Beautiful beaches. Bluegreen water. Majestic mountains. Scenic coastline. Ancient ruins. Gorgeous architecture. Incredible history. Friendly locals. Delicious food. World-class wine. Welcome to Croatia, full of life and adventure. What a hidden gem this amazing country is, and once you read my stories, you will be booking your next vacation here.
Top 5 Things to Do:
- Old Town Dubrovnik (but stay in Slano)
- Montenegro
- Korcula
- Split
- Travel by Boat & Island Hop (Hvar, Brac, Vis)
The Croatian coastline runs along the Adriatic Sea, which separates Croatia from the eastern coastline of Italy. This region is also referred to as Dalmatia and is where I chose to focus our time on. Croatia had been on my list for a couple of years. I had seen a travel show highlighting the beautiful beaches and people of Croatia, and then I had several co-workers who had recently visited and their stories and pictures solidified my decision to go there. It took some time to come to fruition but I manifested my dream vacation, taking two weeks off for the first time ever and enjoying this trip of a lifetime with my sexy boyfriend, something I always dreamed of doing. Yet another example of how I focused my thoughts on exactly what this trip would look and feel like, and in doing so I created some of the most amazing memories of my life.
There is a lot of Italian influence here, dating back to the Romans, but also from the early 1400’s to the late 1700’s when the Venetian Republic took over part of the coastline. The churches, architecture, food and wine all have a taste of Italy woven into the Illyrian, Greek and Slavic presence that ruled throughout many centuries. What a beautiful melting pot of so many cultures and empires, in a small country (total population is only 4.5 million) that fought so hard only 30 years ago to gain their independence and start anew.
Flights
There are 3 main airports in Croatia – Dubrovnik, Split and the capital of Zagreb which is located in the northwestern part of the country. We chose to fly in and out of Dubrovnik, although Split would have been a good return option as well. Since there were no direct flights to Croatia when I booked (they have since added a direct flight from Philly to Dubrovnik on American Airlines), we had a layover in Dublin and on the way back decided to spend the night. Luckily, that also meant being able to watch the UEFA Champion’s League soccer final in a pub full of Liverpool fans instead of missing it on a plane. I booked airline tickets about 6 months in advance using the Hopper app, and jumped on the chance to get roundtrip tickets for less than $700 each on Aer Lingus. Granted it was coach, but that is less than I pay for a coach seat on a packed flight from NYC to San Fran during the week for business travel.
Transportation
We rented a car for our entire stay, which I highly recommend as it enabled us to see and do a lot more throughout the 10 days we were there. You don’t need one if you plan on staying in Dubrovnik or Split and not venturing anywhere else since they have Uber, but they drive on the same side of the road as we do in the U.S. and it’s very cost effective to rent a car, especially if you get a diesel. Just make sure to Keep Calm and Drive On when the Croatians pass you on a curve or fly by you at very high speeds on the highway. My boyfriend and I are from NY so that’s all just par for the course, and he was cool as a cucumber behind the wheel. We used Sixt car rental and were pleased with the upgrade they offered us, and their staff was very friendly and knowledgeable with their recommendations. I purchased the rental through Travelocity and bought the Collision Damage insurance they offered for $120, which covers up to $35,000 in damages and medical assistance while traveling. I was so glad I did that since the insurance they offered at the rental place itself would’ve been an additional $600, but I was confident in declining since I knew I had bought insurance through Travelocity. In total it came to $660 for 12 days, which included the upgrade and pre-paying for gas so we could bring it back empty, which worked out really well since we only need to put in a tiny bit of gas along the way. The final bill was exactly what Sixt had showed me upfront, but the car return setup at Dubrovnik airport is less than ideal while they are doing construction on a new terminal, so I recommend dropping off bags and companions at the terminal before proceeding to drop off the car, since you have to trek across a parking lot with no sidewalks. If you do rent a car, make sure the hotel offers parking, even if you have to pay. You don’t want to try and park on narrow Croatian streets.
Where to Stay
We stayed at a combination of bed & breakfast villas and nice hotels. I recommend looking for at least 4-star hotels using a site like Travelocity so you can easily compare prices and locations, but it was also really nice to have all of our reservations in one place for reference. The hotel prices are so cheap in comparison to NYC, San Fran or even other European countries, and you can usually get a beautiful view for less than $200/night outside of their peak summer months of July and August. My next posts will talk about each of the cities we stayed in, our favorites and the ways the owners of the villas shaped our Croatian Adventure.
XoX,
Avril