Introduction to Pag Island

60km (36 miles) N of Zadar; 240km (150 miles) W of Zagreb

When you approach the island of Pag on the ferry from mainland Prizna south of Senj you'd never guess that Pag is home to one of the biggest party beaches in Europe. At first glance it looks as if you're headed for a landing on Mars rather than a sojourn on an island awash with nouveau riche villas, condominiums, and a pedigree that goes back to the Roman Empire.

It's difficult to imagine that anything could survive for long on Pag's barren terrain, which appears to be either entirely karst (limestone) or dry dust, but the island once was covered with lush forests. Agriculture thrived on Pag when the Romans settled here in the 1st century, and during the next 1,300 years or so, not much disturbed Pag's flora, not even the Slav invasion in the 7th century or Pag's fights over its prized salt fields with Rab and Zadar in the 13th and 14th centuries.

In the 15th century, however, the rulers of Venice and Zadar were in competition for the island and its natural resources. Venice won in the end when it took control of much of Dalmatia in 1409, including Pag and Zadar. Some might say that Pag lost because once the Venetians had control, they used the island's vast tracts of timber as their exclusive lumberyard and indiscriminately stripped the island of its trees to build ships. The triple whammy of Venetian deforestation, grazing sheep, and fierce northwestern wind (bura) that frequently hammers the Kvarner and northern Dalmatian coast so traumatized the environment that it has never recovered.

Even though the Venetians showed little concern for ecology, they were engrossed in building and by the mid-15th century, their salt trade on Pag had grown so much that the island's Old Town could no longer handle the population or the business. Consequently, the Venetian administrators hired Juraj Dalmatinac to design a new city, which became Pag Town.

Sheep breeding and salt production have always been and still are mainstays of Pag's economy, but it is tourism that now contributes the biggest chunk of revenue to the island. Thanks to that trend, Pag recently has been the site of a building boom that is driving development of other commerce on the island. Thus, Pag is beginning to catch up with nearby vacation venues in terms of tourism days, but the island still is mostly undiscovered and underrated, leaving it an incredible vacation opportunity for the knowledgeable traveler.

Pag Island is 60km (36 miles) long and 10km (6 miles) wide at its broadest point. Most of the island's eastern side is barren or covered with a grid of rock walls that delineate property lines and keep sheep from wandering from one patch of scrub grass to another. However, on the northwest end of the island, from Simuni to Lun, olive trees and other vegetation have taken root in large fertile sections.

Several small islands surround Pag. Some are inhabited only by sheep (Skrda) and others aren't inhabited at all, but they offer secluded pristine pebble beaches for anyone who arrives from the sea. Most of Pag's irregular coastline is indented with countless coves sparkling with water so clear you can see the sandy bottom 6m (20 ft.) down, a siren's song for swimmers, snorkelers, and scuba divers who have discovered Pag's charms.

Pag Island is not densely populated -- yet. In fact, most of the time, visitor numbers for Pag's waters and beaches are thin, and FOR RENT signs are numerous -- except from July 15 to August 15, when it seems as if half of Italy descends on the island, fills its rooms and apartments, and takes over its party beaches and restaurants. That short window of time often finds Pag on the 10pm news throughout Europe as a video clip with sound bite showing scantily clad women and men engaging in wild, nonstop partying, though those images don't accurately reflect the true Pag.

Most of the year, Pag is a quiet island whose permanent residents produce and promote four products for which the island has become famous -- cheese, lamb, lace, and salt. The cheese is known as Paski sir, and it is reminiscent of Parmesan, though a bit saltier. It is sold throughout the island by both commercial and home-based producers and usually served sliced and drizzled with olive oil. Paski sir is exported to Croatia's larger population centers, where it goes for a much higher price than it does on Pag.

The second is Paski lamb. Pag is home to many herds of sheep, and meat from the island's lamb is prized because of its high quality and unique flavor, which is a result of the lamb's diet of scrub grass and local herbs that grow wild in the rocky soil and the lot of salt-infused air they breathe. The combination creates lamb that has an indefinable taste, but one that is sought after by Croatian gourmets.

The third Pag product worth noting is Paski lace. The art of lace making is a tradition that has been preserved in Pag, which makes it possible to buy handmade rounds of exquisite lace. Authentic Pag lace can be very expensive even if you buy some straight from the woman who tatted it. A 6-inch round can sell for 750kn ($140) or more, but it makes a beautiful souvenir that will last indefinitely. Look for elderly ladies dressed in black sitting in Pag Town's center square or near Novalja's market for the best examples of this art. Usually these are the lacemakers themselves, who will bargain with you on the price of their wares. Once you see real Pag lace, which is incredibly intricate, you'll be able to tell imitations from the genuine article.

Finally, there is the salt once fought over by would-be conquerors. Today, Pag's salt pans are still in production, mostly in the island's central valley. Pag salt is commonplace in Croatian supermarkets, and is exported as well. Many of the island's souvenir shops sell decorative bottles of pebble-size Pag salt as an inexpensive souvenir.

It's a shame that "the season" on Pag isn't longer than the traditional mid-July to mid-August rush because the climate is still warm in spring and fall, and the island offers lively nightlife, crystal-clear azure water for swimming, plenty of first-class accommodations, historic sites, and quaint attractions.