Weather in Croatia

Croatia's climate is largely broken up into two - a continental climate and a Mediterranean one - depending on different regions within the country. A continental climate is felt in the cities and regions located in the mainland of the country while the cities along the Adriatic coast experience a Mediterranean climate. However, the weather in these climates can fluctuate slightly from year to year. This means the weather is slightly different in both areas of the country but, on the whole, Croatia enjoys mild winters and warm to hot summers.

Weather on the coast

Temperatures in summer can reach as high as 30°C+/86°F but usually average around the mid to high 20°Cs/82°F for most of the season thanks to the proximity of the Adriatic coast. Along with the warm, sunny weather, the months of June, July, and August rarely see any rainfall making it the best season to experience some of Croatia's incredible beaches and the many water-based activities that you can participate in. Temperatures start to slowly decrease as it moves into Autumn, however, they're still high enough to enjoy spending long periods of time outside without getting too cold (think high teens to low 20°Cs/68°F). With the arrival of Autumn comes the arrival of frequent rainfall, and as it moves into winter, this rainfall can increase to a heavy level.

While temperatures in winter on the coast can lower to 5°C/41°F, it's unlikely that coastal areas will ever see snow. On some occasions, a light dusting of snow has fallen in areas such as Zadar and Split but it's very uncommon and is often difficult to predict.

Weather in the mainland

The weather in summer can get extremely hot in the mainland regions of Croatia with temperatures around the mid to high 30°Cs/high 80°Fs to low 90°Fs quite common, especially in July. However, it can often feel warmer than that because of the lack of wind/sea breeze that the coastal areas experience. Don't let those high temperatures deter you from visiting though as temperatures are more likely to sit around the mid to high 20°Cs/82°F. Similar to the climate of the coast, summers tend to experience little rainfall until the months of autumn and winter so travelling to the country in June, July, and August is the best time to enjoy the warm, Croatian sunshine.

Does it snow in Croatia?

If you're travelling to Croatia in search of snow then you'll definitely find it with the mainland areas of the country experiencing copious amounts of snow during winter. Temperatures in winter usually average around 0°C/32°F making it the perfect condition for snow to fall and stick to the ground for an extended period of time. Although temperatures are conducive to frequent snowfall, snowfall is unlikely to be extremely heavy so if you're interested in doing snow-based activities such as skiing or snowboarding, travel to the ski resorts in the height of winter (January) to enjoy the deepest amount of snow.

Below are a list of cities/regions that experience the most snow in Croatia during winter:

Motovun
Gorski Kotar
Sljeme
Hrvatsko Zagorje region
Plitvice Lakes National Park

Average temperatures in Croatia

MONTH	AVERAGE HIGH	AVERAGE LOW
March to May	18°C/64°F	9°C/48°F
June to August	28°C/82°F	18°C/64°F
September to November	17°C/62°F	10°C/50°F
December to February	7°C/45°F	1°C/33°F