Croatia
General Info
Last visitedAugust 2006
FoodBarbecued meat and barbecued fish, that's what's mostly ordered in restaurants. Once you are fed up with meat, have a pizza or some other Italian food.
TransportThe motorway along the coast is quite new and in a good condition. The road along the coast is full of bends, you hardly get anywhere. Ferries to the islands operate quite freqently. A crossing to and from Cres takes about one hour and costs 20 EUR for the car including passengers.
BeachesCroatia does not have many sandy beaches. You spread your towel on a rock or on the graval beach. The water is cristal - clear. Don't forget to take your snorkeling gear and water shoes.
Travelling during high seasonYou don't have to book in advance. Rooms can be found almost everywhere. There's signs outside the house which say 'rooms available' or 'Zimmer frei' in German. If you don't find anything, especially in cities, go to the travel office. They will find something for you.
DoTravel by your own car.
Find a nice place on an island and spend a couple of days there.
Book your vacation on a holiday resort. You might not get what you saw in the advertisements.
Do self catering. It is as expensive as having your meals in restaurants.
Travelling on Saturdays in July or August. You will be stuck in traffic jams.
Day 1:
Zurich - Venice: 545km / 7hrs
Day 2:
Venice - Karlovac - Lakes of Plitwitz: 420km / 8hrs
Day 3:
See the lakes (Roundtrip takes about 4.5 hrs) -- Lakes of Plitwice - Zadar: 153km / 2hrs
Day 4:
Zadar - Nin - Novi Vindoloski - Krk - Cres - Valun: 289km / 9hrs / Ferry takes approx. 1.5hrs including waiting time
Day 5:
Stay one full day in Valun
Day 6:
Valun - Cres - Perezina - Pula - Rovinj: 153km / 7hrs / Ferry takes approx. 1.5hrs including waiting time
Day 7:
Rovinj - Vrsar - Porec - Novigrad - Umag: 47km / 5hrs
Day 8:
Stay at the beach
Day 11:
Umag - Groznjan - Hum - Roc - Buzet - Motovun - Buje - Umag: 140km / 5hrs
Day 12:
Stay at the beach
Day 14:
Umag - Zurich: 789km / 12.5hrs
Cres
The capital of the island with the same name has a good atmosphere. There's a lot of cafés around the port where people sit outside in the morning hours, drink cappuccinos and have a chat. The old town is a maze. Difficult to find a way out. Cres is cool, Valun is cool, the entire island is cool.
Grosnjan
A medieval small town on a hill in the interior of Istria. There's one arts gallery next to the other. Touristy.
Hum
The smallest town of the world. Abandoned. A couple of tourists, a few locals, a church and some tablets with glagolitic script.
Lakes of Plitvice
A UNESCO world heritage site. Absolutely worth a visit. A couple of emerald colored lakes in a limestone canyon, plenty of fish. Cascades. Footpaths below the cascades along the lakes. It's a fantasy world.
Nin
A small town at a laguna with a couple of bizarre sites. Weired is the small chapel Saint Nicolas on top of a tomb hill. Weired is the statue of national hero Grgur Ninski. Weired aswell is Saint Kriz, the smallest cathedral of the world.
Porec
Similar in size and structure as its neighbour Rovinj but not having the same grandeur. Worth a visit is Eufrasius basilica a highlight of Byzantine architecture.
Pula
The biggest city of the Istrian peninsula. Impressive is its amphitheatre, one of the best preserved of the Roman afterworld.
Rovinj
A photogenic jewel of Croatia besides Dubrovnik. Packed with tourists. The old town is built on a peninsula topped by the church of Saint Eufemia.
Umag
Nice small city surrounded by beach resorts.
Valun
A typical fishing village on Cres island. Lucky you, if you find a place to stay over night.
Vrsar
Another neighbour of Rovinj. Quiet, surrounded by a couple of islands.
Zadar
The city belongs to the locals. There's hardly any tourism. The old town is very lively. After dark, you are getting nowhere in the overpopulated alleys. Zadar is pleasant.
Links
Lakes of Plitvice
Chapel Saint Nicolas - Nin
Sea front - Cres
The smallest town of the world - Hum