Croatia and Slovenia Tips: 2011
Croatia and Slovenia are emerging as Europe's hottest new destinations - and we're joining in the fun. This summer we're writing a new guidebook on those destinations (to be published in the spring of 2007). We want your help. If you've been to Croatia or Slovenia, what were your favorite destinations, accommodations, restaurants, or tips? If you haven't been there yet, but want to go, what would you like to see covered in the book?
- Please don't post questions here. Use our Travelers Helpline.
Croatia in 1995-96
We spent nearly a year in Rijeka and the area for nearly a year(on a Fulbright) and visited towns and ports along the entirety of the Adriatic coast. An American was an oddity and few spoke English, but the treasures were so many. Of course all of the post-Communist mindset was still there; you "take what you're given or go elsewhere" restaurants; outgoing mail must be unsealed for inspection; arbitrary traffic stops. So give them a break [INVALID]the western idea of service, etc., is still new. Then there wasn't even a McDonalds anywhere to be seen; truly unspoiled. As the Dayton Accord was signed, we visited Dubrovnik and had the city entirely to ourselves, except for an occasional military person on vacation. From the wall, the damage to the tile roofs from the shelling were unbelievable. Since then we see most if not all were restored. Back then, the dollar was worth five of their "kuna", and the fresh seafood & wines were treasures. Don't miss Hvar, Primosten, and Stari Grad. The ancient history is everywhere- Look for remains of the ancient Roman wall in Stari Grad and you literally feel it's not changed at all since then. The remains of the Roman colosseum in Pula on Istria, the most complete of any known. Apologies for the length of this; wish all could've experienced the Adriatic coast/Croatia pre-tourists.
Susan Harper
Versailles, KY USA Sun 01/01/2012
worst service ever encountered!
stella di mare pizzeria,trattoria. waterfront in rovinj Croatia
the waiter who was drunk,
snapped at us for only ordering pizza,then never brought our order,said oh im drunk sorry, we left after sitting there 30 min,read the bad reviews in trip advisor,hes not Croat, so dont blame them, horrible experience!
no name
nj USA Fri 12/02/2011
Dubrovnik and Bled tips
Definitely include at least one dinner at Nishta in Dubrovnik. We ate there 2 out of the 3 nights we were there. Villa Ragusa is a very nice hotel with Pero an excellent host.
Alp Penzion in Bled was the best hotel on our 3 week trip with the best breakfasts.
Mike
Gig Harbor, WA USA Sun 10/30/2011
General
Dubrovnik is too crowded for a pleasant stay but don ont miss the war photography museum. On Korcula shop for local art at www.vapor.gallery.com. Buy the best salt at Piranske Soline in Ljubljana
Christine
Devon, PA USA Tue 10/11/2011
Croatia uodates
Hi,
I just spent 3 hours lying on a sun-warmed rock in Hvar. A few [INVALID]s for your next book:
* the fortress in Hvar is 25 kuna now * the cable cars in Dubrovnik are up and running * I am traveling as a single female and have felt 100% safe the entire time * Lydia Matec's soba in Dubrovnik is great! She's a sweetheart and it's nice to pop up (90-some) stairs and take a midday break.
Thank you for all the advice from your book.
Patty
Columbus, Oh USA Tue 10/04/2011
Trip impressions-Croatia, Slovenia, Montenegro
We used Rick's latest tour book for our 3 week trip. We had a great time. We used public transportation...buses primarily and found the two week itinerary barely doable in three weeks. We stopped for two days in each place with one extra day in Lake Bled. Ljubljana was our favorite city. Its citizens were so nice, helping with directions and assuring that all was okay! The City tour was informative and gave us a chance to rub elbows with a lovely "local". Although we liked our housing host and found some good food, we found Dubrovnik to be too crowded, expensive and touristy. We loved Split- great ruins and Josip was so helpful. Rovinj is NOT TO BE MISSED! Small, charming, great swimming, good food and lots of artist owned shops for those that are into shopping. In hindsight, Kotor, Montenegro is too far and too much of an expense to make it worth the hassle (had to rent a car; border crossings are time consuming; it is a long ways to drive and not that much different from other locations). There is a similar incredible wall at Ston. Zagreb is a bustling city that was fun to visit. The waterfalls at Plitvice are unlike anything we have seen. The water is azure, and the many "falls" drift over the edge in wispy mists. The state run Bellevue Hotel there was more like a college dorm and did not make for easy sleeping! Pula was a pleasant surprise. The Roman coliseum is super well preserved making it eerily easy to imagine the gladiator scene with the cheering citizens packed to the top. Lake Bled is picturesque, we were glad we stayed in old town. For more of a Julian Alps experience, we wished we would have spent more time at neighboring Lake Bohinj. FYI the walk from Bohinj town to the Vogel Mountain cable car is a VERY LONG! We had lost some of hiking verve before we even got to the Vogel mountain top. The guidebook is absolutely indispensable and has great advice from cover to cover! Thanks to the Rick Steves team!
Mark Wiger
minneapolis, MN-Min USA Mon 10/03/2011
Lake Bled, Slovenia
We took a day trip from Vicenza, Italy up to Lake Bled, Slovenia. It was so gorgeous. It was mid August so there were plenty of tourists but it didn't seem crowded at all. We strolled around the lake and took a rowboat to the the church/island in the middle of the lake. We also had very good pizza and salads at Pizza Rustica. Probably better than we've had in over 3 weeks in Italy! If you want to get away from the heat in Italy, take a break in Slovenia. Truly a beautiful place.
Mary
Danville, CA USA Fri 08/19/2011
Montenegro and day sailing on The Monty B
We rented a flat in Dobrota on the Bay of Kotor at the end of our RS Adriatic tour. What a great time! Highlight was a day of sailing on the Monty B http://www.montenegro4sail.com/ with Tim and Katie a delightful British couple and their two little dogs. Swam, visited an abandoned island fortress, a wonderful day ending with G&T's at sunset. The Bay of Kotor has a lot to see, some delightful small restaurants. Kotor itself is a nice little walled city, but can get overwhelmed when the cruise ships are in. We took the road with many switchbacks into the mountains- what a great ride. Beware of a speed trap coming down towards Budva where the speed limit goes from 80 to 30 in a heartbeat. If you are visiting this area spending some time here is really worthwhile. A day trip, while better than nothing, does not do it justice.
Alan
Folsom, CA USA Thu 07/28/2011
Dubronik/Bay of Kotor Tours
I noticed that several travelers mentioned Pepo Klaic, who provides tours in the Dubrovnik. My wife and I spent the day with Pepo for a drive in the Dubrovnik area, and to the Bay of Kotor in Montenegro. Pepo (Pero) was great -- we highly recommend him.
Phil
San Diego, CA USA Mon 07/25/2011
Ljubljana
I simply loved this town. It was the friendliest place we found. It is a small town, very walkable, with some of the most crazy people (in a good way) that we found in Europe. We only gave it one night, which was a mistake.
Paul Thompson
Sioux Falls, SD USA Mon 07/04/2011
Slovenia
In May we took a short day trip across the border from Italy to Lipica, Slovenia to visit the Lipica Stud Farm founded in 1580. Loved seeing the beautiful Lipizzans, the wonderful facility and the farm tour. It is a destination place for horse people. One note of caution evidently we should have purchased a road use sticker to display on our windshield for about 15 Euros. Without the sticker it cost us 150 Euros to get out of Slovenia.
Melanie
Winchester, IL USA Sun 06/05/2011
Strip Searched at Croatian Border
Went through Croatian border control, the highway between Maribor (Slovenia) and Zagreb, for a one-day visit to Zagreb. As a heads up to fellow travelers, I was strip-searched, as was one of my companions. Two of us are American citizens (I am an average-looking, well-dressed 40-year-old woman), the other two are UK citizens. We were also hassled on the way out. The fact that we had musical instruments in the van probably made them think that we were hiding drugs in parts of our bodies where the sun doesn't shine. They made us remove our clothes before looking though our bags or vehicle. We don't do drugs, and barely drink. Had this all happened a little more slowly, I would have demanded to contact the American Embassy before they went any further, but I didn't think that being taken to a little room without my husband and friends meant I had to remove my clothes and be felt up by a police woman.
Jessica
Toledo, OH USA Tue 03/22/2011