AirBalloon

With your help, we have decided to travel to Dubrovnik for eight nights for our 25th anniversary.

Should we stay in Dubrovnik the whole time and take a few day trips (to nearby islands and other drivable places) or should we divide our time between Dubrovnik and one other place, such as Korcula. We do not want to run around too much but don't want to be bored either.

Any suggestions on interesting day trips and a second place to stay for a few night s, if you think that would be a good idea, would be very helpful.

Thanks

walkinaround

Korcula is a great place to visit stay. For me, Dubrovnik is a day trip. I would never want to spend 8 days/nights there. No way. It's like a museum rather than a real city. It's incredible to see but overrun by cruise ships and does not feel real. More about seeing than experiencing. Croatia is a great country to visit but I would not spend too much time in Dubrovnik. A day trip to Mostar in Bosnia is also a possibility. Korcula is a much better place to spend time as compared to Dubrovnik. I really enjoyed everything about it.

Dukey1

I understand that Korcula is also getting cruise ships now

isabel

We spent 4 nights in Dubrovnik but on two of the three full days we did day trips so only one full day (plus the other evenings) in Dubrovnik and that was plenty. As walkinaround said, it's beautiful but really crowded and turned into almost a theme park. We didn't want to bother driving so did two day tours (normally I hate those), one to Mostar and one to Montenegro. Both had drawbacks but I'd still do it that way again, they were worth it. Then we went to Korcula (by ferry) for two nights, then Split for two. That was a few years ago, just last month we returned to Croatia and did Istria down to Split. We spent two nights on the island of Hvar but based in Stari Grad which, while not as beautiful architecturally as Hvar town, had a much nicer vibe to it. If Korcula is being overrun with cruisers you might consider that. Hvar town was fine during the day but I can see how it gets pretty wild at night. Even Split was pretty much party central at night with loud techno 'music' coming from bars all over town. Quite different from our previous trip almost ten years ago. Since everywhere is more crowded I can only imagine that Dubrovnik is even worse now. Still a 'must see' as it's amazing but unless you are going way out of 'season' (cruise season that is) I wouldn't want 8 days there.

KayF

We had four nights in Dubrovnik and only did a half day trip to a nearby island. We really enjoyed staying in the middle of the Old Town and didn't run out of things to do. But I've read that the crowds in Dubrovnik are much worse now than when we were there so maybe splitting your time between two places is a good idea. You can check online when the cruise ships will be docking there, not sure what the website is though.

Kay

TravelerKaren

We were in Croatia, Bosnia, and Slovenia for 30 days last year and had 3 nights in Dubrovnik and that was 2 nights too many. I agree that it is beautiful and certainly worth a visit, but it has turned into a theme park. Way too many visitors, especially when the cruise ships are in port. We also spent 2 nights each on Hvar and Korcula and liked them both. We also really enjoyed Split and the Istrian peninsula. The Plitvice Lakes are amazing but is not convenient if you want to stay in southern Croatia. We thought of taking a day trip to Montenegro when we were in Dubrovnik but read that the road gets backed up and could take 3 hours to get there due to the customs stop. We enjoyed Mostar but did that as part of a 2-day journey with Sarajevo Funky Tours (we highly recommend).

danon

AirBalloon

Hi,

Thanks for all of your advice.

We wanted to stay just outside Dubrovnik (within 4 km) at an upscale hotel with a pool so we can have the flexibility to either take day trips, go into Dubrovnik, or visit a few close islands by ferry.

If we were to divide our time, which island would you recommend we spend a few nights and are there any other beautiful coastal towns we can stay at that are within a few hours drive from Dubrovnik (we would rather not stay in a larger city like Split)?

Andrea

Thanks

TravelerKaren

If you want to stay near Split, then I would suggest Sibenik. It's a charming town and there is a bus that you can take between Sibenik and Split, only a 20-30 minute ride.

AirBalloon

That is a very beautiful town, but it is even further than north than Split. So, with only 8 nights, I would rather not have to drive so far. Any other small, gorgeous seaside towns, within an hour to two (or less) in driving time?

Thanks

TravelerKaren

AirBalloon: I meant to suggest Trogir instead of Sibenik. We visited both towns from Split. Trogir is a charming town only about 20 min away and you can get a bus to and from Split.

littlejane

AirBalloon

littlejane

Vttraveler

If you decide to go to Mostar (which I'd recommend), that is another place that is much quieter and more peaceful during the evenings and mornings. There are many day trippers in the middle of the day. An overnight stay is best.

I also recommend Lokum as a close-to-Dubrovnik island. Cavtat on the coast south of Dubrovnik is another good destination.

Vttraveler

A good friend who worked for about 6 years in Sarajevo and took frequent trips to the Croatian coast used to enjoy staying at the Marco Polo hotel in Gradac, We stopped there with her once and it does look like a very nice place. The town is right on the coast about 2 hours north of Dubrovnik.

When we had lunch in Ston on the Pelješac peninsula (several restaurants with excellent seafood) we saw some small hotels that looked nice. About an hour from Dubrovnik, with famous defensive stone wall fortifications. There are very good wineries nearby.

AirBalloon

I really appreciate all of your help. We have decided to spend the eight nights close to Dubrovnik as we will have more than enough to do for those eight days.

Has anyone stayed at any of the following hotels that we are considering? Which would you recommend?

Valamar Argosy Hotel
Valamar Collection President Hotel
Hotel Kompass
Royal Blue Hotel
Ariston Hotel
Rixos Libertas

Thanks again.