Croatia (& neighbors) 2023

A beautiful 10 day trip exploring Croatia (and neighboring countries) filled with scenic views, fantastic people, and tasty food! A trip I would happily repeat in a heartbeat!

Day 0: DFW Airport

After working a half-day and hastily making our way to the airport we waited to board our flight to Istanbul on Turkish Airlines. This was a new airline from us and my first experience with international airline restrictions on carry-on luggage weight. I was oh so proud of myself for packing for a 10-day trip in a carry-on, however, I found out I’d have to check it just like any other bag - kicking myself for not just using a full-size bag and having more space, oh well!

Despite the fact that we’d overfly all of continental Europe en route to Istanbul just to backtrack, Turkish offered the best itinerary, shortest total time in transit, and cheapest fare. We’d only have a two hour layover in Istanbul as opposed to seven or eight on other carriers like Lufthansa or Iberia.

Apart from this we still had an overall positive impression of the airline. We boarded and settled in for a long flight bound for Istanbul.

Day 1: Istanbul Airport and Wheels Down in Zagreb

About two hours from Istanbul I looked up at the downward-facing camera streaming to the setback screen to see a mid-sized city. I had spent quite a bit of time on Google Maps familiarizing myself with our destinations and something about this one looked a lot like Zagreb. The proximity & positioning of the airport, the way the river snaked through the city, the location of the bridges, etc. all looked familiar. I switched to the map view on the setback screen and sure enough, we were overflying Zagreb, I then looked to see how much time was left - about two hours. Yup, makes sense. I reminded myself that it made sense to take this route though there was a part of me that wished I had a parachute.

Wheels down in Istanbul! Given the fall semester had just started I got some teaching work done in the airport while Kaleigh checked out the eateries.

We waited for our next flight not really sure where the next flight would depart from - they don’t announce it until a short while before departure. As Murphy’s law would have it we were waiting on the opposite side of the airport. Lesson learned - wait in the middle and avoid the need for a speedy walk.

After the lengthy flight from DFW to IST the two-hour hop from IST to ZAG felt like a breeze! 

Wheels down in Zagreb in early evening, we cleared passport control, an easy process, and waited to collect our bags. I kid you not, the five of us (we were traveling with my parents and sister) were the last to leave baggage claim. The culprit? That small but heavy carry-on I was planning to, well, carry-on was the last bag off of the carousel. I’m not even exaggerating, they turned it off after I grabbed my bag.

We called an Uber and made our way to the hotel, the Canopy by Hilton Zagreb City Centre. The hotel restaurant was probably not the best food in Zagreb, but that night it was phenomenal!

Off to bed before a midday start tomorrow - as I planned the itinerary I knew better than to plan anything too early on our first morning in the country. 

Day 2: Exploring Zagreb - A Hidden Gem

While I’ve not seen every European city or even almost every European city I would say that Zagreb tops the list. I wanted to experience the capital city if we were going to make the trip and we all ended up being glad we did. I can’t quite put my finger on why. The city may not have been the most stunning, extraordinary, or extravagant but it felt like the city welcomed us with open arms. It didn’t feel like we were tourists, it didn’t feel like anyone was a tourist. Rather it felt like the locals were proud to show off their home, like we were welcomed into someone’s community.

We started our morning with a food tour with our guide, Katarina. This would be the first of MANY times someone would see our last name, or surname as they put it, and say “You’ve got Croatian in you, don’t you? It’s spelled wrong but I can tell it’s there.”

For context, my dad’s grandparents immigrated from former Yugoslavia, present-day Croatia - more on that later - through Ellis Island, New York. As was the case with many immigrants, the last name was lost in translation. Babić (pronounced bab-ich) became Babick (pronounced, as you probably know, bab-ick). Come to find out, so we’re told, Babić is the third most common surname in Croatia. 

Anyway, back to the food tour! We met Katarina at the Ban Josip Jelačić statue. Katarina showed us around Zagreb through markets, food stalls, restaurants, and shops. We particularly enjoyed their prosciutto which is dried in the coastal winds, the cheese-filled burek (adapted from the Turkish cuisine which tells the story of days past when the area was under Ottoman rule), and the ćevapi - a minced meat sausage served with flatbread. 

After finishing the food tour we embarked on a self-guided walking tour to see several of the city’s main highlights. Making our way to Lotrščak Tower via funicular - this yielded perhaps the best views of Zagreb we’d have during our time here. Saint Mark’s Church was, unfortunately, being renovated/restored, however, the unique tile roof was still visible and made the walk worth it. Perhaps one of the most unique sights we explored was also the one with the darkest history.

The Grič Tunnel was constructed to serve as a bomb shelter during WWII and was later reused as a shelter during the Croatian War of Independence in the 1990s. Around this time, the tunnel was also opened to serve not only as shelter but also entertainment for thousands of citizens as a venue for raves and concerts.

On our way back to the hotel we stopped by the botanical gardens and King Tomislav’s Square. After taking some time to refresh at the hotel before dinner we made our way to Stari Fijaker. The food was absolutely fantastic and I’d recommend it to anyone visiting Zagreb.

Day 3: Road Trip! Plitvice Lakes, Senj, and Split

We started our morning early to pick up the rental van and make the two-hour drive to Plitvice Lake National Park. Let me tell y’all - the Croatian countryside is absolutely beautiful. Pictures don’t do the drive justice.

We parked at Plitvice Lakes and made our way into the park after having previously purchased our tickets online. After just a short walk you are welcomed with sweeping views of the lakes and waterfalls. We spent about three hours walking throughout the park following trail B which included a boat and train ride. Plan to get here early though, we thought the crowds were quite heavy when we arrived at 11:00 am, however, when we left at 2:00 pm it seemed as though there were easily twice as many people. I think it would have put a damper on the experience if we dealt with these crowds the whole time.

From Plitvice, we drove another two hours to the coastal town of Senj. Why Senj? My father had done some research on Ancestry.com and discovered this was likely where his grandfather lived before they emigrated to the States. While there wasn’t much to see in Senj we wanted to say we made the stop. Placed atop the hill overlooking the town was the Nehaj Fortress, built by the Croatian army to fight off the Ottomans in 1558. While this is certainly not the most famous sight in Europe or even Croatia we couldn’t help but think “if walls could talk” as we explored the well-preserved fortress.

Setting out again on the last leg of our day trip, we made our way three hours to Split where we would stay for three nights before continuing down the coast. As with the previous legs of this drive, the landscape was stunning and photos simply do not do it justice! Renting a car was the way to go - we could have hired a driver, however, we would have had to deal with more planning ahead of time. It may seem daunting at first, however, renting a car and driving in Croatia was a breeze! Since the fall of the Yugoslav empire, Croatians learn English in school. As such, it was easy to get around and English was widely spoken. Streets and highways are mostly all well kept and we never had any issues with cell service. If you’re on the fence about renting a car in Croatia let this be your sign to just do it! Keep in mind that you will need to get an international driver's permit before leaving the States.

Upon our arrival in Split we took the easy way out and got something quick (McDonald's, I’m talking about you) after the rather long travel day. We took our van to check-in to the Airbnb and drop off our luggage before my dad and I drove across town to drop it off and return via Uber. 

Day 4: Split - Diocletian's Palace & Croatian Emergency Rooms

As the title for today might suggest, we were in for a few surprises beyond just the magic of Split and the palace, but I’ll save that for the end.

I’m a big fan of walking tours - they’re a good way to get oriented with the city while ensuring that you’re not only seeing the highlights but also understanding their history and significance. For me anyway, the real magic in seeing new places lies in the people and the stories to be told - a walking tour helps you to do both.

It’s quite easy to get lost (both physically and mentally by letting your thoughts wander with curiosity about what happened here hundreds of years ago) by walking Diocletian’s palace. But to be honest, if I was lost I am not sure I wanted to be found! Diocletian’s palace was built by the Roman emperor in the 4th century AD. Diocletian had the palace built not only to serve as his retirement home but also to house the Roman military. The Palace’s history is somewhat lost through the Middle Ages.

Following a morning and much of the afternoon spent wandering Diocletian’s Palace and the old town, we retreated to the Airbnb to rest up and research what to do next. My mom, dad, and sister left to go walk around the neighborhood while Kaleigh and I opted for a nap!

It couldn’t have been more than 10 minutes before we heard a knock on the door - we figured someone had forgotten something (we were on the fourth floor so it must have REALLY been worth coming back for). We opened the door to the apartment to find my mom holding her nose… apparently, she had fallen victim to the cobblestones when she tripped and ~split~ her nose open (in Split, it’s funnier if you look at it this way). It soon became apparent that it wasn’t going to stop bleeding on its own, she and my Dad made their way to the emergency room. Apart from the wait, they said it was a quick and easy experience getting stitches, they figured the doctor and nurses that see tourists must have just taken their dinner break or the new shift hadn’t yet started because after waiting for two hours they were seen, treated, and gone within 30 minutes.

My sister, Kaleigh, and I found somewhere quiet on the promenade for dinner, my parents later joined us for dinner. It was a relaxing evening eating outside on the water watching people and boats go by. We called it a night early after dinner.

Day 5: Hvar

We didn’t have anything planned today thinking we’d play it by ear, even before the ER visit. That turned out to be for the best because we all were a bit slow to start the morning and saw a cruise ship in port - we knew Old Town had to be busy. Having had our fill of crowds, people, and old town the day prior we decided, on a whim, to take a ferry to Hvar. We wished we had done this earlier as we fell in love! There wasn’t anywhere near the crowds on Hvar that we had in Split. We later heard that Hvar is known for partying, however, we didn’t see any indication of that which was perfectly fine with us! If we were to plan another trip to Croatia we would plan to spend some time here. I would have loved to rent a scooter and a villa tucked back in a lavender field and just sit back and watch the world go by.

We took a 7:00 pm ferry back to Split and docked at about 8:30 pm. We stopped for a nice meal on the walk back to our Airbnb.

Day 6: Split to Dubrovnik via Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina

I know I went on and on earlier about how easy and nice it was to rent a car in Croatia, however, when crossing into non-EU countries it was just a little too less straightforward (additional checks, authorizations required from rental agencies, etc.) for my taste, so I planned for a driver to take us down the coast with an inland stop in Mostar.

The morning started early when our driver picked us up in front of our apartment and headed inland crossing the border into Bosnia & Herzegovina where we stopped in Mostar. While I didn’t get too many photos of Mostar, it was worth visiting. The Stari Most (the old town bridge), a primary means of transportation across the river, was destroyed in 1993 by the Croatians during the war and later rebuilt to preserve its original appearance. The town’s Ottoman occupation was apparent in the architecture and looked very different from the rest of our stops. We also learned that a single country has three presidents - a Bosniak, a Serb, and a Croat. The country even uses two different alphabets, Cyrillic in the Serbian region and Latin in the Bosnian and Croatian regions.

After a few hours in Mostar we headed back to the coast where we worked our way south into Ston. At 7km long, Ston is home to the longest defensive walls in Europe. Some regard it as Europe’s Great Wall of China, having had the privilege of seeing both I can say this one doesn’t even throw a stone at the Great Wall but is still quite impressive.

That night after a long day we checked into our Airbnb in Dubrovnik to reset for the early morning that accompanied our Montenegrin day trip.

Day 7: Montenegrin Day Trip - Perast, Kotor, and Budva

We met the van down the street from our accommodation at 7:00 am - a bit earlier than advertised hoping to beat the crowds at the border. Fortunately, our guide played his cards right and we managed to make it through the border with minimal delay. We booked a small group tour but only had one other couple join our group of five, so it seemed like we were lucky all the way around!

First up on our list was Perast & Our Lady of the Rocks. Legend has it that in 1452 locals discovered the icon of Madonna and Child on a rock in the sea. Keeping an ancient oath, they tossed rocks into the sea in this spot until an island was formed.

Onto Kotor where we explored old town, with three cruise ships docked in port, and did some souvenir shopping. The three cruise ships meant that we were elbow-to-elbow at times. Nevertheless, Kotor was stunning and rich in history as the Romans, Byzantines, Serbs, Hungarians, and Venetians all had a claim over the city at one point. 

We headed down to Montenegro’s most metropolitan city, Budva, for lunch on the coast before heading back to Dubrovnik. In all honesty, I am not sure I would suggest anyone visit Budva - our driver said it is Montenegro’s equivalent of Miami. Apart from the sky-scrapers and beaches, I’m not sure I make the connection. He said that the old town is not really worth exploring, however, after I saw the photos I would beg to differ. Perhaps I’d have a different reaction if I saw old town. If I were to do this again, I would have tried harder to find a tour that takes you to Sveti Stefan - we missed this and it is one of my biggest regrets given it was only another 20 minutes drive from Budva.

Credit where it is due, our driver took care of business when it came to getting us back to Dubrovnik! He checked border crossing webcams to see what lines looked like and ultimately decided we’d be better off taking the “border hopping” route. Fortunately, all he meant by this was that we would go from Montenegro, into Bosnia and Herzegovina, and then cross into Croatia - all at legal, official, checkpoints. He checked in with a friend who went the more direct route and confirmed this was a good move because when we got back (about a 45-minute drive from the border) they were still waiting to clear immigration.

Day 8: Dubrovnik Old Town & Banje Beach

Dubrovnik is a sight to behold! Bring your walking shoes though because there are plenty of hills - you’ll get your steps AND cardio in! As we did in Split, after our walking tour we spent the afternoon exploring the side streets and shops of the old town. We haven’t seen Game of Thrones so we couldn’t geek out over the popular filming locations. We did, however, get excited each time we found a Babić bakery - of which there were several!

Dubrovnik dates back to the 7th century, by the 14th century it rivaled Venice as a powerhouse for trade and diplomacy. Control of Dubrovnik shifted throughout history as it went from Byzantine influence to Venetian rule, to an Ottoman vassal state, French occupation under Napoleon, and finally Austrian control before it became part of Yugoslav. During the Croatian War of Independence in the 1990s, the town was heavily shelled/bombed which destroyed several of the original buildings, however, restoration efforts required meticulous detail in an attempt to preserve the same look and feel.

After the tour Kaleigh and I opted to get changed for the beach and head to Banje Beach which overlooks the old town while my parents and sister opted to trek around the city walls.

Day 9: Elaphiti Islands

Following a short walk from our Airbnb to the pier in front of old town we boarded a boat which would take us on a private tour throughout the Elaphiti islands. I really do not have much to say about this day other than this: this day was hands down a highlight of the trip and a fantastic way to say bok (bye) to our time in Croatia, I absolutely recommend the tour operator (Rewind Dubrovnik) and our skipper (Ivan). In addition to the tour, we stopped on the island of Šipan at Stara Mlinica for lunch. Additionally, the tour company put us in touch with Mr. Mato who runs a winery on the island. Kaleigh and I do not drink so he made us fresh lemon juice while my parents and sister enjoyed the wine. The meat and cheese board prepared locally was absolutely devoured and the ambiance was fantastic!

This was, without a doubt, the absolute best way to wrap up our time in Croatia.

Day 10: Goodbye, Croatia

We left the apartment and made our way to the airport for an early flight. Looking back, the travel day was relatively easy with no major hiccups.

This goodbye was particularly hard, not just because of the early flight, but because we thoroughly enjoyed our time in Croatia. It’s still a top-rated vacation for Kaleigh and me, a place we talk of revisiting in the future. The people were friendly as could be, the food was ever so flavorful, and the views never failed to take your breath away!