You have planned a trip similar to the one I will be going on Sept. 7th, so please do a trip report when you return and maybe I will get a few tips.(I am still debating on the car rental in Croatia from Zagreb to Plitvice vs. the bus)

I am sure most people will feel your trip is fast paced. This may work perfectly for you. My husband and I normally travel at a fast pace for 3 or 4 days then rest somewhere 4 or 5. (I call those faster days scouting.) I really love Dubrovnik. We stayed there last trip for 3 days and am staying 6 days this time. Anyway, I don't have much advice but hope your trip is fantastic.

We did a different approach in 2011 for two weeks in Croatia but I think what you have sounds great. We took a ferry and spent a couple of days on Korcula but you're seeing other wonderful places we missed (like Plitvice). But we loved, loved, loved Split, Dubrovnik, Mostar. Took a day trip from Dubrovnik to Montenegro which was gorgeous but, again, nothing wrong that I can see with what you've planned. Makes me want to go back and do the things we missed. It's a fabulous part of the world. We planned our trip after stopping in Dubrovnik on a cruise.

> about to book my rental car ... any other fees i should be aware of?

Make sure your rental car has a vignette for driving in Slovenia.

> we split our time in Ljubljana to visit Lake Bled/Alps over Sunday & Monday since I have read Ljubjana is closed up on sunday. is this true?

I don't know, as I visited it later in the week. My out-dated information indicates that most museums in Ljubljana are open on Sunday, and my experience was that a major delight of visiting Ljubljana is just walking around and enjoying the architecture and scenery. The time of year might make a difference - when are you planning to go?


Re: your itinerary:

Dubrovnik - Sounds like you have about 1.5 days in Dubrovnik. That strikes me as a bare minimum. Will you be experiencing jet lag that first day? If so, you might wish you had more time there.

Split - Given that many people skip it, I like that you are giving Split an afternoon and a morning. But it isn't much time for Split, so you might want to think through your priorities in advance.

Plitvice Lakes - To leave Plitvice Lakes in time for to arrive in Opatija for dinner could mean that you might have to curtail your time at the lakes, especially since you apparently plan to drive on to Pula after dinner. Although there are routes through the lakes that one can take that require only a few hours, I was glad to have more than 6 hours there and can imagine enjoying an 8 hour visit. (The question is in how much of the park you see, not the pace at which you see it. I thought the various lakes not only lovely, but also sufficiently different from one another to merit the extra time it took to see them.)

Opatija - I must admit that Opatija left me cold. I thought the Villa Angelina pleasant, but otherwise it just seemed a mass of tourists, tourist hotels/resorts, loud clubs, and overpriced restaurants. But I only spent an hour or two there, so maybe my impressions were not representative.

Lake Bled - Bear in mind that if you want to visit the castle and the island and hike the Vintgar Gorge, and you also want to leave Bled early the next day, you would probably need to arrive in Bled quite early in the day.

Venice - So you have only a bit more than a day in Venice? I think most people would prefer more.


The good news is that you will see some beautiful places. You will, however, probably have time to just skim their surfaces.

Hope that helps!

Pula left me lukewarm, more luke than warm. The Roman amphitheater is nice, but that's about it. I'd skip Pula, spend 2 nights in Rovinj, and maybe take it easy for a day. You're doing a lot of driving, a lot of moving around. That kind of misses the point in Croatia, where the pace of life is easier, enjoying the moment rather than rushing around.

Also you're not seeing any of the islands. That's a big omission in Croatia.

Such great feedback!
@Dreamgoddess -- will we be overlapping trips since we do not get back until mid september, so I'm afraid my info will be too late to help you.

@kja :: thank you for all the info! I agree, we feel like we are trying to pack in too much, but just don't know where to cut. I have revised (see below) and tried to streamline more (took out trogir, opatija, pula). if you were to cut another city, where would you cut?

we have both been to venice before so a day and half there will be fine with us.
thank you for your continued advice!


Itinerary :: REVISED

DAY 1:
arrive @ 1:45 pm in Zagreb, CR
6 hour layover
Fly to Dubrovnik -- arrive at 10pm
Spend night in Dubrovnik

DAY 2:
Dubrovnik
Spend night in Dubrovnik

DAY 3:

Dubrovnik
Spend night in Dubrovnik

DAY 4:
RENT CAR
morning travel to Mostar (~2.5 hours)
Sleep in Mostar (pansion-nur)


DAY 5:
morning travel to Split (~3 hour drive),
Sleep in Split


DAY 6:
Split
Drive to Plitvice in early evening (~3.25 hour drive)
Spend night in Plitvice

DAY 7:
Spend day at Plitvice Lakes
Drive to Rovinj in early evening (~3.5 hour drive)


DAY 8:
Rovinj
Sleep in Rovinj

DAY 9:
Rovinj
Sleep in Rovinj

DAY 10:
In morning, drive (2 hr) to Skocjan Caves (tours every hour until 5pm - tour is 2 hours)
maybe prejadma castle
Late afternoon drive to Lake Bled (1.5 hr)
Sleep in Bled

DAY 11:
Bled (Walk lake & visit island)
Sleep in Bled

DAY 12:
Hike Vintgar Gorge OR Hike at Lake Bohinj
Mid-day Drive to Ljublijana ( 1.5 hrs)
Return rental car
Sleep in Ljublijana

DAY 13:
Day in Ljublijana
Sleep in Ljublijana

DAY 14:
Early morning Travel from Ljubljiana to Venice by Bus (3.5 hrs)
Afternoon in Venice
Sleep in Venice

DAY 15:
Venice
Sleep in Venice

DAY 16:

FLY HOME

Ljubljana is much more lively on a Monday than on a Sunday, especially since most people are back from their holidays by September. But you may want to check opening times of the things you want to see, especially museums, they could be closed on Mondays.

We are contemplating a similar itinerary for an Oct. trip. After flying into Dubrovnik, we will be traveling by car. After we visit Split does it makes sense to go from Split to Plitvice Lakes to Rovinj and then to Zagreb (and fly home )or Split to Rovinj to Plitvice Lakes to Zagreb. Does anyone have any knowledge of the better logistics?


Thanks.

Much better!

On day 6, you might even be able to fit in a bit of time for lovely Trogir - its easy to reach from Split and doesn't take that long to see. It has some incredible stone carvings.

bchyatt: Try:

http://www.viamichelin.com/ and
http://en.mappy.com/

I know you have limited time with your busy schedule - but I would try to take a more leisurely, scenic drive back from Bled (or Lake Bohinj) to Ljubljana, via the cute town of Skofja Loka. Most of the places on your itinerary are bigger, more popular tourist attractions (and most of them are great), but when I visited Slovenia last fall, I really visited the small towns perhaps most of all. The windy drive from Bled to Skofja Loka (I did it the opposite way) was delightful but very doable, not scary at all despite the narrow roads (my car was small anyway).

This drive is easy to do if you have any sort of map and follow the road signs that point you in the direction of the next town. I had a crappy free Slovenia driving map and no GPS and I still never got lost.

You probably don't need an entire day at Lake Bled if you are spending two nights there, unless you simply want to slow down after several long days of driving. You might visit Lake Bohinj the same day - it's an easy drive from Bled. And personally, I would not be afraid to skip Vintgar Gorge if you've been to Plitvice Lakes (already know you disagree, kja!). Personal preference was that I found the scenic drive between Bled and Skofja Loka (and visiting the town itself) more rewarding than hiking Vintgar Gorge.

I am planning a short trip to Mostar and Split in early October. We will be traveling from and back to Sarajevo. We are trying to fit in a side trip to Blagaj to see the Tekija (dervish house) and eat a trout lunch. Does anyone have any thoughts on whether this is a good use of time?

Also we were were also planning to spend about one full day in split, plus an afternoon in Trogir. I see kja does not think this is enough time, and I am sure we could easily spend more. Would you recommend skipping Trogir?

Thought you might find this interesting.

The Vintgar gorge is lovely but not necessary after seeing Plivitce. You have a nice itinerary and the only thing I would say is more time! It is a shame that you will miss the Soca River Valley, esp as you are an active couple. The sports and hiking there are phenomenal!

http://www.cntraveler.com/features/2012/09/slovenia-lake-bled-ljubljana-cristina-nehrig?fb_action_ids=4517014369422&fb_action_types=og.likes&fb_source=timeline_og&action_object_map=%7B%224517014369422%22%3A10150974928007064%7D&action_type_map=%7B%224517014369422%22%3A%22og.likes%22%7D&action_ref_map=%5B%5D

Forgot to add the link!

You missed Trogir
Split, once you have diocletian's palace not much more to do.

If you have done it pop onto Trogir.

No often how often I have been to Bled never made it to the Island, after the castle and the cake stops at the places at the bottom (and the art deco (well not actually ad but close) church) the trip to the island looks dull. When you have been please tell us what it was like.

> Also we were were also planning to spend about one full day in split, plus an afternoon in Trogir. I see kja does not think this is enough time, and I am sure we could easily spend more. Would you recommend skipping Trogir?

That really depends on your interests. Tiny Trogir is beautiful and has some of the most amazing medieval stone carvings anywhere. I'm very glad I had a few hours to walk around there.

I found Split dynamic and energetic and full of interesting corners. Diocletian's Palace and the amazing Cathedral and Baptistry are the highlights. It also had one of my favorite markets anywhere, a good archeological museum, a small and interesting museum of the city, the home and studio of Ivan Meštrović (reached by a lovely walk with glimpses out over the sea), an interesting medieval square, some wonderful contrasts in architectural styles.....

> The Vintgar gorge is lovely but not necessary after seeing Plivitce.

They are different. In the Vintgar Gorge, one walks on cliff-side paths beside a rushing stream, and then (if you want) you walk through fields and forests and alpine pastures to return to the start. In Plitvice Lakes, one walks along paths beside lakes of differing colors and by some stunning travertine-formation waterfalls.

> When you have been [to Bled Island} please tell us what it was like.

Part of the appeal is the chance to spend a bit of time not just on the water, but on the water in a traditional boat (a pletna) impressively powered by a single oar in a way that seems to require impossible strength. Once on the island, one has a limited amount of time to see a pretty little church, a small museum, or just walk around some tree-shrouded paths. There are, of course, lovely views of the Alps and castle, etc., from theh boat and island

we recently visited Split, we were there from noon and left very early the next day. basically used it as a transfer point to catch our easyjet flight to milan. after exploring the nooks and crannies around diocletian's palace and enjoying a drink while peope watching along the riva in the evening, we felt that amount of time was adequate. we spent 4 days in dubrovnik prior to split and felt we were ready for italy, our next stop.

kja--thanks for your insights on time needed for Split/Trogir. I think we will try to spend an afternoon in Trogir at least if the weather is good. We are interested in the Cathedral and just exploring the old town. Ideally we would also like to visit Salona but I am sure we don't have enough time for that.

YOU are "packing it in"!!!!!

We are going to Slovenia and Croatia in Sept.2013 for at least 4 weeks and hitting the stops you are making.

The suggestion to skip Pula sounds wise. Glad you are staying in Mostar.

Can't wait to read your TRIP REPORT.

You all know Pula has a roman ampitheatre http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pula_Arena

and these horses http://www.travelwithachallenge.com/Slovenia-Lipizzaner-Horse-Vacation.htm

I echo a pp's sentiment that it is unfortunate you are not making it out to one, if not more, of the islands. that being said, it seems you are already on your trip, and I am sure you are having a great time!

No comments on parking that I see. Parking can be expensive and complicating anywhere.

just found this thread, we will be doing some of it in reverse (starting in Venice, ending in Florence after taking ferry from Split to Italy)

Some really good information here!

I thought I would report back on what we did last fall since I asked some questions about Split and Trogir while we were planning the trip.
We rearranged our timing and destinations because our friends in Sarajevo were able to join us for a long weekend in Croatia.

We left Sarajevo very early one morning and took the train to Mostar where we stayed overnight. My husband loves trains and this is a dramatic, beautiful trip with many--I forget exactly how many--tunnels and twists and turns. Our friends rented a car and met us that evening in Mostar where we all stayed overnight at the wonderful Muslibegovic house--highly recommended.

We visited Blagaj briefly the next morning then drove to Split. We explored Split, mostly the area right around Diocletian's Palace in the late afternoon to evening then got up early the next morning for more sightseeing time there. I would have liked another full day and we hope to go back and see more of the sights there and Trogir.

We left for Bol on the island of Brac on a late morning ferry and spent two nights there before heading back to Sarajevo.

We are also traveling to Croatia nd Slovenia in September 2013. This is the most current itinerary. I have to finalize our flights to and from by the 24th, so I hope that you all cna help us.

Dubrovnik 3 nights
Mostar 2 nights
Hvar 2 nights
Split 2 nights
Rovinj 2 nights
Ljubljana 3 nights
Lake Bled 2 nights
train to Venice and explore Friuli wine area
Venice 2 nights
home

I have emailed a ferry company, they told me that the schedule for September is not available yet. I am hoping to ferry from Split to northern Croatia, not sure if it exists.

Alison Haber

Unless you have specific things to see/do in Mostar, two nights there is probably too much. Unless you have been to Venice before(?), I'd probably add a night there for sure. Two nights in Venice is not much especially when you are ending your trip/flying out from there.

Same with Split: two nights might be more than you need, all depending. Split has its fans but generally people don't find much to do/see there. Many people stay in nearby Trogir instead.

Plitvice Lakes National Park (Croatia) didn't make your itinerary? Maybe it's not practical, but I wonder if you've considered it? It's a stunning place full of waterfalls and huge lakes with turquoise-colored water, one of the highlights of Croatia for sure.

As much as I loved Ljubljana (been there twice), it's a small city and three nights might be more than you need unless you have specific things to see there (or perhaps because you arrive late from Rovinj?). Again, I'd take a night for Venice instead if you don't take it from Mostar.

How are you getting place to place? You can do it all by public transit (mostly by bus and catamaran/ferry in Croatia) but it can be time consuming. Having a car at least in Croatia would be more practical; the only places it might be inconvenient would be Dubrovnik and Hvar, but you could pick it up as you leave Dubrovnik and not have to have it while there.

I don't know about the ferry to Rovinj, but if was running last year perhaps it will run again on some days, probably not every day.

Have you checked train connections between Bled and Venice? You'll probably need to detour up to Austria - it's not direct.

We loved Vintgar Gorge even after visiting Plitvice. I would try to fit them both in. It's only about a 15 minute drive from Bled, unless you take as many wrong turns as we did. Here is my trip report from 2008 (with plenty of photos). It includes many of the places you want to visit: Dubrovnik, Split, Trogir, Plitvice, Ljubljana, Bled, Vintgar Gorge, Rovinj and Venice.

http://www.travelswithmaitaitom.com/Tom_%26_Tracy_Home/Central_Europe_%26_Venice_2008/Central_Europe_%26_Venice_2008.html

Alison, you might want to start a new thread. Whether you do or not, tell us a bit more about the kind of things you like to see/do when traveling (hike? visit museums? eat? whatever!). That will help us respond.