famous clubs in Croatia, with nearly thirty years of clubbing experience – making it the oldest beach club on Zrce Beach and in southeastern Europe, in fact! The club has a huge open-air dance floor, different areas and levels and lots of different bar areas. The central pool area also means you can lounge about by day (in or out of the pool!), sipping on refreshing cocktails and relaxing in the sun. Kalypso has a a very exciting line-up of events for 2015 – as well as being one of the venues of top festivals such as Hideout, Sonus, Barrakud and Fresh Island Festival, they’ve also unveiled their very own Stereo Forest festival (2nd – 6th August).

This EDM event will bring together some of the top name DJs and acts in this field, as well as hosting a Garden of Art cirque performance art party on the 3rd August, and a Color Sensation party on 4th August. (Garden of Art parties in fact take place very Monday throughout the season!) Find out more about Kalypso’s exciting 2015 season on our blog: The 2015 party season at Zrce Beach’s Kalypso club, including brand new Stereo Forest Festival. Papaya and Aquarius Zrce are both also located on Zrce Beach…and are both also top open air clubs!Although they’re only open during summer (mid-June to the end of August), they have a full season of DJs and events during this time. They are both open during the day for fun and games during daylight hours, although it’s obviously at night when the main events get started – with parties taking place until the wee hours.

The clubs attract a good mix of top DJs each summer – big names appearing during previous summer seasons include Fatboy Slim, Benny Benassi and Fedde le Grande (at Aquarius) and Paul van Dyk, Axwell and the Swedish House Mafia (at Papaya). Both clubs are also venues for some of the festivals held in Novalja (see below).Noa Beach, Euphoria are also all excellent options for clubbing on Zrce Beach. (Can you see why the location has a name as being the top clubbing destination in Croatia?!). For partying in Novalja itself, check out Cocomo Club for some seaside clubbing. As mentioned above, there’s plenty of top music festivals that take place in Pag’s Zrce Beach! These include Hideout (which has established itself as one of Croatia’s top dance music festivals, with a host of top name DJsperforming each year at this sell out event); hip hop/rap Fresh Island Festival; Sonus Festival; Barrakud and new for 2015, Croatia Rocks (from the same people that brought you Ibiza Rocks!).