Planning a vacation to Croatia - help FBG’s! (1 Viewer)

[Judge Smails]

Looking to go on a trip to Croatia next September. My fellow FBG’s have been a great help with Greece and other vacations so hope there are some nuggets you can share. Probably looking at 2 weeks, though we may decide on 3.

My daughter went on her honeymoon and has given us some pointers, including that Montenegro is a must add on for a few days. Probably thinking of several key cities in Croatia - Zagreb, Dubrovnik, Split, Hvar. Plus Montenegro and Slovenia. However we are open to consider other cities/countries that would fit well with the itinerary. Thoughts?

 

[Chemical X]

i just passed thru split, dubrovnik and montenegro via cruise. i’ll throw some thoughts in.

 

[Sammy3469]

What are you're likes and budget (and are you willing to drive)? Wife is Croatian and while we usually just go to her family's place on an island off of Sibenik, I have been to Istria, Slovenia (Bled), Plivatice Lakes, Zagreb, and catamaran'd around the southern islands.

With 3 weeks and money no object, I'd fly into Ljublania, rent a car, drive to Bled area for a day or two, spend 3-5 days in Istria (wine, seaside towns, hilltowns), drive down to Split, rent a cat/sailboat with a captain and spend a week doing Hvar, Korcula, Mjlet - which is the best of the islands for natural beauty, head down to Dubrovnik/Montenegro which I'm not any help with.

 

[Judge Smails]

i just passed thru split, dubrovnik and montenegro via cruise. i’ll throw some thoughts in.

Good point - I’d consider a cruise option for part of this trip if it makes sense. I’m not a big cruise guy but if it’s works for the itin I’m all for it

 

[Judge Smails]

What are your likes and budget (and are you willing to drive)? Wife is Croatian and while we usually just go to her family's place on an island off of Sibenik, I have been to Istria, Slovenia (Bled), Plivatice Lakes, Zagreb, and catamaran'd around the southern islands.

It will likely be 3 couples in their late 50’s early 60’s. All adventurous in good health. We like to experience the culture, see key sites, eat great food. Budget is flexible. Doesn’t have to be 5 star the whole time but we don’t want to be roughing it either. We’re out of hotels all day except for sleeping so would rather spend our money on experiences/food.

We usually travel with just 2 couples so 3 hampers transportation (driving) a bit

 

[Sammy3469]

What are your likes and budget (and are you willing to drive)? Wife is Croatian and while we usually just go to her family's place on an island off of Sibenik, I have been to Istria, Slovenia (Bled), Plivatice Lakes, Zagreb, and catamaran'd around the southern islands.

It will likely be 3 couples in their late 50’s early 60’s. All adventurous in good health. We like to experience the culture, see key sites, eat great food. Budget is flexible. Doesn’t have to be 5 star the whole time but we don’t want to be roughing it either. We’re out of hotels all day except for sleeping so would rather spend our money on experiences/food.

We usually travel with just 2 couples so 3 hampers transportation (driving) a bit

If its three couples, I'd definitely rent a 45 foot cat with captain for the week (these are usually Sat to Sat) out of Split and see Hvar, Korcula, Mjlet. The captain will come up with a route based on what y'all want to see and overnight stops (usually they find coves with restaurant for the night...ie don't stay at the docks in Korcula or Hvar). It's pricey, but its not the highest of the high season and it is with 3 couples (cats that size have 4 rooms and the captain takes the 4th).

3 couples makes the travel up through Slovenia, Istria, down to Split tougher since you basically need a car (driving is fine, its just that there isn't public transport short of flying and buses).

The other thing I would add is that unlike here AirBnB still works there, so don't be afraid to use it. Croatia (I'm not 100% sure about Slovenia) regulates anything that goes up on the site and the stars are relatively in line with what what they represent on the site.

For instance when we putzed around Istria for the week, we stayed at AirBnB house in Plzen (center of Istria) and drove around to Porec, Rovinj, Pula, Motivin, and other hill towns. When we saw Plivitice Lakes we stayed at bed and breakfast that we found on AirBnB.

 

[Mookie]

We stayed 4 nights in Rovinj (Istria) center in an AirBnB. Beautiiful town and so much to do nearby (Coliseum in Pula and biking down southern tip of Istria were highlights.
Plitvice Lakes is a must - spectacular place, and doable as a day trip from Split (we spent the night near the park and had 2 days to explore), which is also a very cool city. From Split, exploring the Dalmation Islands is absolutely worth it, and renting bikes is a great use of time on the islands. Wind up in Dubrovnik, which is an incredible town, but can be overrun with tourists if you hit it at a bad time.

The people are friendly and very proud. Food is decent and wine was good but not great. Driving was pretty easy. Aside from the natural beauty, what blew me away was the history of Croatia. Greeks, Romans, Ottomans, Communism, Civil War, and finally independence, all blended together. You'll be in a parking lot for some Ottoman era church next to a brutalist housing project and there will be a Roman mosaic visible through a hole in the wall. Kind of hard to piece together all of the historical eras laying on top of each other. Have a great trip!

 

[Judge Smails]

What are your likes and budget (and are you willing to drive)? Wife is Croatian and while we usually just go to her family's place on an island off of Sibenik, I have been to Istria, Slovenia (Bled), Plivatice Lakes, Zagreb, and catamaran'd around the southern islands.

It will likely be 3 couples in their late 50’s early 60’s. All adventurous in good health. We like to experience the culture, see key sites, eat great food. Budget is flexible. Doesn’t have to be 5 star the whole time but we don’t want to be roughing it either. We’re out of hotels all day except for sleeping so would rather spend our money on experiences/food.

We usually travel with just 2 couples so 3 hampers transportation (driving) a bit

If its three couples, I'd definitely rent a 45 foot cat with captain for the week (these are usually Sat to Sat) out of Split and see Hvar, Korcula, Mjlet. The captain will come up with a route based on what y'all want to see and overnight stops (usually they find coves with restaurant for the night...ie don't stay at the docks in Korcula or Hvar). It's pricey, but its not the highest of the high season and it is with 3 couples (cats that size have 4 rooms and the captain takes the 4th).

3 couples makes the travel up through Slovenia, Istria, down to Split tougher since you basically need a car (driving is fine, its just that there isn't public transport short of flying and buses).

The other thing I would add is that unlike here AirBnB still works there, so don't be afraid to use it. Croatia (I'm not 100% sure about Slovenia) regulates anything that goes up on the site and the stars are relatively in line with what what they represent on the site.

For instance when we putzed around Istria for the week, we stayed at AirBnB house in Plzen (center of Istria) and drove around to Porec, Rovinj, Pula, Motivin, and other hill towns. When we saw Plivitice Lakes we stayed at bed and breakfast that we found on AirBnB.

Great suggestion. I was also looking at some options on Cruise Croatia but those are bigger boats.

https://unforgettablecroatia.com/cr...8qZI9cXXdQnPiKWOeiUCj5GmIGPSkKYhoCK5QQAvD_BwE

 

[Sammy3469]

We stayed 4 nights in Rovinj (Istria) center in an AirBnB. Beautiiful town and so much to do nearby (Coliseum in Pula and biking down southern tip of Istria were highlights.
Plitvice Lakes is a must - spectacular place, and doable as a day trip from Split (we spent the night near the park and had 2 days to explore), which is also a very cool city. From Split, exploring the Dalmation Islands is absolutely worth it, and renting bikes is a great use of time on the islands. Wind up in Dubrovnik, which is an incredible town, but can be overrun with tourists if you hit it at a bad time.

The people are friendly and very proud. Food is decent and wine was good but not great. Driving was pretty easy. Aside from the natural beauty, what blew me away was the history of Croatia. Greeks, Romans, Ottomans, Communism, Civil War, and finally independence, all blended together. You'll be in a parking lot for some Ottoman era church next to a brutalist housing project and there will be a Roman mosaic visible through a hole in the wall. Kind of hard to piece together all of the historical eras laying on top of each other. Have a great trip!

Like most places, they hide the really good stuff.

What are your likes and budget (and are you willing to drive)? Wife is Croatian and while we usually just go to her family's place on an island off of Sibenik, I have been to Istria, Slovenia (Bled), Plivatice Lakes, Zagreb, and catamaran'd around the southern islands.

It will likely be 3 couples in their late 50’s early 60’s. All adventurous in good health. We like to experience the culture, see key sites, eat great food. Budget is flexible. Doesn’t have to be 5 star the whole time but we don’t want to be roughing it either. We’re out of hotels all day except for sleeping so would rather spend our money on experiences/food.

We usually travel with just 2 couples so 3 hampers transportation (driving) a bit

If its three couples, I'd definitely rent a 45 foot cat with captain for the week (these are usually Sat to Sat) out of Split and see Hvar, Korcula, Mjlet. The captain will come up with a route based on what y'all want to see and overnight stops (usually they find coves with restaurant for the night...ie don't stay at the docks in Korcula or Hvar). It's pricey, but its not the highest of the high season and it is with 3 couples (cats that size have 4 rooms and the captain takes the 4th).

3 couples makes the travel up through Slovenia, Istria, down to Split tougher since you basically need a car (driving is fine, its just that there isn't public transport short of flying and buses).

The other thing I would add is that unlike here AirBnB still works there, so don't be afraid to use it. Croatia (I'm not 100% sure about Slovenia) regulates anything that goes up on the site and the stars are relatively in line with what what they represent on the site.

For instance when we putzed around Istria for the week, we stayed at AirBnB house in Plzen (center of Istria) and drove around to Porec, Rovinj, Pula, Motivin, and other hill towns. When we saw Plivitice Lakes we stayed at bed and breakfast that we found on AirBnB.

Great suggestion. I was also looking at some options on Cruise Croatia but those are bigger boats.

https://unforgettablecroatia.com/croatia-cruises?keyword=cruise croatia&matchtype=e&network=g&adposition=&device=c&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=11774921006&gbraid=0AAAAADl-Sh1BDIAt4z5dt-Bb69WJlk0Am&gclid=CjwKCAjw3tzHBhBREiwAlMJoUm5JhZBvit1nPU1FHdgi508qZI9cXXdQnPiKWOeiUCj5GmIGPSkKYhoCK5QQAvD_BwE

i had to laugh since I guess some of these leave from Sibenik and we were wondering what those boats were.

All those seem “fine”, but if you’re willing to do those and since you have the right number, I’d personally just do your own Cat and control the itinerary and pace. I post our itinerary when I get a chance that we did this last summer from Sibenik (I wouldn’t go south from Sibenik again, but would sail from Split) when I have some time. We used a local captain that we got through the booking agency (captains are separate from the boats) and my wife has kept in contact with the captain we used (he sails from Sibenik), so maybe he knows someone down there. We’re using him again this summer to do Kornati. Don’t quote me on this, but I think for the week it was 13-14k all in, but we cooked 3 of the dinners instead of eating out.

 

[Nemesis]

@Judge Smails
I can help you w this as my wife & i (mid-50s) JUST spent 10 days in CROATIA this past AUG & it was awesome.

Day A & B: Pre-cruise, we spent 2 days in a BnB inside the City Walls of Old town Dubrovnik (Game of Thrones tour, etc)
Cruise Day 1 - 8: Spent aboard the PRESTIGE (35 passenger small cruise ship)
Dubrovnik to Split itinerary (see below)
https://www.liveaboard.com/cruise/croatia/prestige
Really nice ship, newly renovated. The wk that we went in mid-AUG was 50% off for us
Captain, crew & social director were all great!!

Day 1: DUBROVNIK, Sat (embarkation)
Day 2: DUBROVNIK –> SLANO (Oyster Tasting), Sun
Day 3: SLANO –> MLJET National Park – KORČULA,
Day 4: KORČULA –> HVAR ISLAND, Tues
Day 5: HVAR ISLAND –> BIŠEVO – VIS ISLAND, Wed
Day 6: VIS ISLAND –> MILNA, Thur
Day 7: MILNA –> SPLIT – TROGIR, Fri
Day 8: TROGIR DEPARTURE, Sat morn

I won't go overboard w info in this post, but I have SO MUCH more detailed info that will help you:
A-My wife posts on FB once a day w all of the pics from that day. She added descriptions of each photo so you would understand what you are looking at & whether it’s something that interests you. I could share those with you & as they say "a picture is worth a 1000 words".
B-we also had a Shared Iphone Note w details for each day. We started with a basic Chat GPT agenda + food.........but we added more & more info as we went along & learned more (potential food, tours, neat things to do, etc)
C-have a GoogleMap w all the places we visited or restaurants we ate at

If you're interested in the info I have, LMK. I can share it w you or we can set up a quick call if that works even better.

 

[Judge Smails]

@Judge Smails
I can help you w this as my wife & i (mid-50s) JUST spent 10 days in CROATIA this past AUG & it was awesome.

Day A & B: Pre-cruise, we spent 2 days in a BnB inside the City Walls of Old town Dubrovnik (Game of Thrones tour, etc)
Cruise Day 1 - 8: Spent aboard the PRESTIGE (35 passenger small cruise ship)
Dubrovnik to Split itinerary (see below)
https://www.liveaboard.com/cruise/croatia/prestige
Really nice ship, newly renovated. The wk that we went in mid-AUG was 50% off for us
Captain, crew & social director were all great!!

Day 1: DUBROVNIK, Sat (embarkation)
Day 2: DUBROVNIK –> SLANO (Oyster Tasting), Sun
Day 3: SLANO –> MLJET National Park – KORČULA,
Day 4: KORČULA –> HVAR ISLAND, Tues
Day 5: HVAR ISLAND –> BIŠEVO – VIS ISLAND, Wed
Day 6: VIS ISLAND –> MILNA, Thur
Day 7: MILNA –> SPLIT – TROGIR, Fri
Day 8: TROGIR DEPARTURE, Sat morn

I won't go overboard w info in this post, but I have SO MUCH more detailed info that will help you:
A-My wife posts on FB once a day w all of the pics from that day. She added descriptions of each photo so you would understand what you are looking at & whether it’s something that interests you. I could share those with you & as they say "a picture is worth a 1000 words".
B-we also had a Shared Iphone Note w details for each day. We started with a basic Chat GPT agenda + food.........but we added more & more info as we went along & learned more (potential food, tours, neat things to do, etc)
C-have a GoogleMap w all the places we visited or restaurants we ate at

If you're interested in the info I have, LMK. I can share it w you or we can set up a quick call if that works even better.

Awesome insight - thanks!

 

[Nemesis]

@Judge Smails
I can help you w this as my wife & i (mid-50s) JUST spent 10 days in CROATIA this past AUG & it was awesome.

Day A & B: Pre-cruise, we spent 2 days in a BnB inside the City Walls of Old town Dubrovnik (Game of Thrones tour, etc)
Cruise Day 1 - 8: Spent aboard the PRESTIGE (35 passenger small cruise ship)
Dubrovnik to Split itinerary (see below)
https://www.liveaboard.com/cruise/croatia/prestige
Really nice ship, newly renovated. The wk that we went in mid-AUG was 50% off for us
Captain, crew & social director were all great!!

Day 1: DUBROVNIK, Sat (embarkation)
Day 2: DUBROVNIK –> SLANO (Oyster Tasting), Sun
Day 3: SLANO –> MLJET National Park – KORČULA,
Day 4: KORČULA –> HVAR ISLAND, Tues
Day 5: HVAR ISLAND –> BIŠEVO – VIS ISLAND, Wed
Day 6: VIS ISLAND –> MILNA, Thur
Day 7: MILNA –> SPLIT – TROGIR, Fri
Day 8: TROGIR DEPARTURE, Sat morn

I won't go overboard w info in this post, but I have SO MUCH more detailed info that will help you:
A-My wife posts on FB once a day w all of the pics from that day. She added descriptions of each photo so you would understand what you are looking at & whether it’s something that interests you. I could share those with you & as they say "a picture is worth a 1000 words".
B-we also had a Shared Iphone Note w details for each day. We started with a basic Chat GPT agenda + food.........but we added more & more info as we went along & learned more (potential food, tours, neat things to do, etc)
C-have a GoogleMap w all the places we visited or restaurants we ate at

If you're interested in the info I have, LMK. I can share it w you or we can set up a quick call if that works even better.

Awesome insight - thanks!

@Judge Smails email with info sent to you

 

[urbanhack]

What are you're likes and budget (and are you willing to drive)? Wife is Croatian and while we usually just go to her family's place on an island off of Sibenik, I have been to Istria, Slovenia (Bled), Plivatice Lakes, Zagreb, and catamaran'd around the southern islands.

With 3 weeks and money no object, I'd fly into Ljublania, rent a car, drive to Bled area for a day or two, spend 3-5 days in Istria (wine, seaside towns, hilltowns), drive down to Split, rent a cat/sailboat with a captain and spend a week doing Hvar, Korcula, Mjlet - which is the best of the islands for natural beauty, head down to Dubrovnik/Montenegro which I'm not any help with.

Does she have any sisters?

 

[Bob Loblaw]

Back in June 2023, my family and I spent a week in Rovinj to start a 3-week trip. After that week, my kids (18, 15, and 12 at the time) asked if we could cancel the rest of the trip (Venice, Florence, Rome, and Sorrento) and just stay in Rovinj.

Our first 3 nights were spent at the Hotel Eden (a Maistra property). It wasn't super-posh, but the resort was great. Wonderful all-you-can-eat full breakfast, multiple on-property restaurants/bars, multiple pools, rental hut/kiosk for bikes and other rec options, 20 min walk to the city center (going through a fairly high-end outdoor shopping center/mall). Relatively calm beach cove right on the property (open to public).

When we were there, there was a huge salsa dancing gathering/convention/event going on (in Rovinj, not at the resort). It was kinda strange because we'd be walking along the water and there'd by like 200 people just grinding on each other in bathing suits dancing to salsa. A lot of the participants were 20-30 something year olds.

Lots of good restaurant options in the city center.

Our next 4 nights we stayed at the Maistra Select Amarin Resort. This was a little farther away from the city center, so we needed taxis to get there. There are public busses as well. This property was different from Hotel Eden in that there are different levels of accommodations (camping, and hotel suites, but they are more like residential condos). Nice property but a downgrade from Hotel Eden.

One day we rented a car service to take us to a winery about an hour away (Kozlovic Winery). Someone that we were traveling with is in the wine industry in the Sonoma/Napa area so they did some research on this place and got us a private tasting along with some charcuterie boards. It was beautiful there.

The next day, we used the same driver to take us to Pula. We went to the aquarium, walked around their city center, had some great pizza near the Pula Arena (it's liike a mini Colosseum), and then went to see a Florence + the Machine concert in the arena. It was amazing.

Having only been on the Istrian coast, we had a great trip. Would've loved to see more of the country.

Rovinj is only a 3-hour ferry ride from Venice. Also, you'll need cash (Euros) for the taxis.

 

[Judge Smails]

@Judge Smails
I can help you w this as my wife & i (mid-50s) JUST spent 10 days in CROATIA this past AUG & it was awesome.

Day A & B: Pre-cruise, we spent 2 days in a BnB inside the City Walls of Old town Dubrovnik (Game of Thrones tour, etc)
Cruise Day 1 - 8: Spent aboard the PRESTIGE (35 passenger small cruise ship)
Dubrovnik to Split itinerary (see below)
https://www.liveaboard.com/cruise/croatia/prestige
Really nice ship, newly renovated. The wk that we went in mid-AUG was 50% off for us
Captain, crew & social director were all great!!

Day 1: DUBROVNIK, Sat (embarkation)
Day 2: DUBROVNIK –> SLANO (Oyster Tasting), Sun
Day 3: SLANO –> MLJET National Park – KORČULA,
Day 4: KORČULA –> HVAR ISLAND, Tues
Day 5: HVAR ISLAND –> BIŠEVO – VIS ISLAND, Wed
Day 6: VIS ISLAND –> MILNA, Thur
Day 7: MILNA –> SPLIT – TROGIR, Fri
Day 8: TROGIR DEPARTURE, Sat morn

I won't go overboard w info in this post, but I have SO MUCH more detailed info that will help you:
A-My wife posts on FB once a day w all of the pics from that day. She added descriptions of each photo so you would understand what you are looking at & whether it’s something that interests you. I could share those with you & as they say "a picture is worth a 1000 words".
B-we also had a Shared Iphone Note w details for each day. We started with a basic Chat GPT agenda + food.........but we added more & more info as we went along & learned more (potential food, tours, neat things to do, etc)
C-have a GoogleMap w all the places we visited or restaurants we ate at

If you're interested in the info I have, LMK. I can share it w you or we can set up a quick call if that works even better.

Awesome insight - thanks!

@Judge Smails email with info sent to you

Such awesome suggestions. Thanks Nemesis!

 

[Nemesis]

FYI: tonight’s AMAZING RACE was filmed entirely at Dubrovnik.
All of the locations were places we recognized.