Croatia was named destination of the year 2016 by Travel + Leisure, and by so many travel authorities over the years. When we started planning our summer in Croatia (summer for us is May i.e. shoulder season) the first thing that came to mind was Game of Thrones that I believe was largely responsible for Croatia’s increasing popularity. (This was before that freaking ridiculously terrible final season)
The wild yacht week stories I heard from my friends had my curiosity peaking. But nothing prepared me for the 2 weeks we spent in this beautiful country, with its old towns, natural beauty, turquoise waters, pebbly beaches, and unbelievable drives. I also experienced ZERO wild parties. (For those you need to go in July-August)
Side note: #Roadtripperforlife
The husband (Mr.Tallie) loves to drive. I call him Tallie because he is very tall and do NOT mean the Hindi slang ‘Talli’ which means intoxicated/ drunk. We share a common passion for long drives, road-tripping across changing terrain, discovering countries through little towns, munching freshly picked strawberries I manage to buy off locals using animated hand gestures.
Here is what our trip looked like
Zagreb → Rovinj → Motovun → Pula → Split → Dubrovnik → Zagreb
(In addition, we had planned day trips to Hvar, Plitvice Lakes, Mostar, and Montenegro but the weather Gods had other plans for us)
Car Rental in Croatia
As is true with all countries, if you pick up a car and drop it off in a different city you pay a premium. This is why we did the loop around Zagreb to Zagreb but I do not recommend it. I wish I had spent that extra day in Plitvice.
We rented with Sixt and let me tell you, car rental in Croatia is PRICEY. If driving is not your thing there are plenty of buses driving from everywhere to everywhere. A self-drive car rental is NOT necessary for Croatia. In addition, you will need ferry insurance if you plan to take your car to any islands. Parking is pricey in the old towns of Split and Dubrovnik so look for a hotel with parking included or find a tourist garage which usually charges a flat fee per day.
In Split, we found Acorus garage (on google maps) 15 EU a day and super sweet people running it.
*Always always always get full insurance where you can… saves you a whole lot of trouble.
**If you want to just get a feel of the drive, the best stretch to do is Split to Dubrovnik. Rent a convertible and just do a day rental, no parking hassles and you get to pop in and out of some stunning wineries on the way. This route takes you through Bosnia so be sure to have a multiple entry Croatia visa.
Rovinj
Zagreb → Rovinj (the J is silent) was a 3-hour drive, beautiful roads, mountains, loads of driving through the clouds. The highways in Croatia are beautiful and well maintained and easy to drive on.
We stayed at Hotel Lone a beautiful property known for its swanky design and elite guests from all over Europe. Also a dog-friendly hotel, I spent the first hour watching beautifully styled dogs with their even more beautifully styled owners prance in and out of the lobby. The complex of hotels in the area is a 3-minute drive and a 20-minute walk from the old town.
SEE/DO
We spent a large part of 2 days walking around the old town of Rovinj.
A beautiful peninsula jutting out into the Adriatic, with windy cobblestoned slopes going up to a stunning cathedral with views of endless blues. The charming maze of alleys was bustling with restaurants, bars, shops with everything from truffle cheese to lavender, hats, and scarfs, and some stores with the best views I have ever seen.
We also had many alleyways to ourselves in the evening, which was a refreshing change, compared to most packed-like-sardines European old towns.
EAT/DRINK
Valentino
Champagne cocktails on the rocks, golden sunset views, your heart will sing in happiness but your wallet may weep a little.
Istrian food is all about the seafood, mussels in white wine, Istrian pasta and shrimp, shellfish and one of the nicest places to enjoy it, with sea views and happy staff is out on the terrace at Restorante Ancora.
Hit up the green market right in the center of the old town to sample some fresh truffles, cheeses, and street food. Walk up to the Cathedral and enjoy the sea views with some Aperol spritz. You can take a picnic up to the garden in front of the cathedral as well.
SHOP
At the green market for Lavender, Truffles, salt. You can also hold off till you get to Dubrovnik. But, you know how you always have that FOMO that you will never find it again, I am that person so I went a bit nuts buying things I probably do not need. Find everything from clothes, shoes, beachwear, swimming shoes: a Croatia essential if you’re hitting the beach, and all kinds of souvenirs, art all over this place.
Look out for some beautiful locations like this one:
DAY TRIPS FROM ROVINJ
MOTOVUN AND ZIGANTE
We drove up north for the ultimate truffle experience. The main reason I wanted to include Istria into our plans was it’s famous truffles. The drive up north was stunning, views of Motovun, a hilly town hanging from the clouds with old walls.
Crossing Motovun we headed to Restaurante Zigante, a fine dining restaurant that boasts a Truffle-only Menu of local Istrian cuisine. We experienced hours of fabulous wine pairing and truffle heaven over a very loooong (maybe too long) meal. Book ahead and only go if you love truffles.
PULA
Our day trip to Pula was a bit blah. The amphitheater was very cool especially since I haven’t seen the Colosseum, but other than that the town is just all right. I really wanted to go back to my sweet Ol’ Rovinj for our last evening of golden sunsets on the rocks.
Rovinj → Split
The drive was stunning but long with a lot of it along the coast. Driving in Croatia is fairly simple. You can rent any type of car. The roads are well made and well-marked.
SPLIT
Split is a coastal ‘party’ town with a beautiful old city which is walled containing the gorgeous Diocletian’s Palace and its quarters.
PARKING IN SPLIT
Entering into the old town area, we parked in the harbor parking lot and were shocked to learn that parking here was ridiculously expensive (almost 150 euros per 24 hours). Quickly and in a panicked state, we found a tourist parking garage, Acorus Parking garage which had a 15 euros per day rate, where we left our car for the next few days.
If you plan to stay long in Split or take a ferry to Hvar I would recommend dropping off your car back to the rental place when coming in.
STAY
We had booked Guest house Imperial, a serviced apartment in Split within the city walls with a tiny window looking over Riva and ocean. This spacious room was the perfect location for us. The only issue was the underpass walkway with what felt like a trillion steps up and down through which we had to lug our luggage, many kilos of too much overpacking (as usual). Poor Mr. Tallie was stuck to be a porter again and I was most concerned he was going to pull his back.
DO/SEE
- Walk around the million walkways within the city walls, get lost and found and lost again.
- Buy little Knick knacks and window shop the gorgeous but overpriced Croatian jewelry stores.
- Walk along Riva, the promenade and enjoy the golden sunsets.
- Sit in the square of the Diocletian Palace and listen to live music.
- Hang around by the vestibule as the performers’ voices echo out of its wonderful structure.
- Bar hop around every little bar sipping on Croatian wine and beer.
- Visit the best beach i.e. Bavice beach close by.
- Hike up to see the views of Split from the trail near the Jardin hotel.
- Shop on the Marmont street: Marmont street has all the European and international brands. If like me, you always forget to carry the correct shoes for the rain (I am getting smarter now) this is where you will find things with reuse value.
EAT/ DRINK
Due to awful weather, we ended up spending 3 whole days in Split walking around the old city eating and drinking.
The wine in Croatia was so so fabulous… The food, however, was not very memorable. Sure, the fresh fish, mussels in white wine sauce and pasta were good but I was over it. Luckily as you drive south Dalmatian cuisine is more readily available including meat stews and a mincemeat kebab called Ćevapi or ćevapčići served with a chili sauce called Ajvar (pronounced Aivaar.)
There are a gazillion places to eat and drink around the city. The stand out ones for us were:
This was one of the top meals for us in Croatia. The restaurant is beautiful and if you get a table upstairs you can enjoy your meal staring at the gothic chandelier as you sip some of the best local wine and really enjoy the local cuisine.
Olive tree
A café and lounge on Riva with a view of the ocean has some fabulous and high-end cocktails. Their Gin cocktail had me hooked every sunset. The food was yummy but minimal and by that what I mean is that a dish could end up being a single prawn on a plate.
Drinks at La bodega
Food at Zinfandel was also great.
PS – If you are craving spice, we Uber-ed our way to a very traditional Chinese restaurant called Bijeka Orijenta for a break from local food.
DAY TRIPS FROM SPLIT
Hvar
Our trip to Hvar and the blue cave got canceled 2 days in a row due to bad weather, the only downside of shoulder season. In retrospect I wish I had gone to Hvar for a few days, this is party central but the action only starts in June-July. We spent a day driving down to some coastal towns just south of Split.
Brela
Brela had a beach called Punta Rata II which was stunning, secluded and had gorgeous views. This pebbly beach had the storm coming in and the water was chilly but had it been a sunny day we could have stayed here all day.
Be sure to carry swimming shoes, the Adriatic coast is full of sea urchins.
Omis
Another adorable town known for adventure sports, cliff diving, rafting and was full of some lovely little restaurants known for delicious lobster and seafood. We ate at a place called Coco Pazzo which had great food and dessert.
SPLIT→ DUBROVNIK
If there is one leg of this whole trip you should self-drive it is this. This was one of the most stunning drives with the ocean on your right, crossing into Bosnia and then back into Croatia, discovering wineries on the way in the hills of Komarna.
Terra Madre Winery
I almost do not want to share this because it was so pristine and solitary that I am afraid of ruining it. This winery was the mooost stunning one I have ever seen, with views of the ocean and the island from coastal Dalmatia.
I thoroughly enjoyed tasting 4 wines for 50 Kuna and with a view like this, it was worth way more.
DUBROVNIK
STAY
Mr. Tallie had a work event at Sun gardens all the way in the north of Dubrovnik almost 40 minutes away from downtown. The resort was really nice, with its own beach (pebbly of course), pools and beautiful ocean views. Finally, the weather Gods decided to shine on us and give us some sun.
TAKE A BOAT OUT
We rented a boat for 4 hours with Adriatic Explore and explored the Elafiti islands, a green mermaid lagoon near Lopud and the nearby Blue cave at Kolocep. We jumped into the cold water and swam into the cave to see what the whole drama was about, and my Go pro battery died on me right as we entered the cave.
I cannot explain the blue cave phenomenon except for: Imagine that you are inside a really clear aquamarine stone and someone put twenty spotlights on it.
The rest of the day out at sea was spent drinking prosecco, munching snacks and seeing old town Dubrovnik from the ocean including GOTs Kings Landing.
Old Town Dubrovnik
Old town Dubrovnik is a pressure cooker waiting to explode. A walled, over touristic city bursting at the seams. We are fortunate that we got to see it ‘relatively’ empty. A little trick is to check out the port authority website in advance to know how many cruise ships are docking at the old city on a specific date.
https://avoid-crowds.com/dubrovnik-2019-cruise-schedule/
The ships dock and most of the cruisers come onto land to explore which can sometimes be even ten thousand plus tourists. Avoid those days completely.
SEE
- Walk the walls
- See the Belltower, churches
- Buy truffles, olive oil, lavender from Uje Oleoteca which has trusted sources of unadulterated food supplies.
- Art shopping at the sweetest little shop call Little house
EAT/ DRINK
Buza bar has a mysterious almost cult following kind of reputation but finding it is quite the task. Get there before sunset and you will not be disappointed. Do not expect any food, and the drink options are basic. This place is purely known for its view.
Another really famous place, always full with no tables available. The staff is super nice and we thoroughly enjoyed a glimpse into meaty Bosnian cuisine with the hearty stews, bread, and kebabs. Reserve in advance.
Old town port
Pretty but also kind of gross with trash all over.
Day trips from Dubrovnik
I always leave things to go back for, here is what I would add:
Mostar, Montenegro, Korcula island, Plitvice Lakes and Krka falls
ZAGREB
Our last day in Croatia was spent exploring Zagreb, a funky young city with so much to do. Shopping, eating and exploring there were tons of options. As with most things, so much to do, so little time.
Maybe it is time to plan another holiday to Croatia soon!
