islands near dubrovnik

bungaro79

after booking flight to croatia in the summer, going to spend a few days in dubrovnik but thinkining about going to an island for some of it. anyone recommend one of the islands and someplace to stay on it?? its just myslef and my wife so looking for somewhere nice and relaxing.
also are there tours to montenegro and bosnia from dubrovnik??
thanks

rtw

Not sure about the islands, I think Korcula is close enough though!

You can do day trips to Montenegro and Bosnia very easily, they were €50 each when I went a few years ago and that included transport, walking tours etc.

If you were choosing between them I'd definitely pick Bosnia, much more interesting. You visit a small town called Pocitelg first then have about 3 hours in Mostar and a walking tour etc! The Montenegro tour goes to Kotor which is def worth a visit, but it is similar to Dubrovnik and prob not as impressive. Then you go to Budva which is really just a resort so not too much to see.

I'd do both if you have time but like I said I'd choose Bosnia if you were just going for one!

roro2

There are 3 (very) small islands within an hour's ferry trip from Dubrovnik called the Elaphiti Islands. Lopud is the largest and would have most accomodation options. It is very nice and relaxing, but this also depends on your definition of nice and relaxing! No cars, one ATM, a few small hotels and restaurants and you can walk from one side of the island to the other in 20mins via a path through the forest. Paradise to some, myself included, but "dead" to others! There's a great sandy beach on the undeveloped side of the island that is busy from 11am-4pm with day-trippers from Dubrovnik but quiet at other times, and a small village along the seafront on the other side of the island with a few restaurants and some pebble beaches that are good for swimming. One of the better accomodation options is La Villa - a small, comfortable hotel on the seafront, rooms about €120-150/night in mid-summer: http://www.lavilla.com.hr/ but you'd need to book well in advance for the peak months.

Korcula is more difficult to get to from Dubrovnik and has less of an "island" feel. Mljet is accessible from Dubrovnik but is only oriented towards day-trips I think (haven't been here). There are some other nice islands off the coast (Vis is one) but the ferries leave from Split.

bungaro79

thanks for the replies! lots of options to choose from so narrowing it down it going to be hard!

MadsL

Rent a car and drive up to Sarajevo if you plan to do an overnight, if not Mostar is an easy drive and strongly recommended. The drive is stunning, with the advantage of some nice waterside stops on the way for lunch. Bosnia & Herzegovina is very very pretty.

Avoid Medjugorje unless very religious, it is like a Costa del Sol Catholic theme park. Total dump.