sandy_b

Bruce, your photos are fantastic! I had a good time last night looking at all of them. I am all reved up for Croatia.

Thanks for the island suggestions too. We do plan to stop at Plitvice.

Lanejohann, thanks for posting your trip report, I have printed it out, lots of good info there.

Our trip is firming up quite nicely . . . thanks to you all.

Sandy (in Denton)

yorkshire

I would certainly include an island, but it is difficult to choose among the 1000+! Your goal will be eluding the crowds, but it will still be wonderful. One thing you could do if you stay in Dbv longer is day trips to the Elafiti islands, but the Peljesac peninsula suggestion is good too.
I cannot give first-hand knowledge on this because I have always visited the south in off season, but I would read up on the lesser known islands of the central and northern Dalmatian coast (near Sibenik and Zadar, and even further north)--although these are hardly secrets, they may be less inundated with people than the famous ones. If you choose this strategy, you could drive inland and then go back to the coast after you skirt the madness that will be Dbv-Split in high summer.
Good Luck!
Another suggestion, check out the area of Hercegovina if you will be crossing borders with your rental car--it sounds lovely (my planning for my next visit) and the B-H tourism website is very informative http://www.bhtourism.ba/eng/region2.wbsp

Dubrovniktravelady

With just one short week, visit Dubrovnik by all means. Perhaps the island of Korcula is close enough so that you're not spending all your time driving.
August is high season, there are many tourists and you will not find any hidden secrets in one short week.
The Dalmatian coast consists of 1185 island with only 65 of them inhabited. There are some secret places, but you won't locate any of them in August. It's madness here, perhaps your next trip.

Dobrodosli u Dubrovnik

sandy_b

We're not looking for hidden treasures . . . we just want to meander around, look at the beautiful buildings/scenery, eat different (and hopefully delicious) food . . . we are typical tourists.

We are hale and hardy young seniors but are still backpackers at heart . . . we love changing/making our plans on the fly. We always start with a plan but seldom stay with it. We want to be able to seize the moment in case a moment materializes.

I think our plan now looks like this:

Fri, train from Budapest to Zagreb, fly to Dubrovnik
Sat, Dubrovnik
Sun, "
Mon, Ferry to Korcula
Tue, Ferry to Split, pick up car
Wed,
Thr, Plitvice
Fri, Turn car in Zagreb, night train to Venice
Sat, Venice
Sun, Fly home

Or . . . on Mon, we might just pick up the car and head out. What do y'all think?

Thanks,
Sandy (in Denton)

julia_t

I think your plan looks good.

But it is an easy drive from Dubrovnik to Split, via Korcula, and the scenery along the Peljesac Peninsula is fabulous. Also you get to drive through Ston, with the wall and the oysters.

Then when you are heading north the Adriatic Highway is most scenic and there are all manner of small towns and villages you can just turn off the road into. Some have lovely old churches, others are little fishing villages, all are attractive.

Frankly I find sitting on a ferry for several hours very dull, I'd much rather drive, and having driven this route I would suggest you consider it.

If you did choose to drive from Dubrovnik you could get from the Peljesac Peninsula to the mainland on the car ferry Trpanj to Ploce, or you could get the car ferry from Korcula to Drvenik which is a bit further up the coast.

Ferry info is here...

http://www.korculainfo.com/ferries-korcula.htm

sandy_b

julia_t, I don't think we would like sitting on a ferry much either, we're like kids, have a short attention span! We have rented our car through AutoEurope and it specifically says we can't take it on a ferry.

So . . . we are going to scrap Korcula and just head out toward Split/Trogir and then do as you suggested, head north and stop in the small towns . . . I think we would like to just go and not be rushed. If we end up with time at the end (fat chance), we can always spend it in Zagreb.

yorkshire

Sounds good--I agree about the ferries. They are just fantastic for about 2-3 hours, then it is pure torture! If you could park in Orebic then I imagine you could still visit Korcula though. I love that Peljesac drive, but would worry about traffic.
Also, one of the northern islands is connected by a long bridge--I'm sure you'll come across that info at some point. There is a lot to explore near Zagreb, and I really liked the city itself.
By the way, I have heard great things about Sibenik, as well as Omis and Imotski--two places near Split you might want to check out.
Have a great trip!

julia_t

Quite a few car rental companies do not allow you to take the vehicle on to ferries. Mind you they park them in so tight it is not hard to see why. I was unable to get out of my car on one ferry, so the ferrymen literally bounced and lifted the car with me in it across a couple of inches so I could just squeeze out! I was worried about scratches and damage but they seem to know exactly what they are doing and all was well. They must all be very good at jigsaw puzzles!


You could still go to Korcula town... drive to Orebic, it was free parking down at the harbour, then either get the foot ferry across to the town or go as a passenger on the car ferry and get a taxi into town. Depends on the timings. After a few hours in Korcula you would then have to drive back along the Peninsula but it is so pretty and the views so spectacular it would not be much hardship! As I recall it took about 50mins to an hour from Ston to Orebic, with stops for photos. There was very little traffic when I went at the beginning of October and the road was good. The only bit I didn't like was climbing up the hairpin bends out of Orebic because I am not that good with heights and I was on the outside with only a concrete barrier between me and the edge - that was the scariest few minutes of my trip! Then you would have to drive up the coast exactly parallel to the peninsula road, so it's a bit of backtracking. Anyway, you know it is possible if you feel like doing it, you don't have to rule it out completely.

lanejohann

yes enjoy croatia sandy!
i gathered so much info from forums before our trip
boy would i love to give all those people a big hug
truly- all these anonymous posters with buckets of knowledge who just love to share and pass on the tips just cos it feels good to do so ( well in a way it validates your own trip hey lol)

sandy_b

Lots of great suggestions here . . . thanks to all. I agree, I would like to give everyone a big hug and sloppy kiss for all the good input. I'll be sure to post a report when we return.

BTW, first reserved a compact car with a/c from AutoEurope for $255 for 6 days. Someone recommended econonycarhire.com . . . I checked and they were the same price except they included all the insurances! I called AE and they dropped the price to $249 and included all the insurances . . . woo hoo! With Economycarhire.com, I had to prepay, stiff cancellation fees, plus a fee to book using a credit card. With AE, no fee to use cc, can cancel anytime w/o penalty . . . going w/AE!

I just hope the sw*** flu doesn't gum up my plans.

Sandy (in Denton)

CordeliaCH

Hi, I'm a bit late coming in on this but for whatever it is worth we did a very similar trip last year and loved every bit of it. We spent 3.5 days (the half day being the day of arrival) in Dubrovnik, with one of those days as a day trip to Montenegro-- which was fantastic. Then we drove to Split (took about 5 hours with an hour stop for lunch) and the next day did a day trip to Hvar, spending the night again in Split. With it to do over again, I might recommend going straight to Hvar or an island instead of doing that first night in Split as our time on the island was limited. Then we had a full day in Split, taking a ferry that night to Venice. So that was basically 6.5 days and we didn't feel rushed at all. The only thing that we wanted to do that we didn't was go to Plitvice, and we regretted missing it so much that we found a way to get back over a few months later. Plitvice is definitely worth seeing so I'm glad it is in your itinerary. You could always do Plitvice as a day trip from Split, though-- I think it is just a 3 hour drive from Split. To be honest, after those 6.5 days in Croatia, Venice was a HUGE let down. Meaning that if you want to add an extra day in Croatia and scrap that day in Venice, it would be worth it. Maybe that was just us, but we also figured that it is always easy to catch a flight to Venice and spend time there but Croatia is a little bit more difficult to get to right now. Have a wonderful time. You will love every second of it!

65775

we were in Croatia in August and stayed at a small hotel in Castle Lukcic (spelling likely off a bit...Loo-chick) just north maybe 10K or so from Split...it was great...on the sea..nice view..and reasonable. Several islands are nearby, and the public bus service is fine...taxis also on call. The overnight ferry sails daily for Italy...that, in itself, is an experience. It should not be difficult to locate on the internet as the village is small. rjg

sandy_b

Cordeliach, thanks for the comments and glad to know Plitvice is so close, that might let us spend an extra day near Split/Trogir.

65775, I Googled Luksic and it looks very interesting, might check it out.

Anyone have any opinions on staying in Mlini and taking the water taxi back/forth to Dubrovnik? How much does it cost? I Googled it but could not find a price.

We've added an extra day to Dub and since we'll now be there 4 nights, we're thinking of trying to rent an apt.

Thanks,
Sandy (in Denton)

yorkshire

Definitely rent an apartment--that is one of the great things about traveling in Croatia: the abundance of fantastic private lodging. But start looking now! I always just do internet searches until something that looks nice and has a good view (preferably a balcony) comes up. Even with the stairs/grueling hills, I prefer staying outside of old town where you can look over it all and the sea. But staying inside old town--on a side street--is nice too. I would def stay near old town so as to take advantage of the relative lack of crowds in the evenings/mornings versus the afternoon when the whole place can be packed.

sandy_b

Well . . . this trying to rent an apartment (or room) is not shaping up easily. Everything we're looking at is either booked or too expensive.

Would it be bad or unhandy to stay in the Gruz area? I'm finding a couple of places there.

Thanks,
Sandy (in Denton)

Dubrovniktravelady

If you decide to stay in the Gruz area, you will be taking the local bus back and forth to the old town. Gruz is our harbor area, it's where we go shopping and our big green market is located there.
August is high season at it's highest, many have booked their rooms from last year. Croatia has always been Europe's best kept secret.
If I had a choice, I would stay in Cavtat, Mlini or old town and begin to search for hostels. There is a water taxi to Dubrovnik, but you will not find any prices since they are small local boats. You also have the local bus from Mlini to Dubrovnik, it runs all day long, last one about midnight. Prices for apartments go up in August, for everything. Good luck I hope you find something to fit your budget. Dubrovnik is a must see, it's the pearl of the Adriatic.
Dobrodosli u Dubrovnik

Dubrovniktravelady

If you decide to stay in the Gruz area, you will be taking the local bus back and forth to the old town. Gruz is our harbor area, it's where we go shopping and our big green market is located there.
August is high season at it's highest, many have booked their rooms from last year. Croatia has always been Europe's best kept secret.
If I had a choice, I would stay in Cavtat, Mlini or old town and begin to search for hostels. There is a water taxi to Dubrovnik, but you will not find any prices since they are small local boats. You also have the local bus from Mlini to Dubrovnik, it runs all day long, last one about midnight. Prices for apartments go up in August, for everything. Good luck I hope you find something to fit your budget. Dubrovnik is a must see, it's the pearl of the Adriatic.
Dobrodosli u Dubrovnik

Dubrovniktravelady

Sorry, I don't know how a duplicate showed up. It's only 6am, must be too early for my brain.

pinkyfin

Hi,
The guys at www.noambit.com just went on a tour guided by the tourism board in Istria Croatia. An article they posted today talks about a great little town near Porec called Motovun. The hotel there sounds wonderful and cheap. Heres the link to the article: http://tinyurl.com/cbj4hg

sandy_b

Dubrovniktravelady, thank you for the suggestions and for the info about the Gruz area. Actually, having the markets nearby appeals to us. If we are going to have to take a bus anyway, might as well stay in Gruz. I found a couple of places last night during my nightly search that are in our budget and have emailed to inquire.

pinkyfin, I took a look at Motovun but don't think we'll get up that far on the coast, but if we do, I've got this bookmarked.

Thanks,
Sandy