Bus from MAKARSKA to NIKŠIĆ

Since ancient times, Makarska has been the center of the Makarska Littoral, administrative, political, economic, cultural and educational, and since the mid-20th century. st. and touristic. Today it is a city with more than 15 thousand inhabitants, which also includes picturesque settlements under Biokovo, Veliko Brdo, Puharići, Kotišina and Makar, from which came the name Makarska. Makarska is one of the most famous tourist destinations on the Croatian coast, attractive due to its natural and climatic characteristics, diverse tourist offer and hospitable hosts.

Makarska is located at the foot of the Biokovo mountain massif (1762 m), which protects from the penetration of the continental climate and has lush Mediterranean vegetation, mild winters, long and warm summers with a refreshing maestral. The sun is shining for more than 2750 hours a year with an air temperature of more than 20 ° C from June to September, and the clear sea from June to October has a temperature above 20 ° C.

The city of Makarska occupies a central position in the Makarska Littoral, not only because of geographical location, but primarily because of the economic and social factors that made this city the second largest economic and demographic framework of Central Dalmatia (right after Split), which is why Makarsko in the last time is increasingly using the name Makarska Riviera.

Nikšić is the second largest city of Montenegro, with a total population of 71,237, located in the west of the country, in the centre of the spacious Nikšić field at the foot of Mount Trebjesa.

It is the center of Nikšić Municipality (Population of 87,950), which is the largest municipality by area and second most inhabited after Podgorica. It is an important industrial, cultural, and educational center.

Nikšić has a humid subtropical climate, which is influenced by the Mediterranean climate drying trend during summer. Average temperature for January is 1.3°C, while average temperature in July is 21.1°C. Average humidity amounts to 68,57%. Nikšić receives 2.245 hours of sunshine per year, with warm and moderately wet summers, and cool and rainy winters. On average, there are 19 days per year with snowfall.

Although Nikšić area has seen human settlements since antiquity, most of the modern Nikšić is a planned city. Very little remains of the Ottoman architectural heritage, despite the long presence of Ottoman Empire in the area. The city layout visible today still follows the 1883 urban plan commissioned by King Nicholas and designed by Croatian architect Josip Slade.

According to this plan, the streets of Nikšić radiate to the north and east from the central city square (today a roundabout), locally known as Skver. The radial streets are intersected by circumferential streets and avenues, thus creating a half-spider web-like street layout.

Nikšić is, alongside Podgorica, one of the biggest industrial centres of Montenegro. A Steel mill (Nikšićka Željezara), bauxite mine, Trebjesa brewery (Nikšićka Pivara), and many more are concentrated in this city. These big industries had struggled to survive the collapse of the socialist economy, but have since recovered. The process of privatization is either finished or still in progress for some of these industries.

Today those industry giants cannot employ as many workers as they could back in the days of Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, and the economy of Nikšić is slowly transforming into one that is more service-oriented. In 1981 Niksic's GDP per capita was 91% of the Yugoslav average.

Although mostly perceived as an industrial center, Nikšić is also a city of rich cultural heritage. The most significant cultural institution in the city is Centar Za Kulturu (Cultural Center), which incorporates the city's major public cultural establishments. Nikšić is known for its distinctive cultural atmosphere and bohemian art scene, with poet Vitomir Nikolić and singers/songwriters like Miladin Šobić or Marinko Pavićević as prominent representatives of the Nikšić bohemian spirit. Živko Nikolić, a native of Nikšić, is considered the most significant Montenegrin movie director.