Perched high on the western slopes of the Fruška Gora hills above the Danube and built around a medieval fortress, Ilok, Croatia’s easternmost town, is one of the loveliest in Slavonia (although it is technically in the region of Syrmia, as the locals will proudly tell you). On a clear day, you can see all the way across the Vojvodina plain to Novi Sad in Serbia just 30 km (18 miles) away.
Ilok has been inhabited since the Neolithic era, but its golden age came in the 15th century when Nicholas of Ilok, the Ban of Croatia and King of Bosnia, built a fortification on a plateau overlooking the river and a castle within, turning Ilok into a fortified royal residence, and began the first construction of wine cellars. The last member of the Ilo?ki family died in 1524; two years later, Ilok was occupied by the Ottomans, under whose rule it remained until 1697. There are still the remains of a hammam and a Turkish grave in the Old Town from this period. After defeating the Turks, the Habsburgs gave Ilok to the aristocratic Odescalchi family from Italy, who quickly set about rebuilding the town, particularly the castle, in Baroque style. They developed the wine cellars below the castle, and began production of the celebrated Traminac wine. There are now a dozen other vineyards around town producing award-winning wines, particularly Graševina and Traminac. All can be visited by appointment.
Ilok became part of Yugoslavia in 1918. At the beginning of the war in 1991, it was rapidly surrounded and occupied by Serb forces, sparing it the drawn-out devastation suffered by nearby Vukovar. Ilok was integrated into the Republic of Serb Krajina, and not reintegrated into Croatia until 1998.
Ilok is composed of two parts: the upper half is where the feudal families lived and where today you’ll find the city’s historical sights and the remains of the fortified walls, and the lower half where traditionally the townsfolk lived and worked, and where you’ll find sandy beaches along the Danube.
