[aneezan]

Long photo thread alert!

Last week, we went for a vacation to Croatia, specifically the Dalmatian Coast. Just about 2 weeks prior, we were deliberating between taking some time off and travelling or just staying at home. We had been to Dubai in February and that felt not too long ago.
One of our friends was planning a Germany road trip through the Black Forest region and though we had done this last year, it was tempting.

But this Croatian trip materialized when another friend suggested the plan. Having personally done the planning for all trips we had taken previously, I just decided to take it easy this time and go with his.

I took care of all the formalities: Air Tickets, Stay, Car Rental etc.

Day 1:-
We had booked a night flight from Cologne to Zadar(Croatia) via Ryanair. Started the 2 hour drive in the evening post work. As usual, a fairly un-eventful drive from home to Cologne. Parked at the airport at the long term parking area.

Cologne-Bonn Airport:-





Our flight: Lauda air(Ryanair Affiliate).



It was about 1.00 AM late in the night when we arrived at Zadar Airport. Thankfully, the temperature was a bit higher than in the Netherlands. We went straight to the rental car kiosks outside. The drive from Zadar airport to Omis(where we had our apartment booked) took about 2 hours.

Our car for the next 5 days was a white Polo 1.0 TSI DSG. Peppy and fun to drive, though the number of safety alarms that keep going off was irritating.
Some of the ones that kept beeping all through the 5 days:- Lane Departure, Driver Fatigue, Accident Detection, Seatbelt warning.(The seatbelt warning was for the rear middle seat. My kids were on either side and even if one of them places a hand in the middle seat, the alarm starts going off). I could turn these off, but being a rental, I didn't bother to fiddle with the settings.








The other 2 cars joining ours through the trip were a Kia Xceed and an Octavia.





Day 2:-
Our balcony view from the apartment; and what was to be the theme for the next few days: Blue-Green crystal clear waters, coastal road drives, mountains.







A late night to bed the previous night meant our actual day started late. We drove to Split(about 20 minutes) and decided to check out the Diocletian's Palace, or the remains-of. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
It was built for the Roman king Diocletian during 3 AD. Visiting is free of charge.






The narrow lanes through the palace, now lined with shops, restaurants, cafes and more museums.






The palace's central hall:-


Statue of Marco Marulic - Father of Croatian Literature, Croatian Renaissance, and Croatian National Poet etc:-



The Cathedral of St.Dominus:-
Further trivia: Part of the palace now, its regarded as the oldest Catholic cathedral in the world that remains in use in its original structure, without near-complete renovation at a later date. The structure itself, built in AD 305 is the second oldest structure used by any Christian Cathedral.(Source: Wikipedia)



Game of Thrones influence is visible. A lot of the series was shot in Croatia especially around Dalmatia. Not a fan of the GOT series(haven't even watched an episode) so didn't bother entering the museum.




Right next to the palace is the Split Riva. A beautiful waterfront promenade/walk facing the Adriatic sea with palm trees lining up both sides. Its the "happening" area of Split. Amazing place to spend some time.











At one end of the Riva lies the Republic Square, locally known as Prokurative. It’s a U-shaped red and white building. The building and the central area are mainly used for concerts, plays or such types of events.




Still tired with all the late night travel the previous day, we called it a day and hit our beds. The next day was bigger.

[aneezan]

Day 3: Plitvice National Park
Its said no visit to Croatia is complete without going to Plitvice National Park. Again a late start today, but we had booked our tickets for a 2.00 PM entry, so had enough time to sleep well and fresh. The tiredness had gone and we were looking forward to this day.

The drive from the hotel to the park took about 2.5 hours, of which about half was along the coast. The views along the coastal road are indeed wallpaper worthy. The route takes a turn towards the interior of the country after Zadar and the views get greener.

Roads leading up to the park:-




Three flags and some advice welcome visitors at the entrance:-






The first views as soon as one enters are indeed bound to take your breath away; they did for us anyway:-








Trivia alert:-
Plitvice Lakes National Park is a UNESCO Heritage site, famed for its picturesque lakes, caves, and waterfalls. The water color is green, and crystal clear. You can see the bottom. It’s the most visited attraction in Croatia. There are 16 interconnected lakes, separated by dams of limestone deposits. The lakes are famous because of the color and keep changing due to the quantity of minerals and the angle at which light hits the water.
You are not allowed to feed the fish.


There are various trekking paths differing in distance and difficulty, ranging from 3.5km to 18km. You can choose any path, and also switch between paths at the many connecting points. There are also buses and boats taking you to these connecting points.
With kids, we took the shortest route.




Winding Wooden walkways along the routes take you up close to the water and waterfalls:-








More photos of this amazing place:-












My kids got a real workout, and had a lot of fun, running around along these paths. It was chilly and a drizzle had started, so jackets were needed.






Some parts of the path are actually quite steep. Pictures don't tell the story:-




The buses within the park:-




More pictures:-










It was a wonderful day spent at Plitvice. We spent the whole afternoon here. The kids were tired with all the running around, but it was worth every bit of it. The memories would remain.

Chasing rainbows on the way back:-

[aneezan]

Day 4:- Biokovo Nature Park and Skywalk.

Again a late start. 3 families and lots of small kids meant we could ever really start early. We set out at around 12.30 pm to Biokovo Nature park and the mountains. It took about 1 hour to reach the base of the mountain and then another 30 minutes up, to reach the glass skywalk. The skywalk itself is not the peak and it takes another 30 minutes to reach there(which we didn't do). The drive along the coast and up the mountains gave us enough excitement for the day. There was a lot of greenery initially, but then later tapers out as we climbed higher.

Fantastic roads up to the mountain. It was on this drive that I really loved the Polo TSI 1.0. Shifted to Sports mode and the litre engine came to life. The speed limits on the highway is 130km/hr and range from 30km/hr to 100km/hr across other roads. There are sections on the highway where the limits are reduced to 100 or 80km/hr. I kept to these limits judiciously, but it felt only our three cars were doing so. The locals didn't seem to bother, most even doing double the speed limits. It was later that we got to know that the limits are only "advice" and are not strictly enforced. But there are some areas within the city limits where we have camera controlled zones.

Coastal roads; with the blue waters on one side and high mountains on the other:-







We get off the highway on to much smaller mountain road, which is partly gravel. This is a very narrow road, but with sections of it widened every 100 or 200m. We were stuck about 2 to 3 times, either reversing into or waiting for the cars in-front to move one of these wider sections.

Narrow roads up:-



At the top:-












Taking in the views:-










My daughter gazing into the abyss:-


The roads leading up the mountain:-


There is a shoe brush before you get on the skywalk(of-course )



We spent a couple of hours at the top taking in the scenery and the sun. The crowds were getting bigger. There was a lot of traffic coming up the hill. We decided to head back down.


On the way back, we decided to stop at a beach near the hotel for a swim.

The Adriatic Sea:-


The water is the same everywhere. Clear as it gets! You can see the bottom, at-least where its shallow. After a swim and some time in the sun, called it a day.


View of the craggy mountainline from the beach.

[aneezan]

Day 5 - "Island hopping":-

This day was all in the water. We spent the entire day in a boat. This was an island tour package in the Adriatic sea. The package comes along with drinks and a tour guide.
We visited Bisevo, Vis, the Blue Cave, Blue Lagoon, and Hvar.

Our boat for the day:-


Setting "sail" from Split:-









First stop at the famous Blue Cave at Bisevo Island. After Plitvice Park, this is the second most visited "place" in Croatia.

Nearing the Island:-


Clear Green Water:-





Tickets to the cave are 10 Euros per adult and 7 per kid above 6. We are taken by a much smaller boat(a couple on the right in the pic below) to the cave itself.




Entrance to the cave. Had to watch our heads. We were advised to crouch:-


Inside:-
Pictures again don't do justice to the views from the inside. Its like floating inside an aquarium. There is a few openings of which the biggest one causes this radiant blue light. The sunlight gets in through this hole and strikes off the white floor of the cave under the water and gives a blue glow throughout the cave. It really is astonishing and to be seen.
The water is so clear. We saw fish, crabs, jellyfish etc, right up to the bottom of the cave.










Entry/Exit from inside:-



Back on our boat to our next island halt for lunch:-





The bay was lined with restaurants and other small shops.



Post lunch, we set off again and visited another of the caves(Green Cave):-


Then, for a swim at the Blue lagoon and finally completed the tour with a halt at Hvar, the busiest town in all the islands:-





Our tour guide Anna with our daughter:-



We returned to Split at around 6.30 PM. Hungry and tired after getting beaten by the winds all day, we decided indulge in some local Croatian fish cuisine at a restaurant by the bay with the view of the sea and boats.

[aneezan]

Day 6:-
Our final day in Croatia. We checked out at 10.00AM. Our flight was at 9.00 PM from Zadar airport and since we had enough time to kill, we checked for other options along the way to the airport and decided on Klis Fortress. Its on a small detour on the way to Zadar and was worth the couple of hours spent.

It overlooks the Split City. As per history, was also used as a castle at various times.
The walk up the fort are steep.






Views from the top:-





Trivia:-



Inside the fort/castle:-













The Croatian Flag flies high at the top of the fort:-



We still had a couple of hours after this, so ended up at a Mall in Zadar and had a late lunch there.
Around 6.30PM, proceeded to the airport and dropped off our cars.
I had covered close to 1000KM on this trip within Croatia. We got the car with about 2200km on the odometer.



At 9:00 PM, we boarded the flight to Cologne and bid farewell to Croatia.
A fantastic trip in all. I would rate it as one of the best we've had in Europe along with our Swiss trip last year. Au revior till the next one.

[Aditya]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[Kkumar]

A wonderful travelogue with beautiful pictures. Which is the best time to visit Croatia? Can you please rate your stay and the documents required for a self drive car. Was language an issue there. Thank you for sharing and keep on munching miles.

[deovrat]

Brilliant travelogue. Really loved the pictures.

Croatia visa used to be an unknown quantity for me, since they weren't part of Schengen area till very recently. Looking forward to giving them a go in future.

[GForceEnjoyer]

What a travelogue, the pictures left me absolutely speechless! I had no idea that Croatia was such a beautiful country. How are the other transit options apart from driving (especially if one is visiting multiple Schengen countries in one trip)?

Thanks for the wonderful read.

[aneezan]

Originally Posted by Kkumar

A wonderful travelogue with beautiful pictures. Which is the best time to visit Croatia? Can you please rate your stay and the documents required for a self drive car. Was language an issue there. Thank you for sharing and keep on munching miles.

Thanks Kkumar. Its advisable to stay at Air B&Bs at Split/Omis. Hotels are available, though much more expensive. We stayed at an apartment between Split and Omis. It was very comfortable and had all the amenities for a family of 4(2 adults+2 kids). All appliances available and the owner stayed downstairs too, so was really helpful.

Language was not an issue. Most people know English. Only one instance where at a grocery store where with one of the attendants we had to repeat ourselves a couple of times.

Originally Posted by deovrat

Brilliant travelogue. Really loved the pictures.

Croatia visa used to be an unknown quantity for me, since they weren't part of Schengen area till very recently. Looking forward to giving them a go in future.

Thanks deovrat.

Originally Posted by GForceEnjoyer

What a travelogue, the pictures left me absolutely speechless! I had no idea that Croatia was such a beautiful country. How are the other transit options apart from driving (especially if one is visiting multiple Schengen countries in one trip)?

Thanks for the wonderful read.

Thanks GForceEnjoyer. For the Dalmatian coast at-least, its much better to rent a car. The roads are amazing.
Local transport is available within the towns, and buses for inter-city transport as well. Uber is a possibility too.

[predatorwheelz]

Beautiful travelogue with great pictures. I had planned a trip to Croatia in 2018, full itinerary and all, but fate had other plans back then. These pictures just make me want to revive that itinerary all over again.

You based yourself out of Split and did everything (including the legendary Plitvice national park) from there on day tours? Why no journey to South Croatia, especially Dubrovnik?

2 more questions. Is Croatia part of Schengen now (it wasn't so back then)? Do they accept Euros everywhere or a currency change is required?

[aneezan]

Originally Posted by predatorwheelz

Beautiful travelogue with great pictures. I had planned a trip to Croatia in 2018, full itinerary and all, but fate had other plans back then. These pictures just make me want to revive that itinerary all over again.

You based yourself out of Split and did everything (including the legendary Plitvice national park) from there on day tours? Why no journey to South Croatia, especially Dubrovnik?


2 more questions. Is Croatia part of Schengen now (it wasn't so back then)? Do they accept Euros everywhere or a currency change is required?

We had Dubrovnik the initial plan, but with only 5 days, opted out of it. As I mentioned, i personally didn't plan the trip. But we are looking forward to planning again.


Croatia is now a Schengen state. Euros are accepted everywhere.

[luvurride]

Great travelog with some nice pictures!

Just wanted to get some information and pointers on the blue cave and five islands trip you did. Have sent you a PM on the same.

[Anirudhneni]

Really well written travel diary and very nice pictures! I have my Croatia trip upcoming in August, excited for it!

Did you book your tickets for Plitvice National Park in advance? If so, how early? Also, you mentioned that speed limits are not enforced but merely an advice. Would going with the speed of highway traffic (maintaining safe distances) should not get us in any trouble?

Finally, was the 5-island hop tour worth it in terms of price and effort? I see that most 5 island tours are planned for about 10 hours. Wondering if I should opt for a single or two island so I have more time to do other activities that day.

[aneezan]

Originally Posted by Anirudhneni

Really well written travel diary and very nice pictures! I have my Croatia trip upcoming in August, excited for it!

Did you book your tickets for Plitvice National Park in advance? If so, how early? Also, you mentioned that speed limits are not enforced but merely an advice. Would going with the speed of highway traffic (maintaining safe distances) should not get us in any trouble?

Finally, was the 5-island hop tour worth it in terms of price and effort? I see that most 5 island tours are planned for about 10 hours. Wondering if I should opt for a single or two island so I have more time to do other activities that day.

A couple of days in advance at-least is required for Plitvice. We went during the off-season, so it was easy. But as summer begins, you should get tickets earlier.

I am not sure about going over the speed limits. You can go with a 10km/hr buffer, but just incase we are caught/fined, it doesn't make our travel easier. Safer to stick within the limits.

The island tour are three at a minimum per day per tour. But there are lots of options. You can visit the bay and the palace where there are lots of tour operators and then decide.