Croatia-Istria, Slovenia via Venice
 

Our family is planning on trip in mid-August to Croatia and Slovenia. We are flying into Venice and then driving to Croatia. We're focusing our time mainly in Istria --hoping to rent a house for a week and then spend a few days in Slovenia before we fly out of Venice. We have only have 12 days, including travel. I noticed that most of the houses we're looking to rent have A/C. Is it really that hot there in August? Is there a big difference in renting a house closer to the east coast near Rabac vs. closer to the west coast and Rovinj. We plan to visit Rovinj, Pula, and hopefully, Rt Kamenjak, and Cres and Losinj. Any other suggestions? Is it too far to go to Plitvicka for a day trip? Our 4 boys like lots of activity and thought we'd try Bovec for the Soca River activities. Would love to find horseback riding too.
Thanks for any suggestions.

Not sure why you would fly into Venice vs say flying into Ljubljana if you're going to Croatia and Slovenia.

How do you intend to travel between the place you want to visit?

You might want to use public transportation to get from Vienna to Croatia to avoid facing a hefty drop-off fee on your rental. And then turn in a rental before crossing the border into Slovenia (using a train or bus to make that crossing) before renting another car for your time in Slovenia.

Depending on where you end up staying in Istria, the Plitvice Lakes might be a reasonable day trip -- or maybe not -- your call! The Plitvice Lakes National Park is, IMO, the single most un-missable of Croatia's many splendors. Not only are the lakes connected by travertine waterfall formations, each lake has unique microbiota, and as a result, the lakes, and even different parts of some lakes, are different colors. The best way to see that is to make a single, long loop through the park, preferably facing uphill -- something on the order of 6 hours or more (including time for the boat that connects the lower and upper lakes). So it could be a LONG day trip, or an overnight, or -- if you skip some of the parks' highlights, a more normally timed day trip. I believe that you will find park rangers at each entrance who can help you identify a route that meets your needs.

"Is there a big difference in renting a house closer to the east coast near Rabac vs. closer to the west coast and Rovinj. We plan to visit Rovinj, Pula, and hopefully, Rt Kamenjak, and Cres and Losing."

As you imply, the decision really depends on what YOU plan to visit. With those interests, Rabac or thereabouts might suit you best.

"Any other suggestions?"

I don't know if your children would find them interesting, but the basilica in Porec is quite special and the Lungomare from Lovran to Volosko (which is on the peninsula, but not part of Istria) is lovely.

"Our 4 boys like lots of activity"

In that case, I recommend that you consult the Rough Guide and Lonely Planet guidebooks for these areas -- IME, they cover more activities than almost any of the other guidebooks for the area.

Enjoy!

His_Dudeness: <i>Not sure why you would fly into Venice vs say flying into Ljubljana if you're going to Croatia and Slovenia.</i>

Could be price or convenience. I flew into Venice in April to start my Slovenia/Croatia trip too. I checked different options. I had a direct flight to Amsterdam and needed to get to Ljubljana from there. The only direct flight to Ljubljana - a small airport - left too soon after my Amsterdam arrival. (Believe me, I considered risking it, but it would have given me barely an hour layover in AMS.) Any other flights to Ljubljana that day would have required two flights with a connection somewhere. Or, I could get a direct, cheap flight right on to Venice a few hours later and take a shuttle (DRD) to Ljubljana, so that's what I did. It worked out fine. I also considered flying into Zagreb, but the timing worked out better to fly to Venice.

You might already know there is a ferry between Venice and Rovinj. It may stop at other ports in Croatia, not sure but we saw it dock at Rovinj when we were staying in an apartment overlooking the harbour. That could be a nice way to travel and you could pick up your hire car once in Croatia.

By the way, we hired a car in Trieste (Italy) and had to inform the car hire company that we were taking the car into Croatia and Slovenia because they have different rules for insurance etc. We loved our trip, stayed in Piran in Slovenia, then Rovinj and Opatija. Rovinj was the highlight, lovely place and our apartment was great.
Kay

Note you need a vignette (a window sticker for which there is a fee) to travel on the main roads in Slovenia. Also required in Slovenia is an International Drivers' Permit, a translation of your driver's license, -- accompanied by your actual driver's license. If you're in North America the IDP is easily and cheaply available at you local AAA/CAA office.

Thanks everyone for y,our advice.

We are flying into Venice because that is the best flights we can get using frequent flyer miles and thought we could visit Venice on our trip too. I thought about the ferry to croatia or piran but renting a car is more economical since we will want one to use in istria anyway. Good info on the car rentals and driving in Slovenia--Will get the international drivers license.

One question that wasn't answered -- how hot does it get in the inland part of the Istrian peninsula in August?

I visited Istria only once, in April-May, so I can't answer your question about how hot it gets in August, unfortunately.

Try historical weather on www.wunderground.com (and check more than one year).

I think the OP's plan of flying into Venice and renting a car for the entire trip isn't such a bad idea at all. Venice is about as far away from Istria as Ljubljana and rental agencies in the Italian Northeast (Venice, Trieste, etc.) aren't fussy about taking cars to Croatia and Slovenia. That said, Ljubljana is worth a visit in its own right, but that is another issue.

Regarding the temperature, in August you can expect it to be in the 80F-95F range, going up to 100F if there is a heatwave, and this is true for the wider region, not just Istria.

I do recommend going to Bovec for the activities, though, plus the scenery really is wonderful.

Look at www.weatherbase.com for weather averages: highs, lows, precipitation, etc. I see an average in the low 80s in August -- in Porec and Rovinj.

I'll be interested in your experience of Pula. We were there in later September and didn't like it that much. But I feel we didn't give it enough of a chance.

I just got back from a trip to Venice, Trieste, Rovinj and Pula from late August to early September. The weather in Venice and Trieste was very humid, making it feel hotter than it actually was. I hate humidity, so I felt it was unpleasant. The humidity wend down as we traveled down to Rovinj and Pula. It was still warm, but not as humid. It was about mid 80s at this time of year.

From Istria we went onto Plitvice and then Ljubljana and Lake Bled, with the weather getting cooler (high sixties to high seventies at the peak of the day) as our elevation got higher.

Thanks for everyone's feedback. Travel Nerd, did you rent a car for your trip? When you traveled from Istria to Plitvice, did you do that in a day trip or spend the night? Has anyone spent time at Cape Kamenjak--worth a day trip?

We did rent a car. Only had it for one day in Istria before using it to head onto Plitvice. I do recommend renting a car should you decide to go to Plitvice, plus with the size of your group it would probably be easier.

I also recommend staying overnight at/near the Park as it will help you manage the hoards of other tourists and tour buses and to maximize your time in the Park. When we were done with our walk, the lines were crazy long, and this was early September and not August during the "prime" season.

Have not Cape Kamenjak, so cannot give you any recommendations.

Your 12 days - does this also include Venice or is your 12 days just the Croatia and Slovenia portion of your trip?

Our 12 days include Venice, but we're planning on only 24 hours there max. Hoping to rent a house in Istria for a week to use as our base. Then we have a few days for Slovenia.

If you do plan on going to Plitvice on this trip, it really is not viable to return to Istria back as a day trip, IMHO. It takes about 4 hours to get there from the Rovinj area (WITHOUT traffic). You're heading to Croatia during prime-August season, expect traffic. IIRC, Google says that it is closer to 3 hours, it is inaccurate. But, this is your call should you decide to do it this way. Personally, I wouldn't but you know you and your family best.

You can possibly move on to Slovenia after Plitvice, but expect that it will take approximately another 3-4 hours (maybe even a bit more) to get to Slovenia from the Plitvice region, also without traffic.

I think you need to take a hard look at your 12 days should you decide to add Plitvice. It can be done, but a week in Istria including travel days and your short time in Venice - so 8 days gone, leaving you only 4 days for Slovenia with heavy activity. While this area is relatively compact, it is easy to underestimate how long it can take to get from one place to another, especially if you figure in Plitvice.

Great info and advice. I had a feeling that Plitvice was a stretch.

You will want the a/c. Even if it is unusually cool, opening windows would let in mosquitoes.
Have only read about Cape Kamenjak, but if you want beach/nature time, I would definitely include it.
If you wish to include Cres and Losinj, you will probably want to omit Plitvice and save it for the future. Stick to the west coast of Istria plus those western islands.
I know you wanted a week rental, but I'd split it in half and stay on the mainland and then stay on one of the islands. Having to take the ferry in high season would not be appealing for multiple day trips, though of course you could just do one long day trip and see the highlights of both islands.

How bad are the mosquitoes? I read something in a guidebook about them, which makes me think they are pretty bad. Not thrilled about that.
I didn't realize that Cres and or Losinj were worth an overnight stay. Will definitely have to research that. Assume the ferry will be crowded with a long wait, so that might be a good idea to stay overnight.

The mosquitoes are not worse than any typical temperate place, but in summer the chance of a heat wave would spur me to have a/c.
Yes, read up on Cres and Losinj to see if they interest you. I found Losinj well worth a 4 day stay, but it was a lazy trip. With a car you can really get into the nooks and crannies of both islands.