Apart from a few packed-away sun loungers and the odd shuttered beach kiosk, summer is firmly keeping its grip on the Croatian island of Lošinj in the northern Adriatic. The sea is still warm as I plunge into the turquoise waters of Čikat bay, one of the largest and most sheltered on this long, thin, knobbly island in the Kvarner Gulf.

Croatia’s 19th-century Habsburg rulers were convinced that Lošinj had special healing qualities. Wandering along the tree-shaded footpath that runs all around Čikat bay and its numerous headlands, lulled by scents of pine, juniper, rosemary, sage, mint, mastic and helichrysum, I’m inclined to agree. There’s a mellowness to the air after the intense heat of high summer, and fewer people are on the beaches – although the island’s main town of Mali Lošinj buzzes with several festivals and regattas in September.

I’m here during the annual Taste the Mediterranean food festival, which has moved around Croatia over the past 13 years and has now found a home in Mali Lošinj. Guest chefs from around Europe work with local chefs to create dinners at some of the town’s restaurants, as well as hosting workshops for young culinary stars of the future.

It’s a fitting location: the Kvarner region – comprising the Opatija Riviera, Rijeka and its littoral, plus islands including Lošinj, Cres, Krk and Rab – has been designated European Region of Gastronomy for 2026 by the International Institute of Gastronomy, Culture, Arts and Tourism. Situated between the Istrian peninsula and the Dalmatian coast, Kvarner embodies the melting pot of Croatian cuisine – part Austrian, part Italian, part Balkan, and borrowing freely from its regional neighbours.

I see this on my plate at Diana Steakhouse in Čikat bay, where Istrian truffles add richness to creamily cheesy Italian ravioli, and grilled squid comes with a moreish Dalmatian side dish of garlicky blitva (chard) mashed into potatoes. At next door’s Konoba Cigale, I chat to executive chef Dinko Lekić, a born-and-bred Lošinjanin who praises the fish and seafood of Kvarner. “Every day it comes in fresh,” he says, adding that he’s now taking culinary revenge on the invasive blue crab by putting it on his menu.

However, it’s the Adriatic langoustine – škampi in Croatian – that’s the king of Kvarner. Something magical happens when water rushes through the karst mountains of Učka nature park above the Opatija area and pours nutrients into the Kvarner Gulf, feeding these shellfish. Chef Stiven Vunić, who runs Konoba Zijavica in Mošćenička Draga, south of Opatija town, and who comes from a long line of škampi fishers, enthuses about the delicacy. “This is one of the best products we have in Kvarner,” he says. “It’s very sweet; I’ve never tasted škampi like this.”

I could taste that sweetness in my grilled langoustine on Bocca Vera’s terrace overlooking the lively harbour in Mali Lošinj, preceded by tortellini with ricotta and truffles in a škampi sauce. Other seafood stars appear during my visit, including a platter of marinated and salted anchovies, carpaccio of sea bass, tuna and octopus as a warm-up for grilled dentex in Gostionica Marina in the village of Veli Lošinj, whose pretty harbour is lined with colourful Venetian-style houses.

Then there’s grilled turbot at Lanterna Grill’s waterside terrace in Čikat bay, surely one of the most romantic spots on the island, made even more enchanting by the walk there during twilight as the fiery sun filters through Aleppo pines. The bay is a snapshot of Lošinj: grand 19th-century Austrian-style villas (including one converted into the luxury Boutique Hotel Alhambra), the sleek modern Hotel Bellevue where I’m staying, the picturesquely ramshackle Latino Beach bar in front of a sandy stretch, and the northern cape dominated by an enormous campsite set under fragrant pines.

It’s tempting to linger in Čikat, with its beaches, watersports, restaurants and picnic places. However, it’s only a 15-minute walk into Mali Lošinj, where the brightly coloured port is filled with baroque sea captains’ houses, cafe terraces and a fish market. The Museum of Apoxyomenos houses one of the world’s best-preserved ancient Greek statues, and the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, with its Venetian baroque bell tower, is reached after trudging up about 200 steps along narrow alleyways.

There’s already so much natural aromatherapy on the island, but it goes into overdrive at Lošinj’s Fragrant Garden (Miomirisni Otočki Vrt) at the southern tip of Mali Lošinj. I say hello to the resident animals (a donkey, some tortoises and a rabbit), while inhaling island scents and gazing at the sea just beyond. From here it’s a short walk down stone steps to the sheltered pebbly beach at Valdarke, which, on this sunny Saturday afternoon, has fewer than 20 people on it.

Farther north is the long narrow bay of Artatore, whose pine-shaded Venerica beach is a satisfying spot for a post-lunch swim after crab soup and fried sardines with blitva at Restaurant Artatore Janja. Another late-season bonus: there are only a few dozen people spread out under the pines and on the pebbles.

About the only place that still has a high number of visitors – and requires a reservation at sunset – is the lookout point at Providenca on the hills above Mali Lošinj. It’s worth the €10 fee to sit at one of the benches surrounded by a profusion of scented plants and herbs, drinking Kvarner and Istrian wine, maybe buying a picnic basket of local cheeses, meats and seafood – and just gazing at the vista. Lošinj, its neighbouring islands and part of the mountainous mainland stretch out before me, all bathed in the glow of the setting sun. If you want to soothe the eyes and the soul, come here.

I have another treat in store before I leave Lošinj: getting two islands for the price of one. Lošinj’s northern tip is attached by a bridge to Cres, which ties with neighbouring Krk as being Croatia’s largest island. Populated by more sheep than people, and smothered with olive groves and forests of holm oak and pine, Cres is as relaxed as it comes. In the north is Beli, whose griffon vulture rescue centre I last visited 21 years ago. I’m pleased to discover that concerted efforts to rescue this endangered bird have been paying off. It’s now home to Croatia’s largest colony.

Cres town is another tiny Venetian delight, set on a deep bay that extends towards headlands lined with beaches of fine gravel and another sprawling campsite. In front of one of these beaches is the Isolano, a chic new adults-only hotel that opened in spring. When I heard about it months ago, I was a little worried this Marriott hotel wouldn’t suit Cres’s laid-back, nature-focused vibe (this is the island whose slogan is “no stress on Cres”), but I’m happy to be proved wrong. As with everything else I’d seen on these two Kvarner islands, it was just the spot to sit back and savour a taste of late summer.

The trip was provided by the Kvarner Region Tourist Board, Taste the Mediterranean and Visit Lošinj. Hotel Bellevue has doubles from €177 B&B a night in October (two-night minimum stay); closed from early November to late March. The Isolano, Cres has doubles from €186 B&B in October; closed from early January to mid-March