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- Chris Boiling
- 2024-03-26
The Hažić family is preparing to open its ‘wine camp’ for a fourth season.
The Hažić Wine Camp, the first of its kind in Croatia, opened in the Međimurje region in northern Croatia in 2021. Using EU funds, the family farm now offers 12 pitches for campervans (80-100sq m) and two wooden mobile homes (with plans for six more). There is a reception area, shower and toilet block (with separate shower and bath for dogs), children’s playground, barbecue area, and laundry service.
The pitches are named after grape varieties grown in the Međimurje wine region: Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Pušipel (the local name for Furmint), Pinot bijeli (Pinot Blanc), Pinot sivi (Pinot Grigio/Gris), Žuti muškat (Yellow Muscat), Silvanac, Rajnski rizling (Riesling), Pjenušac (sparkling wine), Graševina, Traminac, and Pinto crni (Pinot Noir).
Winemaker Tatjana Hažić (below), one of two sisters running the farm with their parents, Biserka and Radenko Hažić, sees the campsite as more than an alternative source of revenue. She sees it as a way to boost sales of all their produce – wine, apples and honey.
Tatjana told Canopy: “As we are a relatively small winery (selling about 20,000 bottles of wine annually), we do not have the possibility to pay for big promotions or advertisements, or spend money on marketing. We invested in a winehouse (below) and wine camp, trying to bring the guests to us, on our family farm, trying to stay a longer time with us; so they can explore and see what we are doing and how we do it. In this way we gain their trust and loyalty and they always come back to our farm.
“So, the winery and the camp are helping us to sell better our products.”
The campsite is 200m from the winehouse, among the vineyards. The overnight price includes a wine or juice tasting in the ‘homestead’ – a rustic, traditional-looking building which can host up to 50 people and 30 people on the terrace. Homemade cold cuts can be ordered with the wine.
“We want to share the energy and love for the work we do with our guests,” Tatjana says.
In the height of the season, the farm gains extra visitors and publicity by staging a ‘vineyard trail’ – a fun race up and down the rows of vines in the vineyard nearest the winehouse.
Such activities are proving an ideal way to promote a region that isn’t known for camping, wine tourism or as a holiday destination.
This is despite the business being in the fertile lowlands between the rivers Mura and Drava, where there are well-maintained cycling paths leading to the rivers and local attractions such as the new lookout tower on Mađerka’s Hill (below), which has wonderful views of the local vineyards and into Slovenia.
The campsite is also only 800m from one of Croatia’s best spas, Terme Sveti Martin, in nearby Sveti Martin na Muri.
The family project started in 1994 but has stepped up a gear in the last eight years – with the Hažić family investing nearly €700,000 in the business (about €400,000 coming from EU funds). As well as the campsite, the money has gone on a new processing plant for producing fruit juices and delicious apple chips, equipment for the wine cellar, and expanding to 2.3ha of vineyards and 5ha of orchards.
One of the goals this year is to improve the quality of the wines, which Tatjana has been making since 2018.
The Hažić Wine Camp, the first of its kind in Croatia, opened in the Međimurje region in northern Croatia in 2021. Using EU funds, the family farm now offers 12 pitches for campervans (80-100sq m) and two wooden mobile homes (with plans for six more). There is a reception area, shower and toilet block (with separate shower and bath for dogs), children’s playground, barbecue area, and laundry service.
The pitches are named after grape varieties grown in the Međimurje wine region: Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Pušipel (the local name for Furmint), Pinot bijeli (Pinot Blanc), Pinot sivi (Pinot Grigio/Gris), Žuti muškat (Yellow Muscat), Silvanac, Rajnski rizling (Riesling), Pjenušac (sparkling wine), Graševina, Traminac, and Pinto crni (Pinot Noir).
Winemaker Tatjana Hažić (below), one of two sisters running the farm with their parents, Biserka and Radenko Hažić, sees the campsite as more than an alternative source of revenue. She sees it as a way to boost sales of all their produce – wine, apples and honey.
Tatjana told Canopy: “As we are a relatively small winery (selling about 20,000 bottles of wine annually), we do not have the possibility to pay for big promotions or advertisements, or spend money on marketing. We invested in a winehouse (below) and wine camp, trying to bring the guests to us, on our family farm, trying to stay a longer time with us; so they can explore and see what we are doing and how we do it. In this way we gain their trust and loyalty and they always come back to our farm.
“So, the winery and the camp are helping us to sell better our products.”
The campsite is 200m from the winehouse, among the vineyards. The overnight price includes a wine or juice tasting in the ‘homestead’ – a rustic, traditional-looking building which can host up to 50 people and 30 people on the terrace. Homemade cold cuts can be ordered with the wine.
“We want to share the energy and love for the work we do with our guests,” Tatjana says.
In the height of the season, the farm gains extra visitors and publicity by staging a ‘vineyard trail’ – a fun race up and down the rows of vines in the vineyard nearest the winehouse.
Such activities are proving an ideal way to promote a region that isn’t known for camping, wine tourism or as a holiday destination.
This is despite the business being in the fertile lowlands between the rivers Mura and Drava, where there are well-maintained cycling paths leading to the rivers and local attractions such as the new lookout tower on Mađerka’s Hill (below), which has wonderful views of the local vineyards and into Slovenia.
The campsite is also only 800m from one of Croatia’s best spas, Terme Sveti Martin, in nearby Sveti Martin na Muri.
The family project started in 1994 but has stepped up a gear in the last eight years – with the Hažić family investing nearly €700,000 in the business (about €400,000 coming from EU funds). As well as the campsite, the money has gone on a new processing plant for producing fruit juices and delicious apple chips, equipment for the wine cellar, and expanding to 2.3ha of vineyards and 5ha of orchards.
One of the goals this year is to improve the quality of the wines, which Tatjana has been making since 2018.
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