How to Travel Croatia in a Week

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Croatia sits right across the Adriatic Sea from Italy, between Slovenia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Its popularity has been increasing rapidly in recent years (thanks in part to GoT). I had a week to travel Croatia and a really long list of places that felt like non-negotiable destinations, so I opted to rent a car and drive. My friend Alexis met me there to join in on the adventure. I think it’s usually more fun to have a travel buddy.

We were able to pack a ton of adventure into a week, but I want you to know that, in my humble opinion, 6 days is definitely NOT enough time to really enjoy Croatia! I love that I got to see so much, but I certainly sacrificed depth of experience for breadth. I would recommend 2-3 full days per destination as a benchmark.

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To optimize the amount we could see and do in that short amount of time I opted to rent a car. We started our Croatia travel in Dubrovnik, and drove to Split, Krka, Zadar, Plitvice Lakes and finally to Zagreb. To save on costs, I booked a round-trip flight to Zagreb, and then booked a one-way flight for $80 to Dubrovnik, which ended up being much cheaper than booking a one-way to Dubrovnik and another return one-way from Zagreb.

When to go

We chose the last week of September for our trip, mainly because that’s when my friend and I could both fit it into our work schedules. The weather was absolutely beautiful – shorts during the day, and jackets at night. We were able to enjoy the beach sunshine (though the water is a bit chilly) and still dress up in cute fall clothing to go out for dinner. 

Aside from the beautiful weather, another major benefit of going at the end of September was the lack of tourists (yes, I know I am a tourist). Our skipper for the boat tour in Split showed us pictures of how crowded boat traffic on the islands can get and it did not look fun. It improved the experience at all of our destinations to not feel crowded, rushed or overwhelmed by massive crowds. Perhaps most notably, traffic was so easy and the roads were not crowded. I don’t know how anyone would find parking in a city during busy season.

Driving in Croatia

The major benefit of driving ourselves was that we could go where we wanted when we wanted without having to sort out public transportation.

Driving ourselves ended up being the right call and I’d highly recommend renting a car. The roads are very easy to navigate and the speed limits are generally not fast. The main reason I recommend driving is that the views from everywhere along the coast are stunning and we found ourselves pulling over just to soak in the scenery. If you end up staying in just one city however, I wouldn’t rent a car as it’s pretty straight-forward to do day trips with tour companies from a single city.

We wanted the freedom to explore and stop along the road for photos. Since we moved almost every day it was an added benefit to be able to leave things in the trunk of the car. It also meant we packed as light as possible, since lugging massive bags to the car everyday would not be fun. That’s where efficient packing and accessorizing can come in handy – you can check out some of my favorite things to bring here.

Driving through Bosnia and Herzegovina

This was a very easy drive for us; we both have US passports, so I can’t speak to the difficulty or visa requirements for other nationals (sorry!). We didn’t have to do any advance planning and didn’t require visas. There are two checkpoints along the road, one at each border crossing. We went at mid-day and luckily experienced almost no wait and a very quick passport check process. It barely took any more time than it would take to pay a toll in cash (except instead they just stamped our passports).

Parking in Croatia

The most (and only?) complicated aspect was sorting out the logistics of where to park. We ended up relying very heavily on our apartment hosts for recommendations because sometimes you cannot park within city walls. In Dubrovnik there is street parking, which can get a bit expensive if you are there more than a day. We ended up paying about $15 to park for the night. However, you can occasionally find a free parking lot, especially if you aren’t right next to Old Town or if you go during off-season. In Split, we paid $10 to rent our hosts parking spot for the night, which was outside the city walls. In Zadar, we again relied on our hosts to help us find a parking spot; you can park inside the city walls here, but it’s tough to find a spot.

Day 1: Dubrovnik

The drive from the airport up the coast to Dubrovnik is the perfect introduction to coastal Croatia.

We spent one night here (I did mention this was a whirlwind tour) and I would definitely return just to spend a week exploring this beautiful city. We opted for a place 15 minutes walking distance from Old Town. It was far enough that apartment prices were be a bit lower and parking was a bit easier.

Spend the evening exploring

We arrived at our apartment late afternoon and were planning to hit the road the next morning. With just one evening in Dubrovnik we chose to spend our time ambling around Old Town.

We checked out Buza Bar for a glass of wine and a beautiful view before dinner. Finding the bar was an adventure in an of itself. We wound our way through the city streets to the back wall along the coast. There’s a door in the wall that felt more like entering someone’s garden than a bar. It’s tucked away in the side of the cliff and has a steep set of stairs down to the water. It’s definitely a worthwhile stop if you can make it for sunset or if you like beer (we just missed sunset and I’m actually not big on beer, but I still found the place lovely). I’ll add the caveat that it is clearly a popular tourist spot, which I didn’t mind, but for those more interested in cultural interaction, this might not be a go-to.

For dinner we walked over to Restaurant Kopun just at the top of the historic fortress stairs, also called Jesuit Stairs (apparently also a filming spot for GoT in season 5). The food, service and view were great. We left feeling satisfied and really tired after some wine and a long day of travel.

Side note: I think we passed a million Game of Thrones tours as we walked around – so you’re covered if that’s your thing. It’s not my thing, but I live under a rock so…

Enjoy breakfast with a view

Before setting off for Split the next morning, we walked into town and stopped at Dubranka 1836 for breakfast. The prices were comparable to other restaurants in the area, the food was good, but the view really sold it. The restaurant is just outside the Old Town walls with a waterfront view of both Tvrdava Bokar (no clue how to pronounce that, but it’s a 15th c. fortress that juts out into the sea) and Fort Lovrijenac (a 16th c. fortress, aka the Red Keep in King’s Landing).

Day 2-3: Split

Split is a cobblestone maze of shops, eateries, gelato and history.

Sleep in the palace

We slept at an apartment in Diocletian’s Palace for the two nights we were in Split. I thought it would be fun to stay inside the city walls, but since we had a car, we chose an apartment that was relatively near the outer wall because – parking 🙁

Our hostess was so kind. She educated us as to the regulations for owning a home in the palace (e.g. things like, you can’t build with cement) and told us where to get a great dinner. She keeps the extra apartment for income and so that her daughters have an escape to the city when they need it.

Where to eat

Gourmet Bar Basta was a great place to get dinner on the harbor. The restaurant has a great view out over the water and it has the best pizza I’ve had in a long time with tons of bizarre options.

We wanted to have a nice dinner one of the nights in Split and our apartment host recommended Bokeria, which was right down the street. It did not disappoint. We accidentally spent 3 hours at the restaurant enjoying dinner, drinking wine, and chatting.

Locating good coffee was a priority for us in just about every city. We went to D16 a couple of times for coffee and were happy with it. I’m not used to the option of having whipped cream and espresso, so I was in heaven. Guilty: I also may or may not now drink my coffee with whipped cream whenever possible.

Boat tour from Split

We knew that we wanted to go see some of the islands near Split, so we booked a boat rental for a day, which we found for close to $600 (including fuel). It’s a lot of money, and also was literally the cheapest option for hiring our own boat that I could find. We wanted the freedom to spend as long as we like at various beaches/snorkeling/exploring, so it felt entirely worth it.

We headed down to the pier by 9am where our skipper picked us up promptly on time. Because we didn’t have a very clear idea about what was reasonable to expect for one day and wanted to see as much as possible, he recommended we head to Trogir, Blue Lagoon, stop at Restoran Turanj in Stomorska on Solta Island and then a little lagoon just down the coast that I still can’t find the name of. He was concise, polite, and we liked him immediately.

Trogir

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Blue Lagoon

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Stomorska

We stopped on Solta and docked at Stomorska for lunch at Restoran Turanj. We didn’t even end up having to look at the menu; as soon as the waitress mentioned fresh fish we were sold. We sat there for the next hour eating fresh fish with our hands. When we finished, we stepped back onto the boat and headed just around the bend to a lagoon to swim and drink mojitos.

After returning from a day on the boat, we got dinner – and, of course, gelato – and walked around before passing out early. The next morning we were off to Krka on our drive up to Zadar.

Day 4: Krka National Park

Krka National Park is almost halfway between Split and Zadar so it was a natural stop along our drive. We entered Skradin (the nearby town) into gps and were on our way. The road winds through town until it dead-ends into a parking lot right on the water – perfect. We walked around and eventually stopped for a quick lunch at Hajduk Fast Food for coffees and sandwiches. I also learned that ordering an iced coffee results in an elaborate drink with ice cream. I was not expecting that, but also wasn’t mad about it.

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We were a little bit unsure of how often the ferry leaves so we ate quickly and walked over to the ticket office. It’s a massive building right near the parking lot, so it was easy to find. Ferries are supposed to leave every hour, but in actuality it seemed like they run more often than that.

From Skradin you can hop on a 20-minute ferry ride up the river to Skradinski Buk. Skradinski Buk is the longest waterfall in the park and the main attraction for visitors. From the ferry dock, a quick 5-minute walk gets you to the falls, which looks and feels like a secret paradise. I think I could describe all of Croatia this way, but Krka really does feel like a fairyland or elven kingdom.

You are allowed to swim in the pool at the base of the falls – and so we did (but it was really cold)! We then walked up the falls, stopping for photos and of course – gelato. The trail hugs the falls and can be quite steep and even slippery at certain points. We managed fine in sandals thanks to the stairs and rails built in the whole way – no need for proper shoes.

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Day 5: Zadar

From Krka, we drove north to Zadar, where we rented an apartment inside the city walls. Luckily we were allowed to drive our car inside city walls and park right outside the apartment. We only spent one night here so we packed in the sightseeing. The first evening we walked out to the pier to the Sun Salutation to watch the light show. This solar powered work of art produces an incredible light show after dark. The architect/artist who created this large circular fixture, Nikola Basic, also created the nearby Sea Organ.

After appreciating the solar-powered artwork, we walked along the water before stopping for dinner at Trattoria Mediterraneo. Then of course we had to get gelato on our way back to the apartment.

One of the wonderful things about Zadar is that it’s small. In 24 hours you can feel reasonably well-oriented wandering around the city. The second day, we visited the Church of St. Donatus, climbed the bell tower, sat in People’s Square for an espresso and a cake… maybe you’re catching on at this point that I have a ~mild~ coffee obsession. We also went back to the Sea Organ and Sun Salutation and watched an air show flying around above the pier.

When we went to climb the bell tower, we came across a hand written sign saying that the caretaker was out and visitors should pay on the way back down. To me that just demonstrates that Zadar hasn’t yet become quite the well-oiled tourist machine that many other cities have.

Hear me out…

The Sea Organ may be one of my favorite things about Zadar. Its creator, Nikola Basic, is the same architect who designed the Sun Salutation. The Sea Organ is a series of tubes cut into the stone pier. As the waves come and go they force air into the 35 tubes, which creates a slightly chaotic organ sound. As boats go by and create more regular intervals between waves, the sound becomes even more music-like.

We left Zadar mid-afternoon to head to Plitvice Lakes, where we planned to stay the night. On the way (benefit of driving ourselves) we stopped at one of the million cheese and honey stands. We picked out two cheeses and a honey that actually had a slight pine flavor – it sounds weird, but it was fantastic.

Day 6: Plitvice Lakes

Plitvice Lakes is the reason I wanted to travel to Croatia. Seeing the stunning photographs of this park pushed Croatia to the top of my list. The end of September is the perfect time to visit because it’s less crowded, not too chilly, and the foliage is still bright and just beginning to change to autumn colors around the almost-opaque aqua pools.

Park at Entrance 2

There are two main entrances to Plitvice Lakes. We chose the South Entrance, or Entrance 2. We wanted to hike the less-crowded H trail, which starts at the South Entrance (recommended to us by our lodge host). The H trail is a 9km trail that starts with a tram ride to the upper lakes. It winds through the upper lakes and headed down to the lower lakes, taking a ferry along the way. We grabbed a map from the information booth, but rarely consulted it because the signage is pretty straightforward.

Arrive by 8am

We arrived early, just as the park was opening. That meant we got a head start on the trails and (mostly) stayed ahead of massive groups for the first half of the hike. The trails are a combination of cleared dirt pathways and beautiful wooden walkways. The walkways are narrow. There were times we got stuck behind large groups who were stopping for photo ops or to just stand and take in the view.

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Keep in mind that you can’t swim at Plitvice Lakes. I was so fascinated with all the twists and turns and beautiful things to see on the trail that I didn’t feel like I missed out by not being allowed to jump in… but don’t pack a suit.

What to bring?

• Snacks you can eat on the go (there aren’t great options unless you want to spend your time hanging out in the very boring campsite-like rest areas)
• Water
• Sunscreen
• Camera
• Jacket or sweatshirt (it can get a little chilly once you’ve climbed down into the trees so if you’ll be there early morning I’d plan to bring a jacket)

We stayed for about 4-5 hours hiking the H trail and taking photos, but it would be easy to keep wandering around if you have the time. If I did this again, I might spend two nights in the area in order to wake up early and spend all of daylight walking around the park.

Other road trip stops in Croatia: Kamen Brela and Rastoke

Kamen Brela and Rastoke are two of my top travel destinations in Croatia, but they aren’t well-known. These two places are not near each other and are nothing alike, except that they are both stunning. Along the way, we made these two unplanned stops and they surpassed expectation. I tend to prioritize natural beauty, so these were treasures for me. I really wanted to post a bunch of photos at full size so I turned it into a whole separate post – you can check it out here.

On my list for future travel in Croatia

There are definitely places I still want to travel to in Croatia. One week is not enough time to travel through Croatia and enjoy everything. Here is my note-to-self (and you) of the places still on my list to see. In order of priority they are:

• Stiniva beach on Vis Island
• Korcula Town Gate on Korcula Island
• Zagreb: St. Mark’s Church, Art Park, Mirogoj Cemetery
• Golden Horn beach on Brac Island
• Dubrovnik: Sveti Jakov beach, Dance beach
• Zadar: Nin beach just north of Zadar
• Blue Cave on Bisevo Island