Sol Aurora - Umag, Croatia     

Want a bargain over some of the other European beach places and not have to fly there -- that is if you live in Europe or are already otherwise traveling there? Then go to Croatia and if you don't want to drive too far -- with the intent of staying on the beach? Sol Aurora in Umag is the place then. The hotel is by far located on the best water and in the least crowded location in UMAG area. Yes, the hotel will not drown you with normal Euro 4 or 5 star treatment ... but on the bright side, it is very clean and very secure. There is no 'beach' per se, but rather a lake-like pavilion, about 200 meters long, built into the water -- which incidently is caribbean/greece clear ... only more salty. I guess the salinity is in an Adriatic thing. My family and I had fun just hanging out on the pavilion and swimming in the clear blue water. The food was CROATIAN! They did not cater to the visitors -- which, according to the license plates in the parking lot were 1 part English, 4 parts Slovenian, 4 parts Italian and 1 part everything else. All the tenants were well behaved and apart from some band music till about midnight, there was no problems with revelry. It is a very simple place and not spoiled. Visit the pool bar and meet some very nice people who work there and are proud of their countries heritage and speak highly of the area churches and archeological sites. Give Croatia a chance -- and if you are driving in Europe -- UMAG and Sol Aurora is the place. I'm happy I went there and after living in Spain, Germany and now moving to Austria -- I will go back.

Very dissapointing stay. Although we expected a certain old Yugoslavia (70's) style hotel experience we didn't expect a drop in those standards. Food was dreary and repetitive, hotel staff were extremely unapproachable and unhelpful. Entertainment was dull and noisy. In addition to this the resort, Umag, is a pretty charmless place. Half a day is enough to see its 'highlights' and another half enough to wish you were elsewhere. On the positive side it was clean, relatively cheap to eat out, and trips to Lake Bled and Venice were highlights. It was a shame that coming back to Umag from these places felt like the end of parole. We had a number of good reports of other resorts on the Istrian peninsula but unless you're a fan of Eastern Bloc chic avoid Umag. And the Aurora.