2 Weeks First Time Croatia - No Car in Mid/Late August

We're trying not to stay in too touristy/crowded/party places,

But you are staying in Dubrovnik, Split and Plitvice? There are few places on the planet more fitting to be described as touristy/crowded/party places. Beautiful, yes and most enjoy, but do realize that the Croatia you described ceased to exist 10 or 15 years ago. I enjoyed most of it, but i knew what i was walking into. For what you describe, you need to move further down the coast.

For Plitvice Lakes follow the advice of those on the forum to avoid the crowds or it could be something a lot less than you hope for. I hope you are going off season. Wake early, walk fast enough so those that come after you don’t catch up with you. But still figure that by 3 hours into your 6 hour walk, you will be in the middle of the late comers.

Lake Plitvice of dreams
https://www.vrcation.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/IMG_8993-e-scaled.jpg

Lake Plitvice reality
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/2HEWBT9/plitvice-croatia-may-24-2019-tourists-visit-plitvice-lakes-national-park-croatia-2HEWBT9.jpg

For Split, avoid the weekend and go to bed early and you will avoid the drunk European Trust Fund Brats.

Dubrovnik? Well …. There is really no avoiding the tourism. But here I make an exception. If you are interested in history, especially 20th century history, do some research before you go. From that point of view Dubrovnik is worth the visit. For me twice now. For the sheer (reconstructed) beauty its worth the visit. And as jumping of point to Montenegro (more like what Croatia once was for tourists) it’s worth the visit.

Okay, all sounds negative. Sorry. Truth be known, I did enjoy my trips to Croatia …. And very much.

Thanks the reality check Mr. E! We understand that some places are unavoidably touristy.

We aren’t going to miss Piltvice, so we plan on having an early start while we’re there.

Dubrovnik is the airport we will most likely fly out, so we have to stay there a couple nights. Although we’re considering reducing it to one night.

As for Split, we’re only really staying there because there are ferries to Korcula from there. Unless are other towns with ports you’d recommend. We might just remove the overnight stays there altogether and go to Korcula straight from Zadar

and down the coast as Albania/Montenegro? I have considered those places but don’t have much insight. Which of the two would you recommend? (My partner has already been to Greece)

Dubrovnik, despite my comments is worth 2 nights, you just have to accept it for what it's is and suck the goodness out of it.

Montenegro is easier than Albania but both are wonderful. Montenegro great beaches and water sports from Budva to Ulcinj. Mountain sports rafting, hiking inland. Very few tourists and inexpensive.

Split, Dubrovnik, and Plitvice are popular for a reason, they are very unique places to visit, see, and experience.
They should been seen but the good news for travelers is that not much time is needed to experience these cities. They are what I call, one and done cities. A return trip isn’t necessary (unlike a city such as Paris). If you don’t mind 2 night stays, reduce Zadar one night. Add it to Split and swim in the blue cave from there.
Would you visiting Mljet from Dubrovnik? Cause that is an entire day.
Otherwise your itinerary is fine.

I think your itinerary is pretty good. You sound like you know why you’re staying where you’re staying. All these destinations are well connected by bus or ferry. I haven’t been to Zadar, so I don’t know what the particular attraction is, but three nights there might be one too many? Or, it feels like that’s a night you could easily throw at Korcula or Dubrovnik. I say Korcula because there’s a lot you can do from there, and Dubrovnik just because getting there and dealing with it makes an extra night a decent investment.

Since you’re there in August, I think two nights in Plitvice might really pay off. You’ll have a better chance at avoiding the midday crowds. I was dead set on going to Mljet, but begged off at the last minute. It’s kind of a tough jam when you look at it. And after spending the preceding days enjoying Croatia’s seemingly limitless beauty and crystal clear waters in Dubrovnik and Korcula, I just didn’t see any reason to go through all that extra hassle.

Finally, make your decisions now and start looking for accommodations immediately. This is the height of high season, and much will already be booked up.

Korcula was one of our favorite stops in Croatia. Our apartment had a gorgeous view of the port/harbor, with the best hosts ever! While on Korcula, consider spending part of a day taking the hop on/hop off water taxi to Badija, Vrnik and Lumbarda. Wine tasting in Lumbarda is terrific. We loved Vina Sabulum Winery and their "Grk" white wine, which can only be found on Korcula. The Moreska Traditional Sword Dance was quite entertaining; dates for that are on the island's website. Split was our least enjoyable part of the trip, so IMO, two nights is more than enough. Have a fabulous time!

I think your itinerary looks nice. Not too far off what I did. I loved Zadar because it was much quieter than Split or Dubrovnik but still had a lot of charm. You can see most of the old town in one day. I highly recommend taking a day trip to Preko and hiking up to Fort St Michele for one of the best views of the Croatian archipelago. It’s possible to take one day away from Zadar and give it to Split and use that day to take a trip to Hvar, Omis, or Markaska. Hvar is a good day trip with a charming city and a fort with stunning views, Omis is a very quiet town with lots of adventure sport rentals (Kayak, SUP, zip lining, white water rafting, etc) and a sandy beach, Markaska is quite touristy but I just loved the scenery.