Solo Trip Tips: Croatia + Greece
 

Hello,

I am a 27 year old female planning to travel alone to Croatia and Greece in the beginning of June to do some soul searching and create some new experiences.

My plan right now is to fly into Athens to spend a week in Greece exploring the coastal islands then fly from Greece to Dubrovntic and travel up the Croatian coast (Split; Hvar; Zadar).

I'm travelling on a budget and would ideally like the trip to be two weeks total. I would love to get some insight and suggestions on where I should spend my time in either place to get the most out of the trip.

Thanks!

I haven't been to Greece yet, but found it very easy to visit Croatia on my own. I had 3 weeks in Croatia; with only 1 week, you'll need to be very selective. The places you mention (and other options) are quite different from one another, and which places to select depend on your interests, so you might want to tell us more about what you hope to see/do/experience.

If you haven't already purchased your guide books, I would recommend the Rough Guide and/or the Lonely Planet.

I too traveled solo in Croatia (haven't been to Greece, either). In Croatia, it's quite common for people to rent out "Sobe" (rooms) on their property - not necessarily a spare bedroom but perhaps a separate building or a big divided house or something, maybe with a private bathroom. I stayed in a couple of these and they work very well as a budget option.

Try the hostel booking websites, among others, to search for these Sobe (though they may not be called that on the hostel sites; you can tell which places have private bathrooms, if that's what you want). Of course, you can stay in shared hostels too to save even more money.

I'm a guy, so my experience would differ from that of a solo female traveler, but I found Croatia to be very safe.

Thank you guys so much for your feedback!

I am now thinking of changing my plans and just doing 2 week in Croatia. I want to go to Greece so bad, but it sounds only a week in both places would not be worth it for my soul searching purposes. I might have to save Greece for another trip.

I am now thinking of flying into Dubrovnik, and traveling to Hvar, Split, and maybe Zadar. I will have to make my back down to Dubrovnik for my departure.

I would love to hear some suggestions on the best way to travel to these places, some destinations not to miss, and adventurous things to do along the way.

Thanks so much!

Kris

Any chance you could fly into Dubrovnik and out of Split? (or Zagreb?) "Open Jaw" flights (into one city, out of another) often don't cost more than a round trip, if you are flying from North America.

If you have two weeks in Croatia, I highly recommend a visit to Plitvice Lakes National Park. Google it - breathtakingly beautiful. It's two hours from Zagreb, so if you visit the park at the beginning or end of your trip, perhaps you could try flying into/out of Zagreb...

I would not recommend the Croatian coast, certainly not Hvar, for someone interested in "soul searching". There is a reason it is considered the new Riviera. You would be better off in mainland Greece.

Neither country poses difficulties for solo travelers. On the Greek mainland you can take KTEL buses, and a rare train, in Croatia you take buses or the Jadrolinija ferry/

I am happy you decided to stay in one country for your two weeks.

And I respectfully disagree with thursdaysd - Hvar is a wonderful place for a single traveler and even one "soul searching..." certainly Hvar town is on the glitzy side but there are layers to that and if you don't want to see it, you do not have to. And the Croatian coastline - its a pretty long coast. If it is quiet and solitude you want, I am sure you can find it even in June...

As for traveling on a budget it would help to know what lodging budget you have. I found what I thought to be very reasonable accommodations last June - but maybe it is more than you expect to pay.