tansmets

We are planning a 5-6 week european trip starting in early-mid June and Croatia will be the first place we go. We are a family with a 5 and 8 year old who like to be outside, boats, hiking, limited patience for museums. I had been originally planning to fly directly to Split or Zadar and start there for around 6 days since it seems like there are a great variety of day trips by car/bus or boat from Split.
A lot of friends have mentioned Dubrovnik to us - I know the old town looks beautiful, but I've heard it gets packed with tourists (for example, to me, Lucerne's old town felt extremely touristy and a bit manufactured and was a pass) so I wasn't sure if it made sense for us to go there, as we would then have to start our trip further south in Dubrovnik, so it does add time as we plan on working our way north after Croatia (to Slovenia, and then Italy or Austria). Anyway, thoughts would be appreciated - is it really worth us adding 3 days to go to Dubrovnik or should we just stick to starting further north? Appreciate any insight if you felt Dubrovnik is worth the stop or a miss given we're traveling with kids who might not appreciate it. I did some research on here saying the city comes alive at night after the day trippers have left - that's what I found about Siena - and that aspect is appealing. But given we're planning on boat trips from Split I don't know what must do day trips there are from Dubrovnik.
Also curious about any experiences with a side trip to Montenegro.

yorkshire

I think you have the right idea.
There are some day trips you can do out of Dubrovnik, but to Montenegro would be too long of a day with kids. I'd probably do some time on an island if your main goal is nature/outdoors.

Travel_Nerd

You have to take every pro with the con. I liked Dubrovnik, but despised the town when there was cruise ships in port. It does have some redeemable qualities with good day trip opportunities, national parks nearby, plus historic significance. You and your kids may enjoy walking the walls (start early - they open at 8) and views from the cable car. Skip the imperial fort up there. While the fort is interesting (built during Napoleon's time in the area) but exhibit focuses on Homeland War, which might be a bit much for your young kids.

The city does thin out at night but is still very busy. If you go, consider staying in old town so it's easy access back to your lodging.

One caution: the town has got some stairs. My calves do not think fondly of them.

KarenWoo

I recommend visiting Dubrovnik, and I think 3 nights is perfect. Dubrovnik is crowded for a reason - it is beautiful especially with its location on the Adriatic. I think your children would enjoy walking on the walls, as Travel_Nerd suggests, and taking the cable car to the top of Mt. Srd. Also, Lokrum Island is very close to Dubrovnik. You take a short ferry ride there. We didn't go but I know it's a popular day trip from Dubrovnik.

We did hire a private driver to drive us around the Bay of Kotor, which is beautiful. We made 3 stops along the way: Budva, Kotor, and Perast. It is a long day but well worth it. But your children might be too young for such a long day trip. Only you know for sure.

tansmets

Thanks everyone, these responses are helpful and making me think we should cut time from Split and spend 3 nights in Dubrovnik. We will rent a car and drive to Split and we can probably utilise it while we're in Dubrovnik. Any thoughts on 3 nights in Dubrovnik and 4 or in Split? We'd arrive in Dubrovnik from the US so evening 1 would probably be spent sleeping early. That gives us then 2 full days on the ground in Dubrovnik and then leave for split on day 4, afternoon /night in split, and then 3 or 4 days for Split / Day trips. We did want to go to Plitvice and (for us) it's too long of a day trip from Split so we were thinking of spending 2 nights there on our way to Slovenia or Fruiti Venizia Guilia (haven't decided if we'll stay in Slovenia or base ourselves on the italian side and take day trips). It feels like too many transfers - trying to limit that with my kids. Thoughts on spending 2 nights by Plitvice?

KarenWoo

If you are arriving from the US to Dubrovnik, then I would not rent the car during your stay in Dubrovnik. We picked up our rental car on the day we left Dubrovnik and we drove to Split where we spent 4 nights. We visited Hvar Town as a daytrip from Split, and also visited Trogir for about 3/4 of a day. While in Hvar Town, we walked uphill to visit the fortress. The views along the way are breathtaking. And there is also an awesome flat coastal walk that starts in Hvar Town. Since your children like hiking, I think they would enjoy Hvar Town. Hvar Town is supposedly party town during the summer months. We were there in September, and it was quiet. No drunk people out on the streets.

We spent one night in Plitvice. We did the Upper Lakes in the late afternoon of our first day, and then did the Lower Lakes starting around 9am on the second day to avoid the crowds. Two nights is not necessary but maybe with young children it is so that you can make this more relaxing for the children. Only you can decide that.

If you wish, you can click on my name and read my trip report from September 2019. We visited Dubrovnik (with a day trip to Montenegro), Split (with day trips to Hvar Town and Trogir), Plitvice, Zagreb, and Ljubljana (with a day trip to Lake Bled).

Hope this helps!

Travel_Nerd

Renting a car to get around environs (if you go to Montenegro, for instance) or around Split is all well and good. It is a hindrance in towns themselves as Split Stari Grad and Dubrovnik Stari Grad do not allow for parking, plus would necessitate your lodging to outskirts.

Just something to consider.

I do not know what the remainder of your plans are post-Split but that area also has a lot of National Parks, including Krka, which is my favorite and often gets dragged over Plitvice (which is wonderful - just a bit overcrowded with tour bus after tour bus). Krka is busy, too, but I found I could breathe there.

On that note, Zadar: if you go, avoid weekends. I was there on a Friday and Saturday and the crowds severely reduced my experience, especially around Salute to Sun and the sea organ. I wanted to like the town. While I did, I was underwhelmed by it. YMMV.

dreamon

With the time you have available, with kids and if you're heading north afterwards, I'd stick with your original plan and skip Dubrovnik.

The first time I visited Croatia, we had only a week and divided our time between Rovinj and Rab (with a very short stop in Krk) before a week in Slovenia. I returned on another amazing holiday and spent 3 weeks in Croatia and 3 weeks in Slovenia - and still feel like I skimmed the surface completely. It's not possible to see everything either country offers in a short time so focus your stay a bit. Dubrovnik is attractive but no more enjoyable than the other towns we visited, and it was a lot busier even in May (and we'd tried to avoid days with too many cruise ships in port).

bilboburgler

Montenegro is very interesting but note that a lot of it is uphill (clue in the Monte)

tansmets

Thanks, very helpful, I'll check out your trip report. I do want to check out the Bay of Kotor if we go to Dubrovnik, otherwise might skip it. It does sound like a long day but my kids are pretty seasoned travelers at this point. I think the private driver probably makes sense and like you said, to not bother renting a car until Split.

ivson

I just wanted to add ,early-mid June in Croatia is perfect time, lovely weather, warm but not too hot,no crowds at all,
so have fun!