Istria and northern Croatia OR Calabria and Sicily
 

Hello all,

We have narrowed our 18 day summer vacation destinations to either Istria and northern Croatia or Calabria and Sicily.

We enjoy history, art, medieval hill towns and seaside villages with beautiful beaches.

For Croatia, we would fly into Venice and drive to the Istrian Peninsula, where we would stay in various villages, both by the sea and more inland, then drive through northern Croatia towards Zagreb.

For Calabria, we would fly into Naples, then drive down the Calabrian coast, stopping in some of the more beautiful seaside villages, then cross into Sicily, visiting Syracuse, Agrigento and Palermo.

Thanks in advance for any advice you can offer.

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...in-18-days.cfm
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...in-16-days.cfm

Thanks for the links. I read them, among many others here on Fodors, but they are not what I asked in this post.

They are postings about Croatia as a whole and Sicily as a whole. I am asking about Istria and northern Croatia compared to Calabria and Sicily.

So, what would be your choice?

Neither.

Great, so now you do not have to respond to my post any longer.

Sorry that I was called away from my desk momentarily.

Neither, as, IMO, you would not have enough time for Sicily and conversely, you would, IMO, have too much time in Istria.

As always, the graciousness with which you receive freely given input is impressive.

I do not want YOUR advice. Look at your responses to my other posts and you will know why.

For everyone else, we think that in 18 days we can do both Istria and parts of northern Croatia and also have time for the drive down the Calabrian coast into Sicily.

Thanks.

Because of summer heat, I would pick Istria over Sicily.

Hi MBB,

It seems you are being stalked by kja, who has done the same thing to me on my postings. I think she really does have way too much time on her hands.

With regard to your question, I have been to Istria and I have driven down the Calabrian coast, but I have not been to Sicily or any other parts of Croatia.

In 18 days there, you could do a trip to Istria and see some parts of northern Croatia as you drive to Zagreb. You also have enough time to drive down the Calabrian coast and see certain parts of Sicily, but you would have to leave from Palermo as you would not have enough time to drive back to Naples to fly home. The same goes for Croatia, where you should fly home from Zagreb and not Venice.

Although we adored Calabria, I would recommend you going to Croatia, especially if you have seen other parts of Italy during your other trips. It does have an Italian flavour to it, but is different enough to make you feel that you really are someplace else. The hilltop villages, the seaside towns, the beaches, the people, and the scenery make this one of my favourite places. And it is still fairly undiscovered (I was there in 2013). Rent a car and drive.

I also agree with HappyTrvlr. Istria in the summer has great weather. It is warm and sunny but you are not overwhelmed by the heat.

Let me know if you need anything else.

I do not want YOUR advice

Kja is a very valuable poster, and somebody a lot of regulars like.

By constantly picking on her, you not only show your great character, but you also alienate yourself from such grumpy posters as myself, who do tell you and some others, who will not tell you.

I don't understand people like you.
You come to ask for advice and you shoot down the first one who does so.

So, just a question. Imagine you are in Kja's shoes, how would you answer posts like you wrote ?
Just asking.

WoinParis,

Don't worry, I will not give you any advice.

And before you start badmouthing me, read kja's answers on my other posts and you will see that she is not the "wonderful" person you claim she is. She has been after me and a few other people for many, many months for no apparent reason.

I have asked her nicely to just pretend I am not here and to not answer my posts but she keeps on posting.

Just answering.

I would add Slovenia to Istria and Northern Croatia. 18 days does seem generous if you won't be spending a lot of time at the beach.

I do not stalk this poster, under whatever name she posts -- AirBalloon, MyBeautifulBalloon, or SoFarAway. I do not stalk ANY poster.

@ Woipnparis -- thanks!

Yes, Kia, you do. You are obsessed and a stalker and full of delusional ideas.

I will ask you once more. Please do not answer my posts any longer.

To rtt0921:
That is a great idea. We have read and heard so many great things about Slovenia.
How long should we allocate to Slovenia apart from Istria and northern Croatia? Where in Slovenia should we visit?
Thanks

SoFar you should not answer for MyBalloon - we might think you are the one and same person and it is not accepted to post under two names at the same time.

I think I also explained to you in the past that this is a PUBLIC forum.
No way to select who answers. no way to select what one answers.

Actually the whole idea is that you get answers. Useful ones. Do you ?

Ps : I post much too frequently, and I can observe who stalks and who does not. No regular is a stalker... Kja answers a lot of posts, and her advice is valued. You are the only one who doesn't like her. Ok. You're entitled to not liking everybody. But constantly attacking her and behabing like a spoilt princess of the school is not a helpful attitude on a forum. Grow up, learn to live with everybody, learn to ignore others.

I have been to both Istria and Sicily, but not in Calabria or other parts of Croatia. Sicily in the summer is very hot, while Istria is much more pleasant weather wise.

They are very different, but remember, if you enjoy beaches Sicily has gorgeous sandy ones throughout the island while Istria's are more rocky, but with clear warm waters. As well, Sicily is more rugged and not as lush.

If you have been to other regions of Italy before, I would choose Istria.

Hi MichaelAndrews,

Thank you very much for your ideas and suggestions. I am leaning towards Istria as I have traveled through other regions of Italy and we are looking for something different but a place that stills retains a little Italian character :)

How long were you in Istria and where did you base yourself? Are there any must see towns and villages you would recommend? Which beaches did you find beautiful?

Thanks again.

I would do 5-7 days in Istria, 5-7 days in Slovenia and the rest in other parts of Northern Croatia and on the beach.

In Slovenia, I'd probably spend a few days in the western part, which is more Italian-influenced - Piran, a stay at a rural agriturismo on the Karst, the Vipava Valley, or in Goriska Brda, a visit to one of the caves (Skocjan or Postojna), the Soca Valley and the Julian Alps and then continue into central Slovenia, visiting lakes Bled and/or Bohinj on the eastern side of the Julian Alps and the capital Ljubljana, which although very Austrian in character, has seen plenty of Italian influence in its architecture and art.

Forgot to mention that some of the nicest beaches in Istria can be found on the Kamenjak peninsula south of Pula.

You also might like spending a couple of nights on the islands of Cres or Losinj in the Kvarner Gulf. Different to Istria, with nice beaches, but still quite Italian in character. Followed by a visit to Opatija and Rijeka (both can really be seen in a day), Plitvice Lakes and Zagreb it would nicely round out your stay in Northern Croatia.

Hi rtt,

So much great information. Your itinerary sounds wonderful (I also want to visit Predjama Castle, which looks so "cool").

Now time to look for the best places to base ourselves in both Istria and Slovenia without having to move around too much.

Any ideas?

Thanks so much.

For extensive information about travel in Croatia and Slovenia, so tailor-made for your specific interests as to be nearly unbelievable, see
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...in-16-days.cfm
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...nd-trieste.cfm

Interesting that SoFarAway says that she visited Istria in 2013, given that she asked for advice about whether to visit Istria in 2016. But maybe SoFarAway now has AirBalloon’s difficulty with memory? So sad….
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...r-vacation.cfm

And BTW, I am not stalking – as already mentioned, I respond to many posts each day. I happen to have a very good memory for posters who feel free to insult Fodorites who try to help them (especially if not just me) -- there are so very few of you! AirBalloon, MyBeautifulBalloon, SoFarAway... I think that about does it! And as already noted, I get to choose which posts I respond to and which I don’t. :-) Because I hate to see my fellow Fodorites asked to provide the same information over and over again, when they are at risk of insult, I choose to respond.

Are you still answering? What part of "do not answer my posts any longer" do you not understand?

You have gone from a nuisance to a scary, stalking psycho.

Your fellow Fodorites do not need you to defend them. They seem pretty content to offer important information to posters whether similar questions have been asked before or not.

I do not want your advice. Period. Now, please respect that and move on before you make more of a fool of yourself than you already have.

So let me see if I understand: If a well-intentioned Fodorite spends lots of time responding to your requests, not realizing that you have previously posted the same questions multiple times under various screen names – that’s a good use of their time? But if I choose to actually pay attention to what you say and choose to respond, then I have too much time on my hands? What an odd argument!

Again, my choice! :-)

And no, I’m not stalking. I'm just responding.

(BTW, I don't think I'm the one making a fool of myself. But we each get to make our own decision about that, don't we?)

Forum guidelines:
Trolls are posters who comment or post just to provoke a reaction. If you suspect someone is a troll, alert the moderators by emailing [email protected] or clicking the triangle icon (Alert Flag Icon) on the thread or comment in question rather than commenting on the thread itself.

@ sundriedtopepo: I am not claiming that this poster is a troll, as I don’t believe her intention is specifically to provoke a reaction. I have reported her violations of Fodor’s rules – including both her insults and her use of multiple simultaneous screen names -- several times, to no effect. And honestly, whatever the protocol – which I have tried to follow – if accusations are leveled against me, and if they are left in place despite my request to moderators for their removal, then I believe I have the right to attempt to defend myself.

To quote an ancient proverb, Where there's no fuel the fire goes out.
No need to defend yourself if you've done nothing wrong.

@ sundriedtopepo: Unfortunately, my experience proves otherwise.

kja Your good character speaks volumes :) as does your willingness to give good advice to sincere posters, not to mention your informative and interesting TR's. 'Nuff said.

I did that Calabria drive, along the coast. If you want specific information I am here for the asking. It would pair also with a visit to Puglia and Basilicata.

Hi ekscrunchy,

Please tell me more. Where did you stay? In what towns and villages?

We would fly into Naples and drive south towards Tropea. How long do you think we need for that drive to be able to explore the Calabrian coast?

We would then drive north east, as we have always wanted to visit the city of Matera in Basilicata and see this magnificent region.

Would 18 days be enough time to do it all?

Thank you.

I just started looking at the drive down the Calabrian coast as a summer destination.

Is it just me or is Tropea that nice?

MichaelAndrews We were not enamored with Tropea, although the photos I had seen when researching the trip looked amazing.

Tropea is a beach destination, but the town is full of tacky tourist shops, camp grounds, tourist food restaurants, lots of garbage on the streets, and it is not nearly as picturesque as the photos had shown.

On the other hand, the staff at the bandb where we stayed were extremely kind and helpful.

We did the drive from Amalfi to Sicily last May. Here is my TR,

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...s-in-italy.cfm

Scroll down to the January 30th post.

And you will find photos about 3/4 of the way through this album:

https://www.flickr.com/gp/pi_not_me/o88160

I will return soon with more details, but yes, I think 18 days would be fine to do the Calabrian Coast and Matera. One beach town that lives up to the photos is Maratea, so I would spend a few days there, eating and going to beach.

Bernalda near the coast of Basilicata is a lovely town and could fit in with Matera.

More later..

MYBB:

Ok: On one trip, I flew into Lamezia Terme (via Rome) and rented a car. Spent two nights in Amantea, which is a lovely old Calabrian port town. I'd recommend staying there. It is hard to offer advice on how long to spend in any one place without knowing how much time you want to allot for the beach. I was there in late September, and the beach season was pretty much over in Calabria. Amantea does have a nice beach, and a very atmospheric old town atop a hill.
There are some interesting places nearby, too.

As in many Calabrian towns, the hotel selection is not so inviting--there are some glossy places with dated decor and we chose one of those..I will give you the name if you want. It was fine, on the main road, with parking.

From Amantea, we drove northeast and inland to Castrovillari, where Ii wanted to lunch at one of the best-regarded restaurants in the south: Locanda d'Alia. Highly recommended.

How interested are you in food? I ask because there is a coastal town, Diamante, famous for Calabrian chilis but I had to skip it cause I was traveling with people with no interest in food.

My next stop was Maratea, in Basilicata. If you want the beach, combined with an old hill town, this place is for you. I LOVED it!! It does not have the tackyness of some Italian coastal tourist towns. We spent some time on one of the most glorious beaches I've ever visited; a private beach club south of Maratea. The swimming was heavenly!

Palinuro was next: Gorgeous beaches but the town is not pretty and very much centered on tourism. Modern hotel, San Pietro. We were there late in the season and it might be more inviting in high season, but beaches are to die for.

Pisciotta, in the Cilento, was next. Glorious hill town marina/beach area below, on the sea. Stay there. Famous for anchovies. Great seafood restaurants.

Next we spent about 3 nights in San Marco di Castellabate, at Hotel Sirio, on the sea. Lovely, small hotel, family owned. Very nice beach adjacent. There is a hill town up high, overlooking the beach and coastal town. Touristed, but without many English speakers. Mainly Italian tourists, witih some German. Nice swimming. From there you can do the daytrip to the mozzarella farms near Paestum, and visit the Paestum ruined temples.

There are some large modern hotels on the beach at Paestum; I toured one but did not spend the night. Big ticket domestic tourism. Again, good beaches and excellent food in the area.


From there we drove through Salerno, stopping at Vietri, which I liked a lot.

Then on to Cetara where I love to eat--best eating on the Amalfi Coast.

Finally, spent a few nights in Ravello.

Then spent one night in Furore, high in the hills overlooking Amalfi Coast. Very rural feeling as compared to the coast itself.

Last stop was Praiano; would not stay here again. From there visited Sorrento Peninsula, various towns including Positano, concentrating on eating in out of the way places when possible. Went up to Montepertuso to eat....total tourist scene up there. Found a great place to lunch outside Massa Lubrense.

Dropped car in Sorrento, took taxi back to Praiano and after a few days, taxi to Naples airport for trip back to NYC.


On a different trip, flew into Bari or Brindisi and drove on to a farmhouse stay near Bernalda. From there drove to Senise, for the peppers, and to the ruined, deserted town of Cracco, a must see. Great restaurants in Bernalda, a town I loved!!

From there we continued on to Puglia (had already been to Matera not long before) but you could easily drive up to Matera from Bernalda. There are also important ruins in nearby Metaponto.

Whew...should have written a trip report or two on those trips. But I am more than happy to answer any questions, and give more detail on where to stay and eat in any of those places I visited.

I have not been to Tropea.

Hi ekscrunchy,

I so appreciate your post. and I am now more confused than I was before on where to travel, but in a very good way :)

I have read and heard that Calabria, being one of the poorer regions of Italy, is not as prepared for tourists as other regions are, but I think that makes it even more interesting and authentic.

For us, it is important that our meals be good and reasonably priced. We are not "foodies" but enjoy quaint, small restaurants that serve authentic dishes.

If I read your post correctly, you did not do Puglia in the same trip as Calabria, which makes sense. The trip of Calabria and Basilicata sounds wonderful.

We do not want to move around as much as you did, so if you had to choose four places to stay (in 18 days), which would they be? We would want two of them to be near the sea and two to be more inland, with all of them in areas where interesting day trips are possible.

sundriedtopepo, thank you for your post and links. Tropea is a wonderful name, for sure, but I think the allure is more propaganda than reality. What we do not want is touristy shops and pictures of food on the menus.

And there is still the option of driving south from Naples, through Calabria, then crossing into Sicily.