Croatia- what's it like as a holiday destination?

Question

This year I'm thinking about going to craotia but i need to have some forst hand expeirances of the country, If any one could give me some details about it like where's the best place to stay, generally what kind of place is it

thank you in advance

x.x.x

Answer 1

My family is very passionate about traveling, and of all the places we've been, Croatia has been one of my favorites. It's a beautiful, fascinating country rich in history and natural splendor, the people are lovely, and it's incredibly affordable in comparison to most of western Europe.

When I was little we used to sail along the coast and stop in Dubrovnik and Split. The weather is magnificent in the spring and summer. It does get to be a bit hot and humid in August, but if you're on the water it's still nice.

When I was 14 (summer of 06) I spent three weeks traveling around Croatia on vacation with my dad & stepmom and I loved every day there. I thought Zagreb was really pretty and interesting, and I made a few cool friends there. It's very interesting to know someone your own age who has lived through the history you just read about in your textbook. You can feel the scars of the war in parts of Croatia, but not in a depressing way. It's actually kind of encouraging in a way because you see how they've persevered through all that horror....

Zagreb has a sort of dignity to it, and it has great shopping, and an awesome music scene. Just chilling at a cafe on Tkalciceva Street and people watching was one of my best times there.

Hemingway once described Dubrovnik as "paradise on earth" and it was a very apt description. It's sun-drenched, colorful, and glorious. You absolutely must spend time here. Bring your walking shoes with you because you're going to do a lot of it there!! You'll also want to have plenty of memory on your camera because you're never going to put it down when you go up to Pile Gate!

The beaches in Dubrovnik aren't great - they're mainly just pebbles, but you can definitely still get sun there.

Some of my favorite experiences:

Hlebine, this charming really cool little village for painters & scupltors. I'm a painter, and this one guy even gave me a canvas to work on.

Hanging out at the Forum Square in p**a. It's an amazing Roman ruin, the Temple of Augustus, that dates from 2BC!!! The Romans who designed it were soooo brilliant, and it's beautiful & fascinating.

Driving through the National Parks. They are all breathtakingly beautiful. Krka & Plitvice Lakes National Parks were the most stunning, but they all magnificent. You will forget that you are in real-life and not inside of a painting because it's just so pretty...until you see a sign warning you to stay on the road because of undiscovered land mines.

Zlatni Rat (Brac Island): it's just so beautiful your mouth will start to hurt because you've been smiling so much. It's THE postcard view  of Croatia.

I would strongly encourage anyone to go to Croatia........as soon as possible! The Lonely Planet picked it as the top destination in the world a few years ago, and more and more tourists are pouring in. Before the war, it was a major holiday spot for Germans, Scandinavians & the Brits, and they were the first to come back afterwards. You want to go before the prices shoot up and it becomes overcrowded like Prague.

It will always be lovely, though. I'm hoping to go there after I graduate next summer with my boyfriend and go to the music festivals and hire a car and explore.

Check out:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForum-g29...

http://www.ricksteves.com/graffiti/graff...

http://search.lonelyplanet.com/search.do...

http://www.frommers.com/destinations/cro...

for ideas on accommodation that fits your budget / style & for more tips. My parents booked all the hotels & got the boat and all, so I don't really know the scoop on the costs and all. These sites should help you out. I would def. recommend hiring a car there. It's a great way to explore!

Btw, Croatian men are HOT. : )

Answer 2

Naturally the hope is that people who have traveled there will respond but, until then, here is a bit of information from a very reputable site. At this site they mention a significant danger to be found in far off villages. Give it a quick read.

http://www.lonelyplanet.com/worldguide/c...

Answer 3

I travelled there alone and felt it was wonderful. I did it in conjuction with a trip to SLovenia so coming from Ljubljana I went to Zargreb. This is a small city in comparison to othe european cities so it doesnt need a huge amount of time to see but its nice and the largest city in croatia. It also has a completely different feel to the other coastal towns.

I did an overnight bus trip from Zargreb to Dubrovnik which takes about 12hrs but it saved on accommodation and its very reasonably cost.

If you do it during the day you can stop at the national lakes which are apparently wonderful, but i did not have enough time.

Dubrovnik is very pretty...i got accommodation when I got off the bus, there was a man waiting there with official cards and things as if you go into an unregistered accomodation you can get fined as there are tourism police...but its quite reasonable and accomodation is like a B&B, in peoples homes. I stayed out of the older part of town but you can get inot town by bus or walk. THe old part of town is where it all is and you can walk around it on a wall which gives great views... otherwise just meander.

I took a bus to Split as there are no trains up the coast. Split is nice too and quite bustling when I got there ( there was an expo on) but there is an old early cathedral which is apparently the oldest or one of the oldest and has some egyptian remnants...

the coastline itself is pretty cool and water is lovey.

I went up to Zadar which is less tourist friendly than the other places but still nice..prob less to see there as well but its on the coast and has great sea views.

I wanted to go to one or two of the islands but agina ran out of time...a great place to go!!!