Nin Sand Festival – Magic that appears and disappears!

I was very cheerfully getting ready for this trip even though I had to get up at three in the morning to arrive on time.

I knew that today I was expecting a visit to a special festival, one that appears and disappears, and I guess it’s the only festival that starts at the crack of dawn – at seven o’clock! And it’s a four-hour drive, so hurry up Paula, the Sand Festival in Nin awaits you!

Sand Festival Nin 2024, Photo: Adria fun

Nin is special. Full of an exciting past, it also holds the title of the oldest Croatian royal city, the cradle of the Croatian state. It houses the smallest cathedral in the world and the coronation church of St. Nicholas.

St. Nicholas, Nin, Photo: Adria.fun

Nin has a rich cultural treasure and preserved nature and an extraordinarily beautiful environment. It also has one of the most beautiful beaches in the world, which is why I came here.

I didn’t come to swim though. Although the sun was tempting me to go and cool down, there were tourists everywhere, and the crickets were loud, but I was as solid as a rock. I arrived at the beach for an editorial assignment and that’s it.

Queen’s Beach Nin, Photo: Adria fun

The beaches of Nin are one of its trademarks and an impressive image that is remembered by everyone who has been here at least once. Their total length is as much as 8 kilometers.

The longest and most famous of them is the 3-kilometer-long, sandy Queen’s beach, which is also associated with a legend. According to tradition, the wife of the first Croatian king Tomislav was particularly attracted by its beauty, so the royal family visited this beach, whenever they officially came to Nin and enjoyed rare more relaxed family moments here. Hence the name of the beach, whose beauty, due to the extremely long shallows, is enjoyed by families with small children.

Queen’s Beach Nin, Photo: Adria fun

Children, family, summer, and sand are the ideal combination for the Sand Festival, which is traditionally held in August and is the reason for my stay in this paradise. This year, the festival took place on August 24.

At the very beginning, I met a couple from Zagreb, Dejana and Krešimir, who were building their kitesurfer… “we are not in the competition here because we are members of the jury, so we show by example how it is done”… they tell me as they shape a really beautiful sculpture in the sand.

Sand Festival Nin 2024, Photo: Adria fun

All the works had to be finished by 11 o’clock when the winner was announced, so I could see the work atmosphere, excitement, and joy on all sides while about twenty teams of various ages tried to creatively shape their sculpture. Without water, rakes, shovels, and buckets it is impossible, and some had to work hard, like this family from Poland who built the big pyramids!

Sand Festival Nin 2024, Photo: Adria fun

There is a lot of creativity and imagination. While walking along the beach, I notice octopus sculptures. turtle, and there is also a dragon – Pozoj, who guards the town of Čakovec, explains Zita, who was building her sculpture together with her father.

Sand Festival Nin 2024, Photo: Adria fun

Imagination works wonders, but practice can be more demanding. Some works were more successful, and some less, but everyone tried their best. The competitors come mostly from Croatia, they are here on vacation, they tell me as I reach each of them, but there are also Slovenians, Slovaks, Poles, and Hungarians.

Sand Festival Nin 2024, Photo: Adria fun

There is also a large number of daily swimmers who, as a loud audience, contribute to the general cacophony of the sounds of the sea, crickets, and the artistic desire for the best possible fruit of their work. This is how you become friends with the beach, but also with the people around the art pieces in the making.

Sand Festival Nin 2024, Photo: Adria fun

The sun was already high in the sky, so it was time for the jury’s decision, which was not easy at all. A crowd gathered around Marija Dejanović, the director of the Tourist Board of the City of Nin, who couldn’t wait for the announcement of the winner.

Announcement of the winner, Photo: Adria fun

First, as many as three teams were announced, which equally won the third place. These were Zita Blažević and her dad Mario from Čakovec for the dragon, Boris Cikač from Zadar who made the octopus, and Erik Baksa, also from Međimurje, the author of the work cat and the fish.

Sand Festival Nin 2024, Photo: Adria fun

Second place was won by Božena Gržan from Petrčani, who made a motif of Gregory of Nin in the sand. “There is Gregory of Nin made of bronze, so let there also be made of sand,” says Božena with a smile on her face to the gathered journalists while receiving the award.

Sand Festival Nin 2024, Photo: Adria fun

The winners were Jozef and Lucija Kuruc from Slovakia with their fisherman and faithful dog, and it is interesting that this is their second victory, as they were also winners in 2019. As a reward, they received a photo wallpaper depicting their sculpture. Competitors who won second and third place received gift packages from Solana Nin and appropriate props for the beach.

Sand Festival Nin 2024, Winning work by Jozef and Lucija Kuruc, Photo: Adria fun

The saddest part of the competition was when the sea began to “bite” these works of art and they began to disappear. Exactly in line with the slogan of the festival from the title of this announcement, so by tomorrow there probably won’t be there anymore.

Sand Festival Nin 2024, Winning work by Jozef and Lucija Kuruc, Photo: Adria fun

Marija says that she will repeat the competition next year. “It is important to us that the families who come here on vacation have a good time,” says Marija. It was a lot of fun for me and I believe that I will be here at the 11th Sand Festival in 2025. Until then, practice on the sandy beaches of Nin, draw, build, dream, and enjoy.

This publication was co-financed by the Fund for the Promotion of Pluralism and Diversity of Electronic Media.