Croatia / Primorje-Gorski Kotar

Rajska plaža

Rajska plaža is a 1.5 km-long sandy beach facing east-south-east on the Adriatic Sea, 1.6 km south-east of Lopar (Primorje-Gorski Kotar, Croatia). The sea averages 23.8 °C in August, its warmest month, and 11.0 °C in February; it is 21 °C or warmer in June–September.

Average sea surface temperature by month. Current month outlined.

Taken on the 30th of June, 2016. Paradise shore. (Rajska Plaža). Lopar, Rab island. Croatia. Sandy shore, warm water (28 C).
Photo: Elekes Andor, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Month by month

October at Rajska plaža

Sea19.0 °C
Day high16 °C
Night low8 °C
Rain132 mm
Cloud cover53%
Wind3.0 m/s
Daylight11.1 h07:14–18:18

Beach-day index 3.7/10 · Croatia median 4.4

Monthly averages at Rajska plaža
MeasureJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Sea °C12.0 °C11.0 °C11.2 °C13.2 °C17.1 °C21.1 °C23.5 °C23.8 °C21.4 °C19.0 °C16.5 °C13.9 °C
High °C4°5°9°14°19°23°26°26°21°16°10°5°
Low °C-1°-1°2°6°10°14°16°16°12°8°4°0°
Rain mm1011089192105796282140132156123
Cloud %646056545243323244536461
Wind m/s3.84.13.72.92.52.32.22.42.83.03.33.8
Daylight h9.210.411.813.414.815.615.314.112.611.19.68.8
Record high/low15°/-15°15°/-13°20°/-13°25°/-3°30°/2°36°/4°38°/10°37°/7°30°/4°26°/-3°23°/-4°14°/-11°
Beach index2.62.52.72.74.17.49.29.06.03.72.62.4

Long-term monthly averages: air from NASA POWER (2001–2020), sea from NOAA OISST (1991–2020); records are the extremes of 2001–2020. How the index works.

When to go

The beach-day index peaks in July–August; July scores 9.2/10 with highs of 26 °C, sea at 23.5 °C and 62 mm of rain.

That matches the median for beaches in Croatia in the same month.

At its warmest the water here is 0.7 °C cooler than the Croatia median for August (24.5 °C).

Across the year the sea averages 17.0 °C, cooler than 64% of the coastal beaches in the atlas.

November is the wettest month (156 mm) and July the driest (62 mm); the yearly total is about 1,270 mm.

Daylight runs from 8.8 hours in December to 15.6 hours in June; in mid-July the sun rises at 05:28 and sets at 20:45 local time.

Day highNight lowSeaRain (mm)
Climate and sea temperature at Rajska plažaMonthly averages. Lines: daytime high, night low, sea surface temperature. Bars: rainfall in millimetres.-5°0°5°10°15°20°25°30°0 mm100 mm200 mmJanuary: 101 mm rainFebruary: 108 mm rainMarch: 91 mm rainApril: 92 mm rainMay: 105 mm rainJune: 79 mm rainJuly: 62 mm rainAugust: 82 mm rainSeptember: 140 mm rainOctober: 132 mm rainNovember: 156 mm rainDecember: 123 mm rainJanuary: sea 12 °CFebruary: sea 11 °CMarch: sea 11.2 °CApril: sea 13.2 °CMay: sea 17.1 °CJune: sea 21.1 °CJuly: sea 23.5 °CAugust: sea 23.8 °CSeptember: sea 21.4 °COctober: sea 19 °CNovember: sea 16.5 °CDecember: sea 13.9 °CJanuary: high 4 °CFebruary: high 4.9 °CMarch: high 9.3 °CApril: high 14.4 °CMay: high 18.8 °CJune: high 22.9 °CJuly: high 25.7 °CAugust: high 26.2 °CSeptember: high 20.5 °COctober: high 15.5 °CNovember: high 10.3 °CDecember: high 5.4 °CJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

Orientation, sun and shore

JunDecNESW

The shore faces east-south-east (105°). Open water fills about 22% of the horizon close by, which makes it a sheltered cove or bay.

At no time of year does the sun set over the sea here: sunset bearings run from 237° to 305°, behind the land.

Sunrise is over the sea in August–April.

The opposite shore is only about 8.0 km away to the east-south-east, which keeps the water sheltered from big waves. The beach is on an island of about 85 km².

About 1 km offshore the sea is roughly 56 m deep and 73 m at 3 km, so deep water starts close to shore. Behind the beach the ground is about 22 m above sea level 500 m inland and 73 m at 1.5 km.

Within 1 km, the land is 46% tree cover, 21% grassland and 17% built-up land (satellite land-cover map, 2021): a partly built-up setting. Water makes up 39% of that circle.

  • Tree 46%
  • Grass 21%
  • Built 17%
  • Shrub 10%
  • Bare 6%
MonthJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Sunset over sea––––––––––––
Sunrise over seayesyesyesyes–––yesyesyesyesyes

Land cover: ESA WorldCover 2021 (10 m). Orientation from OpenStreetMap land polygons sampled in 36 directions; depths and heights from the GEBCO 2020 grid (about 450 m cells), indicative only.

Bathing water quality

The official EU bathing-water site “Rajska Plaža - Sredina”, 160 m from the beach centre, was rated Excellent for the 2025 season. It was Excellent in 11 of its 11 classified seasons since 2015.

  1. 2015Excellent
  2. 2016Excellent
  3. 2017Excellent
  4. 2018Excellent
  5. 2019Excellent
  6. 2020Excellent
  7. 2021Excellent
  8. 2022Excellent
  9. 2023Excellent
  10. 2024Excellent
  11. 2025Excellent

Source: European Environment Agency, EU Bathing Water Directive assessments · national site profile. Classes are based on four seasons of bacteriological sampling.

No lifeguard mapped

OpenStreetMap shows no lifeguard station within 1 km. Seasonal lifeguard posts are often unmapped, so check on site.

Photos

„Rajska plaža“, the sandy and shallow Paradise Beach in Lopar is deserted at the begin of May 2014.
Photo: Isiwal, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons · 2014
Taken on the 30th of June, 2016. Bamboocho Cocktail Bar. Paradise shore, Lopar. Rab island, Croatia.
Photo: Elekes Andor, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons · 2016
Taken on the 30th of June, 2016. Bamboocho Cocktail Bar. Paradise shore, Lopar. Rab island, Croatia.
Photo: Elekes Andor, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons · 2016
Taken on the 30th of June, 2016. Paradise shore. (Rajska Plaža). Lopar, Rab island. Croatia. Sandy shore, warm water (28 C).
Photo: Elekes Andor, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons · 2016
Taken on the 30th of June, 2016. Paradise shore. (Rajska Plaža). Lopar, Rab island. Croatia. Sandy shore, warm water (28 C).
Photo: Elekes Andor, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons · 2016
Taken on the 30th of June, 2016. Paradise shore. (Rajska Plaža). Lopar, Rab island. Croatia. Sandy shore, warm water (28 C).
Photo: Elekes Andor, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons · 2016
Taken on the 30th of June, 2016. Paradise shore. (Rajska Plaža). Lopar, Rab island. Croatia. Sandy shore, warm water (28 C).
Photo: Elekes Andor, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons · 2016

From above

Satellite image of Rajska plaža and its surroundings
Satellite view, 2.4 × 1.6 km centred on the beach, 2026-04-26. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2026.

Facilities within 1 km

  • 19Restaurants, cafés & bars
  • 3Public toilets
  • –Showers
  • 2Drinking water
  • 22Car parks
  • –Lifeguard stations
  • 26Hotels & guesthouses
  • 1Campsites
  • 2Grocery shops
  • 2Water-sports spots
  • 1Bus stops (1.5 km)
  • 3Cash machines
  • 5Viewpoints

Food and drink mapped within 1 km: 13 restaurants, 5 bars and 1 fast-food outlet. Accommodation: 26 hotels and guesthouses.

Counted within 1 km of the beach (bus stops 1.5 km) from OpenStreetMap features and Overture Maps places, release of 2026-10. Unmapped does not mean absent.

Around the beach

Attractions & museums

  • Lunapark Lopar attraction 870 m NE
  • Avanterra Park attraction 920 m NE

Nature

  • Stalactite cave cave entrance 550 m W
  • Kruna peak 830 m S
  • Medova Buža cave entrance 1.1 km SE
  • Stanišće peak 1.3 km W

Islands in view

  • Lukovac 730 m E
  • Hrid Kaštelina 1.3 km E
  • Hrid Stolac 2.0 km NE

Diving & boat hire

  • Rent a QUAD Rab Lopar 570 m NE

Campsites

  • San Marino Camping Resort 250 m N

Getting there

Airports with scheduled flights
AirportCodeDistanceDirection
Rijeka Airport Rijeka(Omišalj)RJK46.0 kmnorth
Pula Airport PulaPUY65.1 kmwest
Zadar Airport ZadarZAD94.0 kmsouth-east

Straight-line distances from the beach; road distance is usually 20–40% longer.

Local transport: 1 bus stop within 1.5 km and 22 mapped car parks within 1 km.

5 towns and villages of 1,000+ people lie within 10 km (about 5.8K residents); within 30 km there are 12 (about 18.6K).

Map and nearby beaches

Loading map…

Open in OpenStreetMap · Directions in Google Maps

Compared with the nearest beaches
BeachDistanceWarmest seaLengthSurface
Rajska plaža–23.8 °C1.5 kmSand
Plaža Banj9.0 km SE24.0 °C205 mFine gravel
Vela plaža16.0 km N23.8 °C––
Plaža Oprna17.4 km N23.8 °C144 mPebble

Data on this page

  • Air temperature, rain, cloud, wind, humidity: NASA POWER climatology 2001–2020, 0.5° grid.
  • Sea temperature: NOAA OISST v2.1 monthly normals 1991–2020, nearest ocean cell 11.0 km away.
  • Beach outline, surface, rules and public facilities: OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), feature w146381528; restaurants, cafés, bars and lodging: Overture Maps places (CDLA-Permissive-2.0).
  • Water body, status and length: Wikidata (CC0).
  • Towns and time zone: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). Airports: OurAirports (public domain). Sunrise and sunset: NOAA solar equations.
  • Photos: Wikimedia Commons, author and licence under each image.
  • Satellite view: Copernicus Sentinel-2 (ESA), scene S2A_33TVK_20260426_1_L2A.
  • Orientation: OpenStreetMap land polygons (ODbL). Depth and terrain: GEBCO 2020 grid.
  • Bathing-water quality: European Environment Agency (site HRBWC-COAST-HR3-6217).
  • Settlements: GeoNames places with 1,000+ inhabitants.
  • Land cover: ESA WorldCover 2021, 10 m (CC BY 4.0).
  • Search popularity: about 5.4K Google searches a month for the name (KeywordTool, October 2026).

Data compiled 2026-10-13. Something wrong? Report a data error.