Open to the public in April 2019, the American gardens are the green oasis of peace hidden in the heart of Opatija. Located on the green slopes above the main road connecting Opatija with Lovran, it is only a five-minute walk from the central city beach, Slatina. This luxurious park with a unique view of the Kvarner Gulf has a rich history that goes back to the first half of the 20th century. Built in 1926 by Hungarian merchant Mihály Pál Kuczor, known as the King of Pepper, and dedicated to his beloved wife, Hilda.

It's a wonderful way to declare love, isn't it?

The American Gardens are a terraced set of gardens accessed by walkways and elaborate stone stairways that lead you through many beautifully organized botanical species. The gardens initially contained camphor, roses, camellias, magnolias, Australian agave, eucalyptuses, vineyards, and peppers. Today, efforts have been made to restore the gardens to their original state.

What gives the garden that special ancient feeling is the stunning ruins of Šišina mirína, named after the garden's first owner, Ivan Jurković, aka Šiša. The stonework is constructed to appear ancient, and its preservation was a condition of the land sale to Kuczor. As if he knew the gardens would not enjoy the status of a real landscape architecture masterpiece without them.  ‍‍

A Blend of Green and Blue ‍

Famously known for its Mediterranean climate and historic architecture reminiscent of what was once the Austrian Riviera, Opatija is a small coastal town between the Učka Mountain's green slopes and the blue sea of Kvarner Gulf. It is considered to be the birthplace of Croatian tourism. The city is remarkable because the urban context is elegantly intermittent, with six parks, one being the American gardens.

The park combines two geographical features of the region, the green slopes of the mountain and the blue Adriatic Sea. An attractive footbridge that leads over the busy New Road as safe access to American gardens makes a perfect connection between green and blue, metaphorically and literally. From the bridge, a beautiful view opens toward the royal Opatija Riviera.

‍

The History of the Garden‍

A wealthy Hungarian merchant of the famous Szegedin pepper, Michael Paulus Kuczor, arrived in Opatija in the 1920s, where he fell in love with the view from the green terraces. Here he had a dream where an angel appeared to him among the fountains and flowers and promised to help him decorate the garden he had imagined.

Nearby lived Hilda von Hortenau, the illegitimate daughter of the nephew of Emperor Francis Joseph and the Viennese prima ballerina Maria Schleinzer. Hilda lived in America for a while, and after the First World War, she moved to Opatija, where she opened a flower shop.

She will become Kuczor's angel helper. In 1922, the noblewoman married the Hungarian adventurer. Together, they bought the terrain from Šiša to build the most beautiful botanical garden in this part of Europe.

The botanical garden soon gained popularity because of the beautiful view of Kvarner and carefully designed park architecture. The newspaper called it Semiramide's gardens, but the people had a different idea based on Kuczor's past. The Hungarian businessman gained the nickname related to the successful spice shop in America, mainly selling Hungarian paprika. So it has remained known to this day as the American Gardens.

‍