I am looking to travel solo for 2-3 weeks in Croatia & Slovenia for late December, as that is the only time I can get off to travel. During the winter months, a lot of the coastal towns 'shut down'. Any advice for what towns I should skip? Are they still worth going to?
I grew up in Iowa and can handle the cold, but is it unbearably cold? Can you still be outside at cafe's?
Thank you for your help!!
Nobody can answer the "is it too [anything]" questions but you.
Most people would say it would be miserable and crazy to expect to sit outside at a cafe in late December (I would probably agree) but if someone is determined to do that, you can sit anywhere you want (you might have to find your own chair and table since most were probably put away and locked up after the tourists all disappeared in the fall).
Note that no towns literally shut down, ie put up chains across the streets with signs saying "keep out". Many (maybe most?) businesses that cater primarily to tourists might actually shutter for the off season, but some stay open mostly for locals and the occasional lunatic tourist, so there's nothing (other than common sense) to stop you from trying to dine al fresco along the Adriatic on New Years Eve.
It all depends what you want/need/are willing to settle for. Personally, I wouldn't go to these places at that time of year - especially if I wanted to sit outside. I'd either go at another time (even off season, not just that far off) or I'd go someplace else.
If you need to check on weather--highs, lows, average precipitation, days with precipitation, etc., go to any city or country in Wikipedia. They have a charts showing all the weather information.
For example, Split has average daily highs in December of 52 degrees F. and average daily lows of 44 degrees F. That's not too bad. December is one of their three wettest months with precipitation 11.5 days out of 31.
Wunderground.com has day-by-day historical weather data going back more years than you'll care to look at--much more useful than looking at monthly averages. Choose History > Monthly. Check several years. Keep in mind that the daily high is not what you'll have when you're outdoors in early morning or late afternoon. Also, the days will be very short.
You have three posts going on same time frame.
