Croatia, Mostar & Kotor Questions

It's always going to be difficult to squeeze 5 destinations into 8 days, so whichever solution you come up with is going to be a compromise. So since you're rethinking, I'd add fourth and fifth options:

[#]4 Skip Mostar

[#]5 Skip Kotor

If you're unwilling to consider either of those, here's another option:

[#]6. Stay 4 nights in Dubrovnik. Don't rent a car. Do a tour to Kotor on one of the days. And do a tour to Mostar on one of the days. You could hire a private guide for either or both of these day trips, or you could go on an organized tour.

If you're unwilling to consider #4 or #5, then I recommend #6. For one thing, the right guide can add meaning to your excursions, and for another, it's a lot less stressful to leave the driving to someone else.

Personally, I would skip Kotor on this trip, as you just don't have enough time to do it justice, and I would stay overnight in Mostar one or two nights. I think Mostar has much to experience and is worth an overnight. Also, there are several places between Dubrovnik and Mostar that are worth stopping at.

Thanks for the reply. I am leaning toward staying in Mostar two nights, but I am still considering stopping in Kotor on the way back. I know I can't do it justice, but would love to have the opportunity to see it. We would still have two evenings and one whole day in Dubrovnik. Anyone else done this and can give feedback? I've heard the road can be beautiful, but also a little treacherous? We have driven in the mountains in the US, but not in Europe.

I recommend Lane's #6 (day trips to Kotar and Mostar by private driver or tour. skip the rental). We were in Dubrovnik in 2012 (first week in June) and hired a driver to take us to Kotar. Beautiful city and the Bay is beautiful as well. He stopped at a few places along the way (bathroom and cappuccino breaks) and was a wealth of information. It took the whole day but we're glad we went. Unfortunately, we did not have time for Mostar and regret not seeing it. We spent about 1-1/2 days in Dubrovnik sightseeing around the walled city and going to the top of Mount Srd. We also did Korcula (two nights) and Hvar (two nights), then Split for one night (I would skip it), picked up a rental car there, drove to Plitvica Lakes for one night before driving to Zagreb to fly home. Have a wonderful time! Croatia is one of our faves in Europe (after Italy).

Hi there, I would do as suggested and not have a car in Dubrovnik and do private or small group tours to Mostar and Montenegro (I would stay away from larger coach tours). We did private tours last year to both places which were very good and we were glad we did, we saw a lot more than we probably would have if we'd gone just us as things are not really well sign posted when you get there. Croatia Gems is a great place for info. We found it's really not a great idea to have a car in Dubrovnik as parking is a nightmare and traffic can get busy - locals favour scooters for this reason apparently! And there's enough you can do there without a car for that short a time to be honest - lots within walking distance in the old town then boats to Lokrum Island, the little Elafitti Islands and neighbouring bays of Mlini, Plat and Cavtat. I have to say I was more enamoured with Mostar and wasn't overly by Kotor (the Croatian coast and coastal towns and villages are much prettier and more charming) so I'd probably go for Mostar if you have to choose one as that's a very interesting place (the old town is stunning) with other places nearby to visit also - we liked Blagaj, beautiful scenery.

I'm planning a similar itinerary at the same time and have 4 nights in Dubrovnik also (maybe we'll see each other!). My current plan is to do a variation on Lane's suggested #6 - I will spend 2 days in Dubrovnik (1.5 really since the ferry arrives at noon), then rent a car for the day and drive to Kotor, and then do a guided tour day trip to Mostar. I've read that the signage and roads in BiH are not as good as Croatia's and since I'm traveling alone, I didn't want to deal with any navigation or road issues solo. It's also a lot of driving for one day that I'm happy to leave to someone else.

I had not heard about the parking costs in Dubrovnik but I'm really glad I will not be keeping the car overnight (and I'm still not completely certain I won't dump the car idea and just join a day trip to Kotor).

So, long way of saying - another vote for option 6!

There's also public bus service to Kotor. It's much easier to appreciate the fabulous Bay of Kotor scenery if you don't have to keep your eyes on the road.

You will be crossing some national borders during some of these trips, and the border stops can be either easy or difficult, and either fast or slow, depending on traffic and the practices of the individual border guards. If you are part of a group, you generally can just provide your passport and sit in the vehicle and wait, while the guide deals with the border officials. If you are driving a rental vehicle, you will need to deal with this yourself, and should have your passport, and documents for the car, all in proper order.