I went on a cruise of the Dalmatian Coast last September. It was the beginning of the month and extremely hot (I'm from Austin, Texas, so I don't say "hot" lightly). Although it was hot, it was clear (only 1 day with rain).

I loved Croatia. It reminded me of a blend of Italy and the Czech Republic. My favorites were Dubrovnik, Korcula, Rovinj and Split. I also visited Pula, Sibenik, Krka Falls, Hvar, Stari Grad and Kotor, Montenegro.

Dubrovnik is packed with so many things too see (as well as tourists) in a small area. I really enjoyed walking around the entire length of the city walls. I did this fairly early in the morning, but there is virtually no shade, and it is very hot. Take an umbrella and some water. At least there are several places you can stop and buy something cold to drink along the way. Despite the heat and the climbs, the spectacular views over the city and the harbor were worth it. I also enjoyed the relative tranquility of the cloisters of both the Dominican and Franciscan Monasteries.

In Split, Diocletian's Palace is the highlight. I went in to the basements below alone, and it was very eerie. The incorporation/annexation of the ancient temples and architecture into the more modern structures (e.g. the cathedral and baptistry) are very interesting.

Perhaps my favorite town was Korcula. It is small and walled and quite charming. Roaming around the narrow streets was lovely.

Rovinj was similar in some ways. It too was small, and the old town has steep streets that wind up around the hill to the church at the very top.

Are you going alone? If so, don't drive. There are public transportation options that work well. I took a bus from Trieste to Rovinj, did some sightseeing on Istria by bus, then took a bus to Reijka where I took an overnight ferry to Dubrovnik. Then I flew from Dubrovnik to Zagreb and took a train to Lake Bled.

Another great option for solo travelers when in Dubrovnik for seeing things in the area are the Atlas day trips.

Good luck with your planning! When I went in 2003 the best book seemed to be Lonely Planet. I think the others have caught up since then.

Grasshopper, I visited Slovenia solo last year and rented a car for four days to drive from Ljubljana to Lake Bled, through the Julian Alps, and back down to Piran. I saw far more than I could ever have hoped to see via public transit. I take public transit whenever I can in Europe, but there are parts of the Balkans that really require a vehicle to get the most out of them. I recommend driving in certain segments and taking public in other segments, when it is more practical (train from Ljubljana to Zagreb for example is easy).

Plus, driving was very easy in both Slovenia and Croatia (I am always nervous about driving in Europe but calm down about 30 seconds after I drive the rental car away). It wasn't even that expensive to rent a car on either of my trips there. Fuel may be expensive in Europe for Americans, but the little VW Golf I had also got about 40 mpg.

It depends a lot on how much time you will have, but to me the only "must see" (and I rarely have those) is Plitvice national park. In September, the coast should be perfect, and so my only suggestion would be to pick one place that is less visited--and for that selection I think you should choose the place that speaks to you from your research.

Andrew, you weren't a women over 70 traveling alone.

We spent 2 weeks in Croatia a few years ago (absolutely loved it) and will spend some time in Slovenia this year. Here’s what we did in Croatia (and I think I have a trip report here somewhere):
- Plitvice Lakes - don’t miss, and try have a full day there (we stayed 2 nights at one of the hotels in the park – nothing fancy, but convenient)
- Istria peninsula – great scenery and amazing food (the best we had in Croatia). We stayed 4 nights in Rovinj and took day trips around. Gorgeous sunsets from the town’s marina
- Hvar – beautiful and peaceful, I still remember the cicadas at night
- Dubrovnik – a true gem, definitely deserves more than one day; it gets a lot better at night, when day-trippers leave. Don’t miss Buza Bar, and if you have time, we really enjoyed a day trip to Cavtat

We rented a car in Zagreb and dropped it off in Dubrovnik, driving was easy (yes, we took the car on the ferry to Hvar, even though we did not use it on the island, but we wanted to explore more of the coast on the way to Dubrovnik, so we kept it)

We went in September, and the crowds and temperature were just right. Here are some pictures (not great, they are all scans, but you’ll get an idea): http://ioana-mark.smugmug.com/Travel...200488&k=G8JHX

You'll have a great trip, happy planning

Grassshopper: <i>Andrew, you weren't a women over 70 traveling alone.</i>

...who says she's "comfortable driving in most places in Europe." Slovenia is a safe country - if she feels comfortable driving who are you to question her?

I went to that area a couple of years ago and would go again. I did the trip with a tour company that provided four or more nights in each city except Split, but would go again on my own (I am in my late 60's and also worrying about car rentals turning me down one of these days). I did not do all of the tour options and went off on my own several days.

Lake Bled was lovely. However, I was not impressed with the "cream cake" that is supposed to be so famous. To me it was a cross between an eclair and a napoleon with only so-so cream in the middle, but that was just my opinion.

Loved Skofya Loka and Lubjlijana, done as day trips from Bled and would have liked more time and less rain there. Visited the market with all sorts of things for sale--crafts and food. Also out to Triglav National Park.

Rovinj was delightful as was nearby Pula with its amphitheater with one of the best guides I have ever had. She didn't over talk (and I find most do!) and was creative about inviting questions. I was fascinated by detail about who sat where and why, how they kept order at the beginning and end of events, how they kept the place cool.

Dubrovnik had walls to walk around which gave a great overview of the city. The city itself was interesting and was especially pleasant at night when the cruise people went back to their boats.

If you want to look at my pictures from the trip, they are at http://www.picasa.web.google.com/omstma Any questions at omstma at gmail dot com. (omstma=old maid school teacher from massachusetts)

Isn't it fun to plan trips and make dreams!?

Sorry, put an extra dot in. Website for pics is

http://www.picasaweb.google.com/omstma

And you need to scroll down to the albums at the end for that trip.