Croatia: help required!

Inkyhead

Hi all

Long time lurker, first time poster

Myself and my old man are going to Croatia in September, neither of us have been before so pretty clueless. Gonna go for 9 or 10 days, Dubrovnik for half of that maybe? The thing is, we also want to visit Plitvice Lakes, some of the islands like Brac/Solta/Hvar/Vis, Split, maybe Brela etc...

What would people recommend re where to stay to do some of the above? I was thinking possibly fly into Zadar and stay in Split for a few days before going to south to Dubrovnik? Or stay outside the city, like Omis? Would it better to stay for a few days in Hvar or can you do the islands on day trips? OR would people go to Dubrovnik first and move north then?

Really sorry for all the questions folks. Any tips/personal experiences/recommendations/advice would be seriously appreciated.

Sound.

rossie1977

zadar is a good base for the nationals parks and islands, accommodation is quite cheap there too (as long as you dont book on the main island)

would recommend a visit to Paklenica NP, every hour or so buses from the main coach station in zadar stop outside the main entrance (on their way to other destinations)

Inkyhead

Cool, cheers! Paklenica looks beautiful. Checking out Zadar. Is Split worth it at all for a stay in that case? Or would ya do a few days in Zadar instead (say, if it was between the two) and then onto Dubrovnik for a week or so.

I saw the Lapad peninsula just outside Dubrovnik comes highly recommended from other posters

Zebra3

Split is a beautiful city. There are a lot of communist era tower blocks outside the city centre, but the city centre is fantastic. It's not as touristy as Dubrovnik so it's a great place to go if you want to chat with locals.

Have a look on Youtube for Michael Palin's New Europe to help you make up your mind.

Inkyhead

Thanks Zebra. Watched The Michael Palin episode, Split looks the business, a couple of nights there shall be done I think.

And Hvar must have changed since that was filmed? It looks sleepy and empty but I've heard it described as 'the Ibiza of Croatia' in the last few weeks. Supposedly a hectic oul spot!

Culchie

Hvar is a fantastic spot ... it is lively, but pleasantly lively, it's all about how a holiday should be

Suggest you fly into Dubrovnik, and out of Zadar if you can arrange that and work your way up the coast. Strong suggest you go to Mostar in Bosnia as well, approx one hour from the coast, well worth seeing. (Medjegore if you are that way inclined is also on the way).

You can catch a ferry in Orebic on Peljesac peninsula that can bring you to a few islands (stayovers optional) and into Split eventually.

You have 10 days whch is perfect amount of time to see the best of Croatia, it's a fab place.

waterboy15

Aw that beautiful smell of lavender as one strolls along the promenage into the picturesque town of hvar, very fond memories was there with my wife for a week few years back. Ideal thing would be this or another island for few nights and then the mainland but not dub. For rest.

Inkyhead

Culchie wrote: »

Suggest you fly into Dubrovnik, and out of Zadar if you can arrange that and work your way up the coast. Strong suggest you go to Mostar in Bosnia as well, approx one hour from the coast, well worth seeing. (Medjegore if you are that way inclined is also on the way).

Cheers for the suggestion Culchie. From Dubrovnik up looks like it could be the best way of doing it I think! Definitely looking at doing a day trip to Mostar. We won't be renting a car so it'll be a coach trip I reckon. Was originally up for visiting Sarajevo but it's just too far out of the way (if we're not staying there) innit?

waterboy15 wrote: »

Aw that beautiful smell of lavender as one strolls along the promenage into the picturesque town of hvar, very fond memories was there with my wife for a week few years back. Ideal thing would be this or another island for few nights and then the mainland but not dub. For rest.

Sounds amazing dude. Hvar is a must, having read up on it. Out of curiosity why not Dubrovnik? The Lapad peninsula sounds like a lovely place to stay for a few nights I would've thought.

Thanks again for the input folks. Keep it coming, great stuff

pedantic.pat

Inkyhead,
I was in Croatia last year it was an amazing holiday enjoyed it so much went back again this year. Went there via Dubrovnik. Took thehttp://www.jadrolinija.hr/ car ferry service and it goes Dubrovnik Korcula to Hvar and then onto split.

From Split there are regular ferries to all of the Islands Brac, Solta, Vis.

Dubrovnik- you could do everything in 2 days.
Donts: Eat in the restaraunts in the city walls.

Do's:
-Lokrum Island is cool 5 euro gets you to uninhabited national park.
City walls are a must.
- Stay in Lopud- regular bus service to pile gate, cheaper and more modern accomodation than the old town.
-Eat in restaraunts at pile gate youll know it when you see it- if you like your spuds

Korcula
I liked korcula really enjoyed the old town with a great atmosphere. Quiet nightlife though.

Hvar is a beautiful Island. Great nightlife most expensive of all the islands I would say. Go to the Pakelini (spelling) islands. Best beaches i have ever been on.(clothing optional)!
We only planned going here for 2 days and then on to other islands. Ended staying for a week - fel in love with the place

Vis Beautiful Island - if you want relaxation - go here.
The Island was only opened to the public in 1998.
- This is your typical Island with the locals so laid back everything moves really slow.
- The coastline is dotted with hundreds of islets . Rent a boat and find your own private paradise.
- Rent a scooter and take the scenic route to Komiza a beautiful fishing village.


I would advise you go to Dubrovnik - Stay there no longer than 2 days get the touristy stuff done. Then get ferry ( Thursdays and Sundays at 08:30.) get off in Korcula explore the old town and the island. Then get catamaran (www.krilo.hr) to Hvar stay in Hvar for as long as you like. get catamaran again to Split then onto Vis.


Also look up three men in a boat on bbc they went to most of the Islands above.

Enjoy your holiday!

billyhead

pedantic.pat wrote: »

Inkyhead,
I was in Croatia last year it was an amazing holiday enjoyed it so much went back again this year. Went there via Dubrovnik. Took thehttp://www.jadrolinija.hr/ car ferry service and it goes Dubrovnik Korcula to Hvar and then onto split.

From Split there are regular ferries to all of the Islands Brac, Solta, Vis.

Dubrovnik- you could do everything in 2 days.
Donts: Eat in the restaraunts in the city walls.

Do's:
-Lokrum Island is cool 5 euro gets you to uninhabited national park.
City walls are a must.
- Stay in Lopud- regular bus service to pile gate, cheaper and more modern accomodation than the old town.
-Eat in restaraunts at pile gate youll know it when you see it- if you like your spuds

Korcula
I liked korcula really enjoyed the old town with a great atmosphere. Quiet nightlife though.

Hvar is a beautiful Island. Great nightlife most expensive of all the islands I would say. Go to the Pakelini (spelling) islands. Best beaches i have ever been on.(clothing optional)!
We only planned going here for 2 days and then on to other islands. Ended staying for a week - fel in love with the place

Vis Beautiful Island - if you want relaxation - go here.
The Island was only opened to the public in 1998.
- This is your typical Island with the locals so laid back everything moves really slow.
- The coastline is dotted with hundreds of islets . Rent a boat and find your own private paradise.
- Rent a scooter and take the scenic route to Komiza a beautiful fishing village.


I would advise you go to Dubrovnik - Stay there no longer than 2 days get the touristy stuff done. Then get ferry ( Thursdays and Sundays at 08:30.) get off in Korcula explore the old town and the island. Then get catamaran (www.krilo.hr) to Hvar stay in Hvar for as long as you like. get catamaran again to Split then onto Vis.


Also look up three men in a boat on bbc they went to most of the Islands above.

Enjoy your holiday!

That sounds like a interesting holiday Pat.

How long did it take to cover it. How much did it cost in total including flights ETC. Also would anyone know what the weather would be like in say late October.

thebuzz

Very little to do in Dubrovnik unless you're hitting the pubs. Wouldn't spend more than a night or two.

julie2tubz

Inkyhead wrote: »

Hi all

Long time lurker, first time poster

Myself and my old man are going to Croatia in September, neither of us have been before so pretty clueless. Gonna go for 9 or 10 days, Dubrovnik for half of that maybe? The thing is, we also want to visit Plitvice Lakes, some of the islands like Brac/Solta/Hvar/Vis, Split, maybe Brela etc...

What would people recommend re where to stay to do some of the above? I was thinking possibly fly into Zadar and stay in Split for a few days before going to south to Dubrovnik? Or stay outside the city, like Omis? Would it better to stay for a few days in Hvar or can you do the islands on day trips? OR would people go to Dubrovnik first and move north then?

Really sorry for all the questions folks. Any tips/personal experiences/recommendations/advice would be seriously appreciated.

Sound.

Here is the itinerary regarding Croatia I did!


Flew into Zadar.

Stayed for 3 Nights.
Got Bus from Zadar to Split.
Stayed there for 3 nights (but it was probably one night too long)
Then Got Ferry Catamaran to Hvar Island (AMAZING PLACE)
We stayed in in Hvar for 4 nights. 
then got Ferry from Stari Grad (town on the Island) to Dubrovnik.
Stayed in Dubrovnik for 3 nights.
During
our time in Dubrovnik we went to Mostar in
Bosnia for the day as its on the border.

So what I would do differently is:

Stay in Zadar for 2 nights then get bus to Trogir for one night or just visit for the day.
From Trogir go to Split and stay there for 2 nights.(all by bus)
From Split go to Hvar Island. Stay there for 3 or 4 nights (its incredible).
Then get ferry from Hvar to Korcula Island (never went there but its meant to be beautiful)
Then go from Korcula head to Dubrovnik.

It is so easy to get around the place by bus or Ferry and Transport is relatively cheap.
Just make sure you go to the information offices in every town to get the times for the Ferries etc as they vary.

If you dont have places booked to stay I can recommend 2 hostels in Hvar and Dubrovnik. The are not like normal Hostels, as you have your own room and key.

In Hvar its Luka's Lodge - You can book here - http://www.hostels.com/hostels/hvar/lukas-lodge/20999
its a cool place to stay if its not booked up. 

In Dubrovnik book with Burum Hostel - email address - ante.burum@du.htnet.hr
his name is Nikola Burum and there is a beach near by and he can drive you for free to the old city every night.
He also can bring you to Bosnia on a day trip for way cheaper than the tour operators if you're interested.

So thats all I can think of right now.
If I think of more Ill let you know

I wish I was back there. What a place!!!

Inkyhead

Thanks a million Pat and Julie, some great info there!

Flights booked last night. It's a lot more expensive to fly from Dubrovnik to Dublin than vice versa with Aer Lingus for some reason, so it made more sense to fly into Dubrovnik and go from there.

Flying into Dubrovnik on Sep 11th (!) and flying from Zadar to Dublin with Ryanair on Wed 21st. Now to pick where to visit, and stay.

@thebuzz: won't be hitting the booze in a big way, should be a chilled enough affair tbh. cheers for that

pedantic.pat

Inkyhead,
Re Accomodation. We always just went straight off the boat and into tourist agency and requested accomodation. I would advise you to specify exactly what you want ; budget, location (close to beach, shops, fruitand veg, bakerys) and more importantly do not forget AIRCON!! Be fussy too dont just take the first one you see and haggle! we paid 40-50 Euro per night or 300-350 kuna rooms are cheaper maybe 250-300kuna. Also if your not happy with what they show you go to the area you want to stay and walk the streets looking for blue signs with "apartmani" written or"sobe" for room. knock in and see if hey are free.

pedantic.pat

Billy,
I did Dubrovnik, Korcula-Hvar-Vis last year over 11 days last year. Spent around 8-900 all in.
This year went Dubrovnik-Split(1)-Vis(7Nights)-Dubrovnik(2) over 10 days.
Spent 300-350 kuna or 40-50 euro apartment(less for room). 40 euro on the Islands - this was in August peak season so you will pay less.
Spent C900 euro including flights(350euro) .

If you are going to Vis (which i would strongly recommend) i can send you on contact details of the perfect apartment we stayed in - sleeps 2-3 (PM me)

Inkyhead

pedantic.pat wrote: »

Inkyhead,
Re Accomodation. We always just went straight off the boat and into tourist agency and requested accomodation. I would advise you to specify exactly what you want ; budget, location (close to beach, shops, fruitand veg, bakerys) and more importantly do not forget AIRCON!! Be fussy too dont just take the first one you see and haggle! we paid 40-50 Euro per night or 300-350 kuna rooms are cheaper maybe 250-300kuna. Also if your not happy with what they show you go to the area you want to stay and walk the streets looking for blue signs with "apartmani" written or"sobe" for room. knock in and see if hey are free.

Cheers again Pat, good stuff. I take it so that y'all would advise against booking accommodation before going over? I think I'm just used to the security of having a hotel (or whatever) sorted prior to getting to a place . Also I reckon my oul lad would prefer it, he's old school like that.

I'm thinking Dubrovnik for a couple of nights, Hvar for a few nights, onto Split for a couple of nights.

Jake The Fat Ma

It is worth going to Dubrovnik just for the beach alone:D

Inkyhead

Elaborate, please.

Jake The Fat Ma

Fantastic

Inkyhead

okay

arandale

Booked for October, hotel in Cavtat, never been before, did anyone of you go there and what would the weather be like early Oct.

Many thanks to you all on the imformation, i didn't know you could do Dub in a day.

Inkyhead

Not much help to you as I've never been, but it's supposed to be a lovely town. Here's a good article I stumbled upon a couple of weeks ago: http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/europe/why-croatias-cavtat-is-a-pearl-in-its-own-right-446461.html As far as weather goes, it should be cooler than June to Sept but still warm by Irish standards, maybe reaching 15-20° if you're lucky?

Inkyhead

Doing 3 nights in Dubrovnik (Lapad, maybe), 4 in Hvar Town, 3 in Split. :cool:

I was all up for winging it and booking on arrival, room or hostel, but my father wants to book hotels if possible and if not too expensive. 3 or 4 star?

Any recommendations folks? Thanks again.

ToxicPaddy

Lapad has lots of hotels at fairly decent prices and its about 15 mins on a bus from the old town within the city walls.

The hotel Valamar Lacroma is lovely hotel up the hill from Lapad, very nice room, fantastic pool area and great views over the bay of all the yachts and cruise ships coming and going.

Hvar is expensive, food and drink there is expensive compared to the rest of Croatia except for maybe Dubrovnik Old Town, so if you can find a good deal on a hotel, grab it.

Split is mixed, you might get a better deal and be more central getting an apartment rather than a hotel. Good deals too especially if you're staying for 3 nights or more. Like someone said here, ask for aircon as you'll need it..

Just back on Sunday and it was amazing as usual, 30-36 degrees everyday. Love that place

Inkyhead

Cheers ToxicPaddy!
Anyway, booked the following over the last couple of days.

In Lapad we're staying in Hotel Tirena: http://www.booking.com/hotel/hr/tirenadubrovnik.en.html I think it's actually part of the same complex/owned by the same people as the Valamar Lacroma??? Seems nice enough anyway.

You're dead right about Hvar & Split btw.

The only chance of getting a good hotel in Hvar Town is if you've got money to burn. Booked this place: http://www.booking.com/hotel/hr/apartmani-marinka-viskovic.en.html It's cheap as chips in comparison, so how bad.

Split - went for location - and plenty good reviews about these apartments: http://www.booking.com/hotel/hr/apartments-gajeta.en.html so booked here. Prob gonna be small and no frills but f*ck it.

Both of the self-service apartments have air-con afaik. Glad to hear your holiday went well and it was so warm, can't wait to go myself now I tell thee

taja1502

Hiya everybody,

regards the weather in Croatia situation is like this:
if you are spending holidays in Dubrovnik area possible October will
still be very warm and if you are lucky good for swimming

I am from Croatia, and I am still choosing to go every year to have my holidays
there.. love that country! I hope you all are going to enjoy it

Cheers

Fuinseog

was thinking of going to Croatia for a few days in October and would be grateful if someone could help me with the following.

Is Dubrovnik a place you visit more in the summer or is it still good in October?
Do they take Euro anywhere?
would folks there be regarded as friendly or distant?
Is English widely spoken?
Is there anything to be wary of, conmen, tourist traps etc.?
Do EU citizens require a visa to enter nearby Bosnia?
is Bosnia safe? Someone told me its not ready for tourists.

taja1502

Fuinseog wrote: »

was thinking of going to Croatia for a few days in October and would be grateful if someone could help me with the following.

Is Dubrovnik a place you visit more in the summer or is it still good in October?
Do they take Euro anywhere?
would folks there be regarded as friendly or distant?
Is English widely spoken?
Is there anything to be wary of, conmen, tourist traps etc.?
Do EU citizens require a visa to enter nearby Bosnia?
is Bosnia safe? Someone told me its not ready for tourists.

1. October can be very nice in Dubrovnik, if you are lucky you might even have a swim.. but also can be rainy and around 20 degrees
you can follow here the weather prognosis
http://prognoza.hr/sedam.php?id=sedam&param=Hrvatska&code=14472
2. Croatian currency is Croatian Kuna, it is rarely possible to pay with Euros..
3. Mostly friendly
4. Almost everyone speaks basic English
5. Is there anything to be wary of, conmen, tourist traps etc.?
Nothing specific on this one, it can happen but it can also happen in Ireland.. so overall no one will try to cheat you
6. I don't think so, but something to check out
7. Depends where you are planning to go.. but shouldn't be any problems
Well if you go to Sarajevo, they are ready for tourists.. as I said depends where you want to go

Hope I helped

Zebra3

Fuinseog wrote: »

Do EU citizens require a visa to enter nearby Bosnia?
is Bosnia safe? Someone told me its not ready for tourists.

http://wikitravel.org/en/Bosnia#Get_in

No visa is needed for entry by citizens of the US, Brazil, Canada, Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, regional Balkan countries except Albania and probably Kosovo, and the European Union.

http://wikitravel.org/en/Bosnia#Stay_safe