The gf, turned fianc and I went to Croatia from June 23 - July 1st. We had an incredible time. We spent most of our time on the island and found the people to be very friendly and laid back. Outside of Dub, nothing was over touristy, and we ran into very few Americans. The food was great, The temperature was perfect (high 70s to mid 80s), the water is cold and clear. There's so much to do, hiking, swimming, scuba, boating, wind surfing just for starters. It's our new favorite place. Here is our itinerary, I hope it helps.
Day 1
We flew into Zagreb and rented a car one way to Dub. We flew into Zagreb because it made sense in terms of flights and our itinerary. We didn't do anything there; we just go on the road. We drove to a place near Plitvice national Park and stayed the night.
Day 2
We got up and went to the national park (Plitvice). The park is great, I highly recommend it. Beautiful scenery, good hiking. There's a fair amount of people, but you can get away from them. I recommend buying tickets online ahead of time to avoid waiting in line and get there first thing in the morning. We got there by 8am, and walked right in, no wait. We spent most of the day in the park, then headed to Split. We didn't spend any time in Split. Nothing I saw in my research moved the needle for me, but I've seen recommends from others here. We got on the ferry there and headed to Brac. We stayed at Nono Ban Hotel and Restaurant. It's kind of in the middle of nowhere, but that's what we like. It's a short drive to the beach and other parts of the island. The place was very nice; had a pool that didn't close, a fitness area, and a great restaurant. The rooms were nice and clean, very quiet with a great staff.
Day 3
We went straight to Bol for a beach day. Bol is a really cool little town. Lots of little shops, restaurants, a winery, and a board walk that goes from town all the way to the beach (Golden Horn Beach). I was impressed how clean the board walk was. At the beach, there are places you can go put a towel down, or you can rent a couple of chairs and an umbrella for a fee (30-40 euros for 2 chairs and an umbrella). There are a ton of people wind surfing and kite surfing if that's your thing, seemed like a great place to do it. There was a decent amount of people there, but we never felt crowded. The beach isn't sandy, it's a pebble beach. The water is super clear and cold. After the beach, we went into town and had some food at a semi-fast-food place that was actually really good and fresh called FishDelish. From there we walked over to the Stina Winery. Do the tour and tasting at the winery. They have some really good wines, and our tour guide was awesome.
Day 4
We took an all-day boat excursion from Bol. It took us to a few different islands including Vis and Bisevo. The highlight was the Blue Cave. It is a little touristy, but definitely worth seeing. I think we had to wait an hour to get on the boat that takes you through the cave, but there's a cafe there where you can have beer while you wait, so it wasn't too bad. I've heard of much longer wait times. The boat tour companies take care of getting your tickets too, so that makes it easy. We also stopped at Stiniva beach which is a really cool beach. Lots of boats go there, but it's a fun spot to swim or chill on the beach. Watch out for jelly fish, three in our group got hit. We didn't spend too much time at any single place, but we got to see a lot, it was definitely worth it. Only cost about 120 euro/person. I wish we had more time to explore Vis. I think that would be worth spending at least a day on.
Day 5
We didn't have plans for this day, we left it as kind of a relaxation day. But since I'm incapable of relaxing we decided to take a trip around the island. Mostly in pursuit of an olive oil tasting place. We hit a number of little towns, most notably Selca. Just a quiet little town with some cool architecture. From there we headed towards Supetar and discovered the Olive Oil Museum in the town of Skrip on the way. This was one of the highlights of our trip. The tour guide was awesome, and enthusiastic. It felt authentic, and not super touristy. There was only one other couple from Germany there while we did our tour. Opt for the more expensive tasting (Number 3 I think). I want to say it was only like 25-30 euros. The spread was amazing. Wine, olives, olive oil, meats and cheeses, fresh bread, various spreads. All very tasty. From there we headed to Supetar which was just a port town as far as we could tell, so we headed back to the hotel had some dinner at the hotel restaurant. We ordered the lamb which was really good.
Day 6
We got up and left to catch the ferry. There is a ferry in Sumartin, but it is small and sells out. We booked the wrong day and got there only to realize our mistake. The rest of the ferries were full that day, so we headed to Supertar and jumped on that one. On the ferry note, book your tickets ahead of time, and get there at least 2 hours early. We got to Split and left as quickly as we could. Traffic was intense, typical tour buses, people everywhere. After being on the island for 4 days we weren't having it. Drove on to Makarska. Take the mountain route. The scenery is incredible. Super windy roads, a lot of fun to drive if you're into that sort of thing. I am, the fianc not so much. There is a pizza looking thing called Soparnik that is specific to the mountainous region. Unfortunately, we didn't realize you can only find it in that specific region until we were too far down the road. They have tours where they'll show you how to make it and what not. I was disappointed we didn't get a chance to try it or learn how it was made. Prior to arriving at Makaraska we stopped at a restaurant called Gostionica "ampion". Great view, and probably some of the best pizza I've ever had. We arrived in Makaraska where we stayed at Hotel Porin. It was a great place right in the middle of everything. We spent the rest of the evening exploring the town and checking out bars. Makaraska is a really great spot. It's a port town, but it's not like Split or Dub. Very low key, easy to get around, not overly crowded.
Day 7
We planned on going to Nugal Beach which is supposed to be a really pretty beach. But then we saw boats for rental and decided to go that route. For 240 euros and another 45 for fuel, we got our own skipper and boat. He took us to Jelsa on Hvar which was a great little quiet town. We had lunch there and stopped in some shops and of course, ate gelato. We then stopped at a small cove on the southside of Brac. It was a little beach with nobody there, pretty water, and relatively shallow. This was a perfect swim spot. From there we went on to Lantina beach on the island of Zecevo. This was another really great swimming spot with a bar/restaurant. We spent a good bit of time here. We headed back after that. There was another place he recommended called Vrboska. We didn't have time to go there, but the guide had great things to say about it. That night we ate at Tavern Kalalagra. Super good food, and very authentic as far as we could tell. The menu is all in Croatian.
Day 8.
Headed to Dubrovnik. We found a ton of little farm stands on the way. You can't miss them. They have fresh juices, fruits, olive oil, etc. Stop and load up. There were also a couple of winery stands along the way. Definitely worth stopping at as well. We stayed outside the city to avoid the parking and traffic issues and took a bus into town. That was the way to go. We wandered around old town hit up the shops. Stopped at Buza Bar for a beer. It's right outside the walls looking over the water. You can swim here as well. It gets packed, but for the view, it is well worth it. We went on and ate at Bistro Revelin after that. Great food, great view. We didn't visit any museums or walk the walls. I think it was like 30-35 euro. We didn't feel like doing it, but I've seen lots of people recommend it. We headed back to the hotel. Tried a couple of beaches which weren't great, so we just went to our pool.
Day 9
Headed to the airport and flew out.
Other Comments:
There's a ton of great gelato, eat it all.
They have amazing bakeries, so plan on gaining some weight.
Lamb is their big traditional food, it's very good. Lots of great seafood as well.
Staying on the islands is the way to go. Avoid the big cities with the cruise ship traffic.
Day 1
We flew into Zagreb and rented a car one way to Dub. We flew into Zagreb because it made sense in terms of flights and our itinerary. We didn't do anything there; we just go on the road. We drove to a place near Plitvice national Park and stayed the night.
Day 2
We got up and went to the national park (Plitvice). The park is great, I highly recommend it. Beautiful scenery, good hiking. There's a fair amount of people, but you can get away from them. I recommend buying tickets online ahead of time to avoid waiting in line and get there first thing in the morning. We got there by 8am, and walked right in, no wait. We spent most of the day in the park, then headed to Split. We didn't spend any time in Split. Nothing I saw in my research moved the needle for me, but I've seen recommends from others here. We got on the ferry there and headed to Brac. We stayed at Nono Ban Hotel and Restaurant. It's kind of in the middle of nowhere, but that's what we like. It's a short drive to the beach and other parts of the island. The place was very nice; had a pool that didn't close, a fitness area, and a great restaurant. The rooms were nice and clean, very quiet with a great staff.
Day 3
We went straight to Bol for a beach day. Bol is a really cool little town. Lots of little shops, restaurants, a winery, and a board walk that goes from town all the way to the beach (Golden Horn Beach). I was impressed how clean the board walk was. At the beach, there are places you can go put a towel down, or you can rent a couple of chairs and an umbrella for a fee (30-40 euros for 2 chairs and an umbrella). There are a ton of people wind surfing and kite surfing if that's your thing, seemed like a great place to do it. There was a decent amount of people there, but we never felt crowded. The beach isn't sandy, it's a pebble beach. The water is super clear and cold. After the beach, we went into town and had some food at a semi-fast-food place that was actually really good and fresh called FishDelish. From there we walked over to the Stina Winery. Do the tour and tasting at the winery. They have some really good wines, and our tour guide was awesome.
Day 4
We took an all-day boat excursion from Bol. It took us to a few different islands including Vis and Bisevo. The highlight was the Blue Cave. It is a little touristy, but definitely worth seeing. I think we had to wait an hour to get on the boat that takes you through the cave, but there's a cafe there where you can have beer while you wait, so it wasn't too bad. I've heard of much longer wait times. The boat tour companies take care of getting your tickets too, so that makes it easy. We also stopped at Stiniva beach which is a really cool beach. Lots of boats go there, but it's a fun spot to swim or chill on the beach. Watch out for jelly fish, three in our group got hit. We didn't spend too much time at any single place, but we got to see a lot, it was definitely worth it. Only cost about 120 euro/person. I wish we had more time to explore Vis. I think that would be worth spending at least a day on.
Day 5
We didn't have plans for this day, we left it as kind of a relaxation day. But since I'm incapable of relaxing we decided to take a trip around the island. Mostly in pursuit of an olive oil tasting place. We hit a number of little towns, most notably Selca. Just a quiet little town with some cool architecture. From there we headed towards Supetar and discovered the Olive Oil Museum in the town of Skrip on the way. This was one of the highlights of our trip. The tour guide was awesome, and enthusiastic. It felt authentic, and not super touristy. There was only one other couple from Germany there while we did our tour. Opt for the more expensive tasting (Number 3 I think). I want to say it was only like 25-30 euros. The spread was amazing. Wine, olives, olive oil, meats and cheeses, fresh bread, various spreads. All very tasty. From there we headed to Supetar which was just a port town as far as we could tell, so we headed back to the hotel had some dinner at the hotel restaurant. We ordered the lamb which was really good.
Day 6
We got up and left to catch the ferry. There is a ferry in Sumartin, but it is small and sells out. We booked the wrong day and got there only to realize our mistake. The rest of the ferries were full that day, so we headed to Supertar and jumped on that one. On the ferry note, book your tickets ahead of time, and get there at least 2 hours early. We got to Split and left as quickly as we could. Traffic was intense, typical tour buses, people everywhere. After being on the island for 4 days we weren't having it. Drove on to Makarska. Take the mountain route. The scenery is incredible. Super windy roads, a lot of fun to drive if you're into that sort of thing. I am, the fianc not so much. There is a pizza looking thing called Soparnik that is specific to the mountainous region. Unfortunately, we didn't realize you can only find it in that specific region until we were too far down the road. They have tours where they'll show you how to make it and what not. I was disappointed we didn't get a chance to try it or learn how it was made. Prior to arriving at Makaraska we stopped at a restaurant called Gostionica "ampion". Great view, and probably some of the best pizza I've ever had. We arrived in Makaraska where we stayed at Hotel Porin. It was a great place right in the middle of everything. We spent the rest of the evening exploring the town and checking out bars. Makaraska is a really great spot. It's a port town, but it's not like Split or Dub. Very low key, easy to get around, not overly crowded.
Day 7
We planned on going to Nugal Beach which is supposed to be a really pretty beach. But then we saw boats for rental and decided to go that route. For 240 euros and another 45 for fuel, we got our own skipper and boat. He took us to Jelsa on Hvar which was a great little quiet town. We had lunch there and stopped in some shops and of course, ate gelato. We then stopped at a small cove on the southside of Brac. It was a little beach with nobody there, pretty water, and relatively shallow. This was a perfect swim spot. From there we went on to Lantina beach on the island of Zecevo. This was another really great swimming spot with a bar/restaurant. We spent a good bit of time here. We headed back after that. There was another place he recommended called Vrboska. We didn't have time to go there, but the guide had great things to say about it. That night we ate at Tavern Kalalagra. Super good food, and very authentic as far as we could tell. The menu is all in Croatian.
Day 8.
Headed to Dubrovnik. We found a ton of little farm stands on the way. You can't miss them. They have fresh juices, fruits, olive oil, etc. Stop and load up. There were also a couple of winery stands along the way. Definitely worth stopping at as well. We stayed outside the city to avoid the parking and traffic issues and took a bus into town. That was the way to go. We wandered around old town hit up the shops. Stopped at Buza Bar for a beer. It's right outside the walls looking over the water. You can swim here as well. It gets packed, but for the view, it is well worth it. We went on and ate at Bistro Revelin after that. Great food, great view. We didn't visit any museums or walk the walls. I think it was like 30-35 euro. We didn't feel like doing it, but I've seen lots of people recommend it. We headed back to the hotel. Tried a couple of beaches which weren't great, so we just went to our pool.
Day 9
Headed to the airport and flew out.
Other Comments:
There's a ton of great gelato, eat it all.
They have amazing bakeries, so plan on gaining some weight.
Lamb is their big traditional food, it's very good. Lots of great seafood as well.
Staying on the islands is the way to go. Avoid the big cities with the cruise ship traffic.