We’ve bought tickets, and started making plans so it’s official! This is our most ambitious and complicated European trip yet, and has evolved into a trip that will incorporate visits to three countries (Slovenia, Croatia and Montenegro), travel by plane, catamaran, train, car and bus. Yikes. For any of you that have visited these places on our itinerary, advice and insight is appreciated. And if you’ve driven in Croatia, I’d love any advice you have.
Ljubljana
We’ll be flying into and staying in the Slovenian capital for two nights, spending one day exploring the city itself and another full day visiting Lake Bled and the Julian alps. The photos look amazing, I’m excited for a bit of outdoor adventure and to stay at the Vander Urbani Resort.
Zagreb
We’ll be taking the train from Ljubljana across the border to Zagreb, Croatia and spending most of a day here. Unfortunately, we couldn’t fit in an overnight, but I’m hoping to visit old town and the Museum of Broken Relationships and eat some delicious Croatian food before picking up our hire car and heading south.
Plitvice Lakes National Park
Arguably the highlight of the trip, we’re spending the night outside the park at a bed and breakfast so we can get an early start and beat the crowds. Photos of the lakes look amazing, I can’t wait to see them in person! After a morning of hiking and boating around the lakes, we’ll be road tripping to the coast.
Split
I’ve gotten mixed reviews on Split, but it will be a fun city on the sea to explore. We’ll get to see the famous Roman ruins, plus staying over night here means that we can catch an early catamaran to the islands!
Hvar
We’ve got two nights planned on the Dalmatian island, and I’m excited to relax, hike to the fort, maybe take a boat ride and spend some time on the beach. Hotels (and possibly everything!) on Hvar is expensive, so to save money we’re staying in an Airbnb that’s a few minutes walking from the town center. It’s got a balcony that overlooks the town though, which I’m very excited for.
Dubrovnik
Our final nights on the trip will be spent in Kings Landing. The city walls, beaches and gorgeous views are going to be amazing. Again, we are renting an Airbnb because it was the most cost effective way to stay within the city walls.
Bay of Kotor, Montenegro
Unfortunately we won’t be overnighting in Montenegro, but when I saw photos of Bay of Kotor, I knew we had to go. The natural beauty of the fjord like inlet is incredible. The only thing we can’t decide is whether to take an organized tour from Dubrovnik or to drive ourselves to Kotor in a hire car. I’ve read mixed reviews on roads in Montenegro, but they’ve said by the coast they should be fine.
Have you been to Croatia, Slovenia or Montenegro? Any advice or things we shouldn’t miss?
Amanda Afield 
Sounds like a lot of fun!!
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Hopefully! I can’t wait
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This trip sounds amazing!
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Thanks, I can’t wait!
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Sounds wonderful. I didn’t spend much time in Split, but did enjoy the ruins. If you’re road tripping you could stop just outside Split in Trogir, which is another UNESCO world heritage site. Also if you hit bad weather in Zagreb or Plitvice, just head south earlier – you could also take in Krka National Park just outside Split – really fun waterfalls – but that might be a bridge too far. Driving in Croatia is fine – or certainly seemed it after driving in Serbia! And I’m really jealous of your trip to Montenegro, as I never made it there. I’m sure you’ll have a great time.
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Trogir looks beautiful! I’ll have to look into it more. I’m glad to hear driving is fine, it will make road tripping much less stressful!
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Ive always wanted to go to Croatia.. Would be very fascinating! Nice post. Love your sites layout…also easy to navigate!
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Thanks! It’s been on my list for a long time so I can’t wait.
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Sounds like a fantastic trip. Never been to any of these places, we did visit Croatia but spent our time in Istria based in Rovinj. It was gorgeous – we drove around and had no issues. Looking forward to reading all about it!
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I’m so excited! Unfortunately, we didn’t have enough time to go to Istria but it looks beautiful!
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Sounds like it’ll be an amazing trip! I’ve been sailing off the coast of Croatia (we sailed from Italy) and stopped at a couple of islands but haven’t really explored the main cities – would really love to go back and see more. Look forward to reading about your adventures there. Happy planning! #FarawayFiles
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I’m excited to visit the islands! We were torn between going by land or by sea, ultimately land won because we wanted to visit Slovenia as well. Thanks for reading!
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I’m coming from Slovenia and I have to say you shouldn’t miss Soca Valley – this is my favourite place in our country, its source lies in the Trenta Valley in the Julian Alps. Also, be careful with parking in King’s Landing, we spent about 150 kn (20€) for 4 – 4,5 hours. I suggest that you park somewhere out of the old town (kings landing) center, I’m sure it’s cheaper. If you have enough time I would also suggest that you check out Biokovo moutain, which is located in Makarska (near Split/Hvar). It’s a quite dangerous road, so you could rent a scooter for example. We did it with car, but I almost had a heart attack 🙂
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I’ve just looked up photos, Soca Valley looks incredible! I’ll have to try to fit it in. Thanks for the tips on parking in Dubrovnik. I’m not sure I want to drive on a heart attack worthy road haha but I’m sure the views are amazing!
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that’s a great plan! #farawayfiles
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Thanks, I’m really looking forward to it!
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Sounds like a great trip – you’ll be seeing a lot in a very short space of time. I loved Ljubljana and Hvar but haven’t been to any of the other places on your list so I’m looking forward to reading all about them. Thanks for sharing on #FarawayFiles
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It will be a bit of a whirlwind but I didn’t want to miss anything!
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Exciting times! I haven’t been to Ljubljana or Montenegro but we did the trip in the middle in 2009 and it was absolutely fantastic. Hope you have a brilliant time – I know you will. Thanks for joining us on #farawayfiles
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That’s good to hear, I’m so excited to explore Croatia!
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OH my, what an exciting upcoming trip!
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Thanks! I absolutely can’t wait!
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Amanda – sounds amazing! I would love to do Slovenia AND Montenegro and there is so much of Croatia we didn’t see. We spent a week between Split, Korčula and Dubrovnik. I loved Split, did not care much for Dubrovnik to be honest. Too many tourists trying the Walk of Shame unfortunately. I found Split charming and accessible, but still with a local vibe. We did drive from Dubrovnik back to Split and I highly recommend it – so beautiful. And – you drive through Bosnia-Herzegovina! Try the fresh oysters from Mali Ston on the water or the action adventure near Omis – gorgeous. And seeing the Neretva River Delta fruit stands is an experience in of itself. I have a couple posts on Croatia up on my blog – one on diving and one on foods – might be of interest! Look forward to your posts, cheers! #FarawayFiles
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I’ll definitely be checking out your blog posts. That’s disappointing to hear about Dubrovnik, but I guess it’s to be expected as it’s a popular destination and cruise port now.
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There are ways to avoid cruise crowds – whole websites devoted to port dockings, which boats when, how many passengers, etc. – if you are lucky enough to be able to plan your visit on a day when there are no ships at port – it would help I think. Game of Thrones tourists a plenty as well (as fans, we were excited to see King’s Landing too.) TIP: walk around the top of the wall EARLY in the day, should give a little more freedom. With teens in tow, we don’t do anything early in the day! 😉 Cheers, looking forward to seeing where your adventure takes you!
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Hi Amanda! Just came across your post looking for blogs on Croatia. I am a brand new blogger. My girlfriend and I have a similar trip booked in the coming months. When are you going? We will be hitting Zagreb, Ljubljana, Rovinj, Plitvice, Zadar, Split, Mostar, Dubrovnik and Kotor. I am very excited! We have car rentals for 2 weeks while in Ljubljana, Rovinj, Plitvice and Zadar. From what I’ve heard, roads and signage are good. My Pro tip from driving a rental in Spain: park the car on the outskirts and walk in!
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Hi Lane! Thanks for checking out my blog. We are going at the end of May. I wish we could fit in both Mostar and Kotor but couldn’t find the time for both! I’ll have to check out your posts on the trip!
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Ah! We won’t be there until Sep. Can you tell I’m just a bit excited? Was hoping we could grab a coffee if our paths crossed. Well, I guess they crossed not in Croatia but in the blogosphere! 👍 I am also still trying to figure out logistics for our day trip to Kotor from Dubrovnik. I figured we would get a package locally, but maybe still need to look into it. Any progress/decision on your end? Happy travels!
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I still haven’t decided what to do. Most of the bus tours seem to go to Budva, which seems to be touristy and not great from the reviews I’ve read. Either we’ll find a day tour that has the stops we’re interested in, or we’ll probably hire a car and make the drive ourselves! What about you?
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