Trogir vs. Korcula
 

My family (myself, husband and 2 young children) are planning our trip to Croatia in late August, We will be renting a car. Our current itinerary is Zagreb (2 nights); Pltivice (1 night); Zadar (3 nights [day trips--Sibenik , ?] ); 2 NIGHTS OPEN; Dubrovnik (4 nights--planning day trips to Kotor, Montenegro and Mostar, B/Herc.).

For the 2 open nights, I had originally planned to do Brac (Bol) but the ferry schedules seemed a bit cumbersome. Given that my children really liked a similar place a few years ago (Mont. St. Michel off the Norman coast) and the exploring, nooks and crannies aspect of it, I have now revised it to include first night in Trogir and second night in Korcula. However, the more I research them, the two destinations seem fairly similar (small, charming, contained "old" towns on the water where the main attraction is walking the town itself). Are the two fairly similar and should I pick one over the other to avoid moving around so much? Or are both worth seeing? Thanks for any insight!

PS- We will unfortunately not be there for a Monday or Thurs so we would not be able to see the Korcula sword dance in any event. Also, suggestions welcome for any day trips from Zadar besides Sibenik but we may just relax on those days.

I think you are right to choose only one of the two destinations. You won't get to enjoy either one if you only spend one night in each. The Old Towns for each place are very similar, but Korcula is an island that has other small villages and beautiful beaches. Since you plan to have a car and can explore the island, I would recommend Korcula over Trogir. You could stay in the Old Town but parking can be difficult. Another good option is to stay in Lumbarda. It is a really beautiful area about 10 minutes from Korcula Town by car. You will have to check the ferry schedule to see if you can get to Korcula from Split on the day you want to go. If not, you will have to drive down the coast and take a short ferry ride from Orebic on the Peljesac peninsula.

thank you!

I agree. Korcula, for some of the island experience. Trogir is an island, but connected to the mainland by a short bridge.

We found Korcula particularly charming and would have liked to spend more than our 2 nights there. To fully embrace the Croatian experience, I think you need to slow down. You may find you won't want to do so many excursions, just take life easy.

That said, Krka National Park was recommended to me by our Croatian host. We couldn't fit it into our schedule, but it looks great in the pictures and is only about an hour from Zadar.

With a car, Korcula will offer lots of opportunity for exploring great secluded beaches. You might consider adding a day from Zadar to Korcula. (but I just don't know Zadar regions as well--probably lots to explore there too)
Check out these sites:
http://www.korcula.net/naselja/index.html
http://www.korcula.info/croatia/dalm...nd_korcula.asp
http://www.croatia-beaches.com/hidde...oizd_beach.htm

To add my grain of salt, I can only say that during my stay in Istria this month, I tasted the absolute BEST white wine in my life (and God knows I've tasted a few), and it came from Korkula. That's enough of an incentive for me!

Korcula is beautiful. I agree with staying two nights vs. one night each city. Too much moving around.

We only had one kid when we went to Korcula (she was 17 months) and thought it was lovely. I can't compare to Trogir, as we didn't go there, but I'd recommend Korcula in a heartbeat. I don't know how young your kids are, but unless they love moving around, I'd probably nix something from your itinerary and stay longer at a couple of places to get a better feel of where you are. But clearly, everyone travels differently, so do what's best for your family.

Hi
We visited Trogir several years ago, driving over from Rovinj in Istria. We stayed in a hotel nearby. We left after one night and drove back to Rovinj. Found Trogir to be very crowded with tourists. It's a small city. Nice to visit for a day but we stayed one night and could not wait to get back to Istria. If those 2 days that are free, I suggest reading up in Istria. It's bi lingual [Italian, Croatian]. Not as croded and very pleasant. we stayed in Porec and Rovinj. I realize everyone has different impressions of places but we found it way overcrowded and could walk around for a day was enough for us.