Public Transportation in Croatia
 

I am planning a trip to Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina for August 2020. I would like to take public transportation as much as possible, but will rent a car if that makes more sense. Is there a website where I can get information about bus and train schedules? I am specifically looking to go from Dubrovnik to Mostar to Sarajevo to Split and also to go from Zadar to Plitvice Lakes National Park and from there to Zagreb. Thank you.

I have traveled in the Balkans several times, by bus, train, ferry and (once) plane. I never rented a car, although you might find one useful for a day or two for Plitvice.

Timetables for most trains in Europe are at https://www.bahn.com/en/view/index.shtml. You will find links to local rail operators at https://www.seat61.com/index.html. A good guidebook will be useful - my (now dated) Lonely Planet "Western Balkans" has a number of index entries for bus travel. I took a bus from Dubrovnik to Mostar to Sarajevo (see: https://www.fodors.com/community/eur.../ ), but there is a train from Mostar to Sarajevo as well.

You can check https://www.rome2rio.com/, but do click through to the underlying detail and check at the sites listed for information for your dates. These days I use google maps a lot, it is very good on public transport on land, although for some reason not about ferries.

What thursdaysd said!

FWIW, I flew into Sarajevo, took a train to Mostar (wonderful scenery!), bus to Dubrovnik (stunning, breathtaking scenery!), and then ferries or buses for most of the other places I visited. As thursdaysd suggests, a car can be useful for getting to / from the Plitvice Lakes National Park. It can also be useful for Istria, if you choose to spend time there visiting hilltop towns.

I'd also check getbybus.com. The buses in Croatia are very good.

The bus to Plitvice is very easy but there are two stops at the lakes and it pays to know which one you want to get off at.

The train journey in either direction between Mostar and Sarajevo is about as good as train journeys get. Take the early morning service for a really great scenic ride.