Ikador Luxury Boutique Hotel & Spa

Safe to say the Croatian coastline is no longer much of a secret — there’s nothing quite as crowded as Cannes, but places like Split and Hvar are first-call Mediterranean destinations. Less well known, at least outside of Croatia’s borders, is Ika, a resort town on the so-called Opatija Riviera, on the inner curve of the Kvarner Gulf — a town that’s home, as you may well have guessed, to the Ikador Luxury Boutique Hotel & Spa.

For all the talk about resorts, you’ll be delighted to learn of Ikador’s small size: just nine rooms and seven suites, all of them spacious, colorful, and charmingly Art Deco–inspired. The comforts are first-rate, from the in-room espresso machines to the Hermès bath products, and, in many suites, terraces that look out over the Adriatic.

Despite its small size, Ikador has more than enough to offer for a complete stay, from the rather extravagant Ikalia Spa to the fine-dining Nobilia restaurant and the poolside Riva Lounge. And while the town of Ika is on the pleasantly sleepy side, you’re just a few minutes down the coast from Opatija proper, which is chock full of more than enough restaurants, bars, and other diversions to earn its “riviera” tag.