Old Crikvenica was originally an offshoot of the village of Kotor, which is located on a nearby hill and shares its name with that of the village.

The name of the town derives from the word for church (Croatian: crkva = church - in dialect crikva) of the monastery of the Pauline Fathers, which was built by Nikola Frankopan nearby in 1412. Besides the church and the monastery at the mouth of the Dubračina, the nearby port of Grižane grew up. In 1760 the local worthy moved from Bribir to Crikvenica and thus it became the centre of the whole Vinodol coast. In the 19th century Crikvenica began to attract many tourists, which brought about a turning point in its history. In 1877 a harbour was built in Crikvenica, in 1888 a bathing beach and as early as 1891 the first hotel had opened. In 1895 the Hotel Therapia was opened with 120 beds and a Hydrotherapy Institute. In 1902 the Hotel Crikvenica was built, in 1903 the Bellevue and in 1905 the Miramare. In 1906 Crikvenica became officially a health resort and due to its favourable climate, in the space of just 16 years Crikvenica became the most important resort on the riviera.[2] Today, together with Selce, it is one of the most attractive parts of the Kvarner coast, as well as of the North Adriatic coast of Croatia in general.

In the late 19th and early 20th century, Crikvenica was a district capital in the Modruš-Rijeka County of the Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia.