Off we go to the other side of the Adriatic Sea to the lesser-known country of Croatia! If you’ve seen pictures or been there, you know firsthand why we’ve chosen this destination … the beauty of this country is idyllic; its sea is the crystal clear blue of paradise. Ancient fortresses, wine regions, hidden beaches, and beautiful islands are begging to be explored! We love Italy, and Croatia is rumored to have all its perks (food, views, weather, etc.) supposedly without its crowds or high costs. With the word out on this travel utopia, it’s been high on our “list” to visit sooner than later – its rising popularity and crowds are equally matched with its rising costs.
Poor Planning
Weary from endless research for our Japan trip, my attempt to borderline “wing-it” to Croatia didn’t exactly pay off. Like the saying “you get what you pay for” – winging it has its share of stress for a traveler normally obsessed with gathering thorough research and knowledge. Before boasting how easy it is to plan a trip to Europe, I should have realized my two biggest mistakes were 1) not planning our Dubrovnik visit around its port schedule (cruise ships bring in 7,500+ visitors per day) and 2) not checking the ferry schedule before finalizing the itinerary (travel between the islands outside of July and August is significantly more difficult). What else will I overlook before the trip is done? Not to challenge fate, but at this moment, the strong urge to just get away and the thrill of navigating the unknown is outweighing the need for a flawless outcome.
Gotta get out of Dodge
In my planning, I have repeatedly read 2 things about Dubrovnik: 1) you cannot go to Croatia without visiting Dubrovnik, the “Pearl of the Adriatic,” and 2) because of the crowds you will not be able to withstand much time there. Although it is said that a day is enough time to see the main sights, I brazenly reserved 3 nights within the city walls. Many months later, after taking a deeper look at the cruise ship arrivals scheduled for our stay, I am having major second thoughts. Granted I read that Dubrovnik is always so crowded you cannot tell the difference between when a ship is in port vs. when they are not, on Thursday September 20 there are over 9,300 scheduled passengers (excluding crews!) into a town that is barely 34 acres big. Putting this into perspective, it is proportional to a busy day at Disneyland. Likewise, they even put up a rope on these days to control traffic flow. Operation Plan B is now in effect: Since there are no ships in port on Monday, and somehow a “rare find” apartment in Dubrovnik was available less than 2 months out during the busy season, I took this as a sign to change our itinerary – shifting it forward one night therefore effectively getting out of dodge early Thursday morning as the crush of the cruise ships unleash their passengers upon the Old Town.
Our Croatia Island Hopping Itinerary Overview
Map of our Croatia Itinerary
Dubrovnik – Mostar – Korcula – Split
After spending three nights in Dubrovnik, we make a one-night detour to Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina before traveling by ferry across the crystal clear blue Adriatic to spend 2 nights on the island of Korcula, and conclude our trip with two nights in Split, wandering the streets of Diocletian’s Palace and Old Town.
Considering there are over 1,000 islands around Croatia, our one-island itinerary is more “leaping over” than “hopping through” the islands. An easy, popular island to add to this itinerary would be Hvar; we opted to exchange it for a detour to Bosnia.
If sailing, islands, or beaches aren’t your thing, other very popular destinations during a trip to Croatia are to head inland to either Plitvice or Krka National Parks for their beautiful waterfalls. Sadly our scheduled day in Krka was eliminated with the airline’s cancelation of our puddle-jumper flight, which is why I was thrilled to discover we could still sample Bosnia’s Kravice waterfalls. If we had more time we could’ve added an additional country: Kotor, Montenegro. Last night we watched one of Rick Steves’ Travel Talks (Croatia and Slovenia) and it recommends a nice 2-week itinerary.
My co-worker claims I have the “vacation glow” written all over me. With just one day to go, at this point, all that is left is for us to get this adventure started. Check back soon to see how we spend our self-inflicted 24-hour layover in Rome!
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