Hi
I am going to Croatia in June and have a couple of options for getting there. Could someone advise me if it is best to fly into Dubrovnic rather than Zagreb. Although I want to visit Zagreb for a couple of days, I plan to spend most of my time on the coast.
I have seen that there are some accommodation recommendations, but if anyone has any additional ones to add, I would be very grateful. I am keen to stay with local families wherever possible.
Ta
Depends on your time there maybe - if you have a week or even less, I'd skip Zagreb and spend my time on the islands. If you're flying Croatian airlines you may be able to plan in a stopover of a day or two. Zagreb's a nice but otherwise standard Central-European city, not as nice as Budapest but still nice. In high summer it's completely deserted as it's damn hot and all the locals are on the beach.
Zagreb - plitvice lakes - Split - Hvar - dubrovnik with few days in all destonation is best tour for you..
You didn't mention how long you wil be there for. If it's a reasonably short trip, and given that you say you want to spend most of your time on the coast, flying to Split or Dubrovnik could make sense. But Plitvice Lakes National Park, a couple of hours south of Zagreb, is a good reason to fly into the capital. The best thing might well be to fly into Zagreb and out of Dubrovnik (or vice versa), then you can follow a more or less linear route without doubling back.
Thanks so much for all the useful replies - much appreciated.
I actually have about 5 weeks, so time is not really a huge issue. I like the idea of the National Park, so think I will go with the Zagreb route. It would be much nicer if I could fly back from the coast, but I doubt my ticket will allow that. Does anyone know if internal flights are reasonable.? That might be an option instead of a marathon bus trip from Dubrovnik!
I haven't had a chance to do much research yet to work out my itinerary. If anyone has any ideas, that would be great!
Any accommodation recommendations would also be greatly appreciated.
Thanks a mil
I guess it depends on where you are flying from, but on my first trip I flew from US into Dbv and out of Zagreb and it didn't cost me much more, but if that doesn't work for you, with the amount of time you have (lucky!), you should have no problem picking up a flight between Dbv and Zagreb for a reasonable price.
You might consider that the busy season will be picking up at the end of your trip and plan accordingly--like visit the most popular places first (Dbv, Korcula, Hvar, Split/Trogir, Plitvice) if you can, then wander as July heats up both literally and figuratively.
Having 5 weeks makes a big difference. Usually people asking this kind of question have something more like 6-10 days, I think the first few replies (including mine) are influenced by that.
As Veta said, Croatia Airlines often have quite reasonable fares from Dubrovnik and Zagreb, but like anywhere else it depends on whether you are travelling on a popular day and how far in advance you book. It's easy to check because Croatia Airlines are the only airline with domestic flights within Croatia, so you can just look at their website to see how much you'll pay.
But with 5 weeks there's no real need to fly. For example you could go from north to south stopping at certain places, and back from south to north with different stopovers, so no single journey will be really long. Or you could take ferries in one direction and buses the other.
I'd say a couple of days in Zagreb are worthwhile as part of such a long stay in Croatia. Sure, it's not one of the greatest Central European cities and it doesn't have loads of must-see sights, but I rather like it. It is quite different in atmosphere and architecture compared to the coastal towns, and that contrast is interesting in itself to get a more rounded picture of the country. Plus Mirogoj Cemetery is great (but then I am a bit of a graveyard fan). As Jeroen mentioned, high summer might not be the ideal time to visit.
You could also consider a few days in Bosnia. This would fit nicely with starting and ending in the same place, whether Zagreb or Dubrovnik, as it would allow you to form a nice looped itinerary. For example, fly to Zagreb, visit Plitvice, make your way slowly south along the coast and islands to Dubrovnik, bus to Mostar, bus or train to Sarajevo, bus or train (full day) to Zagreb. That route works equally well starting in Dubrovnik.
I've travelled in Croatia in June and except for my first two nights in Zagreb I never made a reservation for accommodation; I simply rented from one of the many people who met the bus/boat in every town I visited. English is not widely spoken; German and Italian are more common. But even without language skills you should be able to get through a room rental with no trouble. By the end of two weeks' time my Croatian was better than their English.
One word of advice about Dubrovnik: Many of the people offering rooms there will be living way out in the suburbs. You have to be very careful about where the room is located or you may find yourself miles from the Old Town, where you really want to be. A better alternative is to ignore the touts completely and take a taxi or bus directly into the Old Town. Stop in at one of the travel offices and they'll find a room right in the Old Town for you. I went that route and my room wasn't any more expensive than my friends' who ended up in the burbs.