Agreed - Istria is great! I only had a few days in the area - and only a week total in Croatia - but could have spent more. We wished we'd only spent one day in Dubrovnik. It's GORGEOUS, but terribly touristy and that took away from the enjoyment.

Check out Plitvice Lakes. We drove Dubrovnik - Split - Plitvice - Istria. Stayed overnight near Plitvice and were there when they opened in the morning. Really magical, but try to get there with fewer crowds. We rented a car and had no issues driving other than in Istria when we made a wrong turn and ended up on an abandoned railway path along a mountainside with nowhere to turn around. That was not awesome.

I'd like to go back and enjoy the islands plus more of Istria.

Anonymous wrote:I would avoid touristy cities like split and Dubrovnik and rent a villa in Istria near Motovun. Great central location to explore coastal towns and hill towns. Fly into venice and tack on 3 days in the city on the backend……easy drive.

While we LOVED Istria and spent a week there (Rovinj and surrounding areas), I can’t imagine skipping Dubrovnik or Split. Istria is basically Croatian Italy. I highly recommend visiting the Southern Eastern parts of the country. We really enjoyed Zagred too.

I would avoid touristy cities like split and Dubrovnik and rent a villa in Istria near Motovun. Great central location to explore coastal towns and hill towns. Fly into venice and tack on 3 days in the city on the backend……easy drive.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dh and I just spent 10 days in Croatia - loved it!

We started in Split, hit up some islands, and ended in Dubrovnik. Only Dubrovnik felt super crowded to us.

There are tons of cool places to see, and the water is gorgeous. One of our highlights was truffle hunting - so much fun!

We worked with Private Tours Croatia, and our trip was similar to this one (but customised for us): https://www.private-tours-croatia.com/tour/luxury-dalmatia-tour

you have to contact them for a price. Can I ask ballpark what this tour cost you?

For the two of us for ten days it was around $10K. It included all hotel rooms, breakfasts, private tour guides, private car transfers and ferry tickets, any included activities/entrance fees, and some meals along the way. Airfare was on our own. We generally paid out of pocket for one meal a day plus some snacks and drinks snd gratuities.

You could definitely put something together yourself for less money, but we wanted someone local to help us plan and keep us a bit separate from the large group tours, given Covid. It was a luxury to land in Croatia and then have no worries about anything other than where to eat dinner!

I went to Croatia many times pre-kids, but I think it would be very easy to manage with a family. I agree with PP—do Dubrovnik, Split and an island to keep it manageable. The people are so fun and nice. I like to stay in one place and live like a local for awhile wherever I go, and Croatia was one of the best places for it!

Anonymous wrote:Dh and I just spent 10 days in Croatia - loved it!

We started in Split, hit up some islands, and ended in Dubrovnik. Only Dubrovnik felt super crowded to us.

There are tons of cool places to see, and the water is gorgeous. One of our highlights was truffle hunting - so much fun!

We worked with Private Tours Croatia, and our trip was similar to this one (but customised for us): https://www.private-tours-croatia.com/tour/luxury-dalmatia-tour

you have to contact them for a price. Can I ask ballpark what this tour cost you?

Dh and I just spent 10 days in Croatia - loved it!

We started in Split, hit up some islands, and ended in Dubrovnik. Only Dubrovnik felt super crowded to us.

There are tons of cool places to see, and the water is gorgeous. One of our highlights was truffle hunting - so much fun!

We worked with Private Tours Croatia, and our trip was similar to this one (but customised for us): https://www.private-tours-croatia.com/tour/luxury-dalmatia-tour

Was considering Greece but don't know if the crowds and all the ferrying is something I want to manage. 2 kids will be MS ages for summer 2023 travels.

How is Croatia?

We ended up in Tahiti for our honeymoon but seriously considered Croatia years ago. Any recs for family of 4 next summer? Beach, history, beauty, something relaxing/interesting but mellow too. Off the beaten path stuff works too