Hello.

I would like a little assistance with my itinerary. I would like to work my way down to Dubrovnik from Venice. Maybe if people ask I will call my trip Senerissima. I am wondering if what I have planned is feasible. I am planning on going for about a month in the summer during the high season. I am a teacher and this is really my only time to travel. The dates are not certain but I can provide you with an estimated amount of time in each location. I do not want to do any driving. A relaxed atmosphere (not elbow to elbow people - I know Dubrovnik will be crowded - crowds stress me), historical sites, and time for swimming is always good (not too crowded beaches - the same applies as before).

Please let me know if I am allotting enough time for travel. Any insight on whether I should spend more time in one place or another, or if I should skip a location would be helpful. Also, are museums and activities closed on Sundays? In some places this seems true and in others not true. I was thinking of having my travel days on Sundays (Mondays?) in order to avoid missing out on any points of interest.

Anyway here is my itinerary:

1) Arrive Venice spend three days there (3 nights Venice)

2) Travel to Pula. spend two more days in Pula (3 nights Pula) I plan on taking a ferry from Venice to Pula. I believe this is the best option. I believe there is a tour of Istria from Pula, so I could do a day trip tour of Istria from Pula. I believe it is also possible from Zagreb as well.

3) Travel to Rijeka. Spend one more day there (2 nights Rijeka) Travel from Pula to Rijeka must be done by bus. Yes?

4) Travel to Zagreb. One day travel and three other nights (4 nights Zagreb). I would maybe take a one day tour to Plitvice Lakes from Zagreb or would this better done from Split? Also, museums are closed at 1pm Sunday and are all closed on Monday. Correct?

5) Travel from Zagreb to Zadar one day travel one day on Zardar (2 nights). Is two nights too short? Is it worth going here. I have mixed feelings. I have read that it is out of the way and difficult to reach by train.

6) From Zardar to Split. I would travel one day to Split and spend 4 days there (5 nights). While there, I would like to go to Trogir. I would also like to see Kamerlengo Castle, Solin, and Klis Fortress. Of course, Diocletian's palace is a must. Question: Is it possible to get to these locations on one's own? Are there tours that will take me to these spots?

7) From Split, I would do a little island hopping. I would go Brac and then Hvar for (5 days). I have not included Vis here and am wondering if I am missing out by not including it. I see there is a ferry from Bol to Hvar. My question is, how difficult is it to get around on the islands. In other words, without a car how do I get from one central location to another (i.e.) Brac, Hvar, and Vis? If I arrived on Brac where should I stay and how would I get to the ferry at Bol in order to get to Hvar? From what I can gather, if I did not take the ferry from Bol to Hvar I would have to return to Split first, and then get a ferry to Hvar. I believe the same applies for Vis as well. Should I only stay on one island? As mentioned above should I drop Zardar (or even Rijeka), for more time on the islands? I believe I should go to Hvar, because I know there is a ferry from there to Dubrovnik which would be my next stop. Are there other ferries from Brac or Vis to Dubrovnik. Maybe you could help me sort out an itinerary for this????

8) Last stop Dubrovnik One day for travel from Hvar and four days in Dubrovnik (5 nights). Not much more needs to be said unless you think this is too much time in Dubrovnik.

Thank you for your thoughtful time in advance.
wlm

If you want to return to Venice there are overnight ferries running that route I believe.

Croatia is delightful! A few comments:

3 nights in Venice is not much, IMO, particularly if you will be recovering from jet lag while there.

Why Rijeka???
AFAIK, if you want to go to Rijeka from Pula, it’s either bus or rental car.

I would base a decision on whether to visit the Plitvice Lakes from Zagreb or Split on (a) how much time I would have in the park, (b) how convenient the start and end times were for me, and (c) how that day fits into your other plans.

You should also be able to take a bus from Zagreb to Plitvice Lakes and then take a bus the next day to Split. You might want to give particular attention to that option, as an increase in tourism in recent years had meant that the Plitvice Lakes are, apparently, unpleasantly full of day-trippers during high season (i.e., when you will be there).

I believe you are correct about the museum closings in Zagreb – at least, that’s how museum closings were when I was there. But as you note, museum opening hours vary from place to place, and you need to check each individually to be sure.

I thought one day sufficient for Zadar, but of course, what suits you depends on your interests and preferences. You might look at your options for bus travel – buses in Croatia are comfortable and convenient.

I’m not sure about your options to visit each of the locations you mention from Split, excepting Trogir (which is easy by public transportation). You might consult rome2rio.com (but be sure to click through to the underlying links, as the main web pages are not sensitive to seasonal variation in schedules, google maps, or the Rough Guide or Lonely Planet. And BTW, if you don’t already have it, I strongly recommend the Rough Guide for Croatia.

I haven’t been to Vis or Brac, but there are buses on Hvar. Note that during high season, Hvar Town turns party-hearty; it’s beautiful, but if Hvar is a priority, staying elsewhere on the island might be worth considering.

I’m sure you realize that none of us can tell you how much time to spend on the islands or which ones to visit. That said, I’m surprised you don’t mention Korcula.

Four days in Dubvornik is a LOT. Many people find 1.5 days sufficient.

Hope that helps!

I can share a little of our own experience...

We only passed through Pula on our way south from Rovinj, but from what I've read, Rovinj is more attractive than Pula so unless there are specific things you want to do in Pula, I would consider Rovinj instead. The ferry from Venice goes there too.

Again we only passed through Rijeka, stopping for lunch, it looked pleasant but is a city and we weren't looking for a city stay. We took the bus from Rovinj to Rijeka via Pula and parts of the journey are quite scenic. If going to Zagreb, then consider a trip to Varazdin (we didn't make it but only through lack of time).

It is worth staying overnight at Plitvice lakes and it is enroute between Zagreb and Zadar. For those without a vehicle, the most convenient place to stay is at one of the hotels within the park grounds but I've read that some local accommodation will provide lifts if needed. We stayed two nights, which wasn't strictly necessary but it made for a more relaxing stay and we perhaps saw more because of the extra time.

I enjoyed Zadar and loved the museum of ancient glass (I love glass). The bus to Zadar is convenient. Trains in Croatia tend to be slow and infrequent.

I thought Split was wonderful and enjoyed Trogir although it felt even more touristy than other places.

For island hopping, we used the site croatiaferries.com and stayed at Hvar and Korcula, and I really liked both (in late May). Most of the larger islands seem to have a bus network, although sometimes with limited timetables. I did a little hiking using the local bus on Hvar while my friend explored some of the other towns. I wanted to go to Vis but my friend did not, so we skipped it, which I regret. Vis doesn't have as many ferry connections (once weekly from Hvar when we were there and otherwise from Split). We took an all day day trip to Mljet from Korcula via ferry and that was really beautiful and relaxing. The only tour we did was with Korcula Explorer where we did an evening walk, wine tasting and dinner and thoroughly recommend it. I would take some time from Dubrovnik to add to the islands or elsewhere. I enjoyed Rab (in the north) on a previous holiday or you could travel inland for a couple of days. But I wouldn't see it as necessary or desirable to add more stops - perhaps just linger on the islands a little longer unless you like to be on the go.

Lastly, I would weigh up whether to travel north to south or vice-versa, depending on the season and the weather.

You may find more flights available back to your home country from Zagreb rather than Dubrovnik. One alternative worth investigating I think would be to travel south from Venice to the Dalmatian islands, bypassing both Zagreb and Split. Then return by bus from Dubrovnik to Split (a very scenic journey). After your stay in Split take the train from Split to Zagreb. I looked into the train for our trip last year and the journey time is longer but I love travelling by train. From memory, there is one service each day and one overnight one.

" One alternative worth investigating I think would be to travel south from Venice to the Dalmatian islands, bypassing both Zagreb and Split"

For that you would have to charter a boat with crew.
There are also some 1 week cruises in that area, but they usually stop at Split.

neckervd, why would you need to do by boat? I meant, travel down the coast on land, and taking a ferry to the Dalmatian islands on arrival in Split.

Or fly from Venice to Dubrovnik and work your way up. There are Easy Jet and Volotea flights nonstop.

Thank you for some useful information.

Maybe 4 nights in Venice?

I will look into travelling and spending a day at Plitvice Lakes. Not sure where I would stay. Is there a specific town to stay in? How does one get into the park without a car? The hotels have transportation? Do you have a suggestion on where to stay?

I will look at Rovinj. Pula has Roman sites so I thought that would be great to see. Can one visit Pula from Rovinj? I also know ferries go between Venice and Pula. I do not know about Rovinj.

Zardar looked interesting for a few reasons. The old town and the museum of illusions were a couple of reasons. Ancient glass sounds interesting too. I collect sea glass...Do you know of any sea glass collecting beaches?

Does anyone know any more about the islands and getting around the islands in Croatia? Even with a guide book, I still need help in understanding how to get around.

If I did not stay in Hvar town does anyone have a recommendation for a nice place to stay that will enable to me access the island using the bus system?

Can one get to Korcula from Hvar or vice versa? I am not married to staying on any one island. I chose Hvar because of all that is said of it and because I can get to Dubrovnik form there.

Thanks for the information on Dubrovnik.

I think we already answered some of these questions, didn't we?

As dreamon noted, for those traveling to the Plitvice Lakes without a car, staying at one of the hotels in the park is a good idea. Google it, or check booking.com.

There are buses to and from the Plitvice Lakes to Zagreb and Split. Google it, or check rome2rio.com

Yes, you can travel from Hvar to Korcula and vice versa. Google it, check rome2rio.com, or check the major ferry company websites

If your guidebook is not providing useful answers to these or other questions, please consult a better one. As already noted, the Rough Guide is the one that I found most useful.

Good luck!

Another useful website: for buses is getbybus - but don't search for buses in summer as they may not be loaded yet, try a closer date. Use the ferry website which I posted above.

Of course you should visit Pula if you think it holds more interest than Rovinj. The ferry from Venice goes to both. There are buses between the two but check travel times on getbybus.

An alternative to Hvar town is Stari Grad - and other even smaller towns on Hvar island. Most destinations which attract tourists will have a website full of useful information.

I concur with kja about getting a guide book and I also like the Rough Guides. I always raid my local library when planning a holiday, especially overseas.

There are multiple ferry companies serving Croatia, so you should check each. Be sure to check jadrolinija, which is one of the major companies. Whenever checking ferry schedules for Croatia, be SURE that you are searching for the dates that matter for you -- schedules change over the course of the year.
https://www.jadrolinija.hr/en/ferry-croatia

I stayed in Stari Grad when I visited Hvar, but not because I didn't want to visit Hvar Town, but rather because Stari Grad held a few sites that were of great interest to me, personally. Stari Grad has two very distinct regions -- one by the actual old town ("Stari Grad" means "Old Town") and one a resort area closer to the coast; the two are very different, and each is quite different from Hvar Town. And, as dreamon notes, there are also other places to stay on Hvar. You would, I think, benefit enormously from researching your options with an eye on what you most want from your time in the area.

I don't think the direction of travel (north to south or vv) will matter much in July (thought it can make a huge difference in shoulder season) -- but it can make a difference in terms of the convenience of connections and so it is, IMO, always worth checking one's options.

You also need the timetables for the catamaran operator Krilo: https://www.krilo.hr/

To draemon:
answer your post " to neckervd, why would you need to do by boat? I meant, travel down the coast on land, and taking a ferry to the Dalmatian islands on arrival in Split".
Because you wrote " One alternative worth investigating I think would be to travel south from Venice to the Dalmatian islands, BYPASSING both Zagreb and SPLIT"

FERRIES AND CATAMARANS:
Pula - Mali Losinj - Zadar
Rijeka - Mali Losinj
Split - Hvar - Korcula - Mljet - Dubrovnik
Split - Vela Luka (Korcula) - Lastovo

BUS LINES:
Trieste - Rovigno/Pula
Rovigno/Pula - Zagreb
Rovigno - Pula
Pula - Rijeka
Rijeka - Karlovac - Zagreb
Zagareb - Karlovac - Plitvice - Split
Zadar - Sibenik - Split - Dubrovnik
Korcula - Dubrovnik
etc.

neckervd, I can see that what I wrote and what I intended were not necessarily the same thing and could have been misinterpreted. Anyway, I was just thinking about how best to string together the places the OP wanted to visit but end in Zagreb, as there may be more flights available from there.

There is no need for any justification. It was just a misunderstanding.