Learn Hardcore Croatian: Za ljeto smo već napravili rezervaciju u malom hotelu. - For the summer we have already made a reservation in a small hotel.

Why is the word order Za ljeto smo već napravili rezervaciju and not Za ljeto već smo napravili rezervaciju or Za ljeto smo napravili već rezervaciju?

Croatian word order is relatively flexible, but some positions are more natural:

Short, unstressed words like smo tend to stand in the second position in the clause.
Već (already) is most natural between the auxiliary and the participle:
- Za ljeto smo već napravili rezervaciju.
You could also say:
- Za ljeto već smo napravili rezervaciju. (possible, but a bit less neutral)
- Već smo za ljeto napravili rezervaciju. (focuses more on already)

Za ljeto smo već napravili rezervaciju is the most neutral, typical ordering here.

Why is it za ljeto and not something like u ljetu?

The preposition za with a time expression often means “for (a future period)”:

Za ljeto = for the summer (a future time we are planning for)
Za vikend = for the weekend
Za Božić = for Christmas

U ljetu would literally be “in the summer” and would sound unusual here when talking about making a reservation now for a future season.

If you want a more neutral “in summer” talking about repeated habit, you usually say:

Ljeti često putujemo. = (In) summer we often travel.

What case is ljeto in, and why does it look like the nominative?

Ljeto is in the accusative singular after the preposition za.

Za
- time period → accusative
Neuter nouns like ljeto have the same form in nominative and accusative:
- Nominative: ljeto
- Accusative: ljeto (same form)

So even though it looks like nominative, it functions as accusative because of za.

What case is rezervaciju and why does it end in -u?

Rezervaciju is in the accusative singular.

The verb napraviti takes a direct object: napraviti što? → napraviti rezervaciju.
Rezervacija is a feminine noun:
- Nominative singular: rezervacija
- Accusative singular: rezervaciju (ending -u)

So the -u ending here marks “reservation” as the thing we made.

Why is it u malom hotelu and not u mali hotel?

The preposition u can take either locative or accusative, depending on meaning:

u
- locative → location, being in something
  - u malom hotelu = in a small hotel (location)
u
- accusative → motion into something
  - Idemo u mali hotel. = We are going to the small hotel.

In u malom hotelu, we are talking about the place where the reservation is made, not movement into it, so locative is used:

mali hotel (nom.)
u malom hotelu (loc.) → malom hotelu

Why does malom end in -om and not -em like some other adjectives?

Malom is the dative/locative singular masculine/neuter form of the adjective mali.

Masculine hard-stem adjectives often take -om in dative/locative:
- mali hotel → u malom hotelu
- velik grad → u velikom gradu

You will also see forms in -em with some other adjective types (especially with soft stems), but for mali the correct form here is malom.

What tense and aspect is napravili and why isn’t it just rezervirali?

Napravili is:

Tense: part of the perfect (past) tense: smo napravili
Aspect: perfective (the action is completed)

The expression napraviti rezervaciju literally means “to make a reservation”, and it is very common and natural.

You could also say:

Za ljeto smo već rezervirali mali hotel.
Za ljeto smo već rezervirali sobu u malom hotelu.

Both are correct. Using napraviti rezervaciju just mirrors the frequent English pattern “make a reservation” and is fully idiomatic in Croatian.

What is the role of već here, and where else can it go in the sentence?

Već means “already” and emphasizes that the action is completed earlier than expected.

Most natural positions in this sentence are:

Za ljeto smo već napravili rezervaciju. (very neutral)
Već smo za ljeto napravili rezervaciju. (slightly more emphasis on already)

You wouldn’t usually put već at the very end here (…napravili rezervaciju već sounds odd).
The key is that već normally stays close to the verb phrase (smo napravili).

Why isn’t there any word like “the” or “a” before malom hotelu?

Croatian does not have articles like “a/an” or “the”. There is no separate word for them.

u malom hotelu can mean:
- in a small hotel
- in the small hotel

The exact English translation (a vs the) depends on context, not on any specific word in Croatian.
You can give a bit of specificity by using demonstratives:

u tom malom hotelu = in that small hotel
u jednom malom hotelu = in one (a certain) small hotel

Could you rephrase this sentence in a different but natural way in Croatian?

Yes, several variants are possible, depending on emphasis:

Za ljeto smo već rezervirali mali hotel.
Za ljeto već imamo rezervaciju u malom hotelu.
Već smo za ljeto napravili rezervaciju u malom hotelu.

All of these keep essentially the same meaning: the reservation for the summer, in a small hotel, has already been taken care of.