dgunbug

My husband and I are in the beginning stages of planning a trip to the Balkans in September. We are 74 and 61, in fairly good health with the exception of some knee issues on my husband's part (so strenuous hiking is out) and are experienced independent travelers. We enjoy history, beautiful scenery, ancient ruins, people watching as well as interactions and new cultural experiences. We are not as interested in beaches and resorts as we live in Florida and have that at home. Below is a preliminary itinerary that we are considering with lots of flexibility. We can add days if needed. We realize we can't see everything, but would appreciate your comments and suggestions.

this is a rough proposal itinerary for september

1 – fly to trieste
2 – arrive in Trieste – night in trieste
3 – tour Triesste – nightin Trieste
4 – bus to Ljubljana – 1.5 hrs – tour Ljubljana – night in Ljubljana
5 – tour Ljubljana – night in Ljubljana
6 – bus to Zagreb – 2.5 hrs – night in Zagreb
7 – tour Zagreb – night in Zagreb
8 – tour Zagreb – night in Zagreb
9 – bus to Zadar – 3.5 hrs – night in Zadar
10 – tour Zadar – night in Zadar
11 – bus to Split – night in Split
12 – tour Split – night in split
13 – bus to Dbrovnic – night in Dbrovnic
14 – tour Dbrovnic – night in Dbrovnic
15 – bus to Mostar – night in Mostar
16 – tour Mostar – night in Mostar
17 – bus to Kotar – night in Kotar
18 – tour Kotar – also Budva – night in Kotar
19 – bus to Sarajevo – night in Sarajevo
20 – tour Sarajevo – night in Sarajevo
21 – bus to Lakes – 5 hrs -- night at lakes
22 – rent car – tour lakes area – night at lakes
23 – bus to Karlovac – change bus to Rovinj – night in Rovinj
24 – tour Rovinj – night in Rovinj
25 – bus to Venice – tour Venice – night in venice
26 – tour venice – night in venice
27 – tour venice – night in venice
28 – fly to Miami

Thanks in advance!
June

Andrew

By the "Lakes" I take it you mean Plitvice Lakes National Park in Croatia? If so - no car is needed to "tour" them. In fact, you can't drive "through" the lakes. You have to walk/hike, take a park shuttle bus, or the boats. Most people seem able to explore Plitvice Lakes in 5-6 hours. But having a car to get to/from them can help. You could take the bus from Zagreb to Plitvice and then another bus on to Zadar from there the next day (on the way down.

Hiking in Plitvice generally isn't that difficult, but there is a fairly steep hill from the lakes up/down to the top where the hotels and the parking is. The shuttle buses do not take you down to the bottom, unfortunately, and you can't drive a car down there. I don't know much about how the park would accommodate people with mobility issues. I suppose someone could push your husband up/down the hill in a wheelchair. Once he got down I suspect he'd be fine. If you want to take your time, you could explore the lower lakes one day and the upper lakes the next.

Driving in Croatia is easy and affordable if you rent the car in Croatia and return it there. You can drive to Bosnia and Montenegro, too. But if you don't mind buses, Croatia does have a good bus system.

I might do your itinerary this way:

Fly into Venice
Train to Trieste
Bus to Rovinj
Ferry or bus to Zadar
Bus to Split
Bus to Dubrovnik
Bus to Kotor/Montenegro
Bus to Mostar
Bus or train to Sarajevo
Bus to Plitvice (if that's feasible)
Bus to Zagreb
Train to Ljubljana
Fly out of Ljubljana (or bus/shuttle back to Venice - fly out of Venice)

If flying to Trieste from Miami is as practical for you as flying to Venice, then you could do the Venice days at the end, of course.

You could skip the loop back up to Ljubljana/Venice at the end if you don't mind double back between Trieste, Rovinj, Ljubljana, etc. in the beginning. There are different scenarios you could play with and even wind up flying home from Dubrovnik at the "bottom," but that will require some re-tracing of your path. Probably no perfect way to do it.

thursdaysd

I, too, would put Sarajevo after Mostar. I would also give Sarajevo more time, dropping a night in Mostar.

Check the website for the port of Dubrovnik to see when the cruise ship crowds will be worst before finalizing your itinerary.

I was disappointed with Trieste, if you need to save time for somewhere else I would take it from Trieste.

dgunbug

Andrew - yes, I was referring to the national park. Mobility is a bit of an issue, but I think he can manage if it is not too steep. No wheelchair necessary. We expect to walk quite a bit and knew that cars are not permitted inside the park area. We are flexible and can drive or take buses/trains - whichever make the most sense.

The flight through Italy was much cheaper and I haven't been to Venice since I was in college, so we don't mind a few days there. We can add days to the trip and thought we would probably add a few at some islands, but would appreciate advice and suggestions of highlight places we may not have considered.

dgunbug

Thanks andrew & Thursday for the quick responses. Thursday - time is not an issue. We can add days if we want. Looking now to try to get the best and most sensible itinerary. Are we missing anything you especially enjoyed in this area?

thursdaysd

Depending on when you get there I might add a night to Ljubljana, as I would want to visit Lake Bled.

I also enjoyed Macedonia, especially Lake Ohrid.

See: http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...rn-balkans.cfm

Or for the same text with photos:

https://mytimetotravel.wordpress.com...sed-by-skopje/

Andrew

Yes, definitely add time in Slovenia if you can. It's one of my favorite countries. Ljubljana is a gem, and Lake Bled is an easy day trip. Many people also enjoy driving the "Julian Alps Loop" through the alps in Slovenia in Triglav National Park, but that probably requires a car (unless you hire a driver). I loved Piran on on the Slovenian coast, too. (roughly similar feel compared to Rovinj, though. Both were part of Italy for a while and still officially bi-lingual.)

If you want another stop south of Zadar, you might stop in the beautiful town of Sibenik and/or in nearby Krka National Park, which has a big, beautiful cascading waterfall (much larger than what you find at Plitvice), and you can see it without any strenuous hiking; take a boat out to the falls from the town of Skradin.

Many people add the island of Hvar and/or Korcula (maybe both but probably not necessary). There is catamaran service between Split, Hvar, and Korcula, and there is daily bus service between Dubrovnik and Korcula Town, if that helps. (I have been to Korcula but not to Hvar.)

dgunbug

Good suggestion about adding on day for lake Bled. I had that in my notes. We will probably save Macedonia for another trip, combined with the some of the more western countries and perhaps down into Greece, which we have been to, but missed meteora and Thessaloniki.

dgunbug

Andrew - good info. Greatly appreciated.

dgunbug

Excuse me - meant that we are saving eastern countries.

kja

Hi, dgunbug!

As you probably know, I think what to see and for how long really depends on what YOU want to see and experience, but here are some thoughts:
- One night in Ljubljana might be enough for you, but two nights might be better, and adding a couple of days for Lake Bled and/or Lake Bohinj might be worth considering.
- I regretted giving Zagreb only 2.5 days; others think a few hours is sufficient.
- Split is my favorite city in Croatia. Be sure you have sufficient night for your interests there, along with nearby Trogir (which is, IMO, easily worth a half day or so).
- I think Dubrovnik easily merits 1.5 days. Will your plan give you that much time? (P.S. Don't miss the Buza Bar!)
- I am very, very glad that I spent a night in Mostar, which I found much more enchanting in the evening, after day trippers had left. Depending on when you would arrive and depart, I’m not sure you need 2 nights there. I was there for almost exactly 24 hours, which worked for me.
- I visited Kotor for just a day trip and can imagine enjoying a night there. I skipped Budva.
- I gave Sarajevo only 2 days and truly regret that I didn’t give it more.
- I think you already clarified that you mean the Plitvice Lakes? (You might want to be clear about that – there are various national parks in the area, and various lakes.) I’m not sure what renting a car to explore the Plitvice Lakes would buy you – as Andrew noted, the major part of the park is limited to walking trails.
- From what I’ve read, it can be hard to GET a bus from the Plitvice Lakes, as not all will stop there to pick passengers up. If you decide to go with that plan, make sure you are willing to adjust your plans as necessary. Also, have you confirmed that your timing works? The best way to see the Plitvice Lakes is, IME, a single loop of 6 or 7 hours, and I’m not sure you have that much time on either side of your overnight in the area.
- If you have any interest in visiting Karlovac, make sure the timing of the buses work.
- Many people want time in Istria to visit the hill towns, some of its treasures outside of Rovinj, etc. I don't know that you have time for that...

While I can see a certain logic to your route, you might consider a different configuration. My sequence, which worked well for me, started with a flight into Sarajevo, then: Mostar, Dubrovnik (day trip to Kotor), Korcula, Split, Hvar (yes, that was out of sequence – a quirk of the ferries), Trogir, Sibenik (and the Krka National Park), Zadar, … , Istria (including Rovinj), the Plitvice Lakes, …, Zagreb, Ljubljana, Lake Bled (flight out of Ljubljana’s airport, which is half way between Ljubljana and Bled).

As for things you are missing, well, of course, you must make choices! I’m surprised that you don’t have any of Croatia’s islands on your itinerary – not because of the options they provide for beach time, but because of their other attractions. And as Andrew mentioned, Sibenik is stunning (but has a LOT of stairs!) and the nearby Krka National Park – which has some similarities to the Plitvice Lake, but is in other ways very, very different – can be visited from there.

If you add time for Bled, consider adding TWO nights, so 4 total for Ljubljana and Bled.

Of the half-dozen guide books I used for planning my time in the area, I found the <i>Rough Guide</i> the most useful by far.

Hope that helps!

dgunbug

Hi kja - always nice to hear from you. I have been fortunate to have taken your advice as well as Thursday's many times in the past. As mentioned, all suggestions are well appreciated as we have only just begun planning. While they were not on the original itinerary, the Croatian islands were not off the table. It looks like more than 4 weeks are needed to properly see even the limited area we want to explore, but we will have to make some choices to fit in our time constraints. Thanks for pitching in with your suggestions.

kja

Anytime, dgunbug! I remember planning my time in the area, already reasonably experienced as a traveler (as I know you are), and being stunned at just how many different places called to me. In retrospect, it made sense -- its a huge area, filled with lots of islands and valleys and other potentially defensible enclaves, all of which have been subject to multiple waves of influence and domination by numerous rulers with substantially varying religions and practices. No wonder each place seems to have its unique heritage! Add in varied natural scenery, and it is a complete morass of intriguing possibilities and opportunities!

Good luck with your planning!

dgunbug

Kja - it is always the little treasures that I read about on fodors that makes the trip so memorable. I still remember following in your footsteps to Datong and Pingyao. While there are so.many opportunities to visit many places, it is so helpful to hear about those places that stick in the minds of other traveler's as their favorites. I appreciate all the comments and suggestions that are given here.