Croatia & Slovenia -06.2026 - Preliminary Itinerary. Need feedback please

Do you arrive in Dubrovnik on Day 1 or Day 2? If it's on Day 2, you may well have no non-jetlagged time in Dubrovnik.

I don't see a way to reduce the number of hotels unless you eliminate one or more of your stops. I wouldn't want to move this fast, overall, but I think all your stops are worthwhile. Although Split didn't excite me, it's a good opportunity for a side trip to an island.

Hi acraven, we arrive in Dubrovnik on day 1. No jet lag since we will be in Rome first. If it was you, which stop you would skip? And add more day to what city?

I really can't answer that question, because those are all interesting places. I just wouldn't plan to cover so much rich ground in only 12 full days. The pace of hotel changes would wear me out. I guess I'd consider dropping Istria, since it adds driving time, but I spent the better part of a week in Rovinj back in 2015 and took a bunch of day trips; it's not that I don't like Istria.

I love Plitvice, but you definitely don't need extra time there. You're OK in Ljubljana itself since I suspect you'll be back early from tiny Lake Bled. However, you could add time in Slovenia and do a sort of loop trip. I haven't done that, but others have, and you might find suggestions via the Search function.

Zagreb is a rather large city with many interesting museums as well as an atmospheric historic district. However, I think some of the museums haven't reopened since the earthquake a few years ago. Therefore, I can't honestly say for sure you need another day in Zagreb, though I'd definitely want another. I find I usually run out of time to see what I want to see in large cities.

Let's see what others say. I know my pace is a lot slower than others'. Maybe the consensus will be that what you have is perfectly OK.

We just finished an eight-night trip to Croatia and the pace of the proposed itinerary looks very, very fast for just twelve nights. Particularly after being in Italy prior to arriving in Croatia—not sure I wouldn’t be exhausted after keeping to the proposed schedule after just the first week.
Most of days 3, 5, 7, 9 &11 involve daily drives of 3-4 hours.

On day 9 you have both a day trip to Lake Bled from Ljubljana and a day trip to the Soca Valley from Ljubljana.
That is simply not realistic.

I would slow things down a bit and visit the largest walled city in Europe—Ston— on the drive from Dubrovnik to Split. Consider adding a night to Split and daytrip to the Venetian town of Trogir (30 minutes away) and the Croatian town of Šibenik (1 hour away) which has three fortresses that protected the medieval town.
Following Plitvice Lakes National Park. go to Ljubljana.

From Ljubljana. you could substitute in the Venetian town of Piran ( 90 minutes from Ljubljana ) for Rovinj and see the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Skocjan Caves on the way to Piran. This would save you about 7-9 hours of driving on days 6, 7 & 8.

You’ll still have time for Lake Bled and the Soca Valley before returning the car to Zagreb.

I got curious and went to Alamo. Probably not tge cheapest but sn easy website to navigate. I loaded on all thr additional insurance for a compact car and the total for your trip was about $1000 + gas + maybe $300 for parking + tolls. Certainly under $1500 total plus traffic tickets. I was expecting more. Cheaper companies could probably cut that a lot. Not bad. Have fun. Enjoy.

Hi Kendo, with your suggestion, I made few changes (in italic)
Day 1: Flight Rome to Dubrovnik (not yet booked)
Day 2: Dubrovnik
Day 3: Pick up car, drive to Split, stop at Ston, sleep in Split
Day 4: Split, take ferry to Hvar, sleep in Split
Day 5: Split, day trip to Trogar & Šibenik
Day 6: Drive to Plitvice Lakes, sleep in Plitvice Lakes
Day 7: early hike in Plitvice Lakes, then drive to Ljubljana
Day 8: Day trip to Piran, stop at Skocjan Caves, sleep Ljubljana
Day 9: Day trip to Lake Bled, Sleep Ljubljana
Day 10: Day trip to Soca Valley, Sleep Ljubljana
Day 11: Drive to Zagreb
Day 12: Zagreb
Day 13: Flight home from Zagreb (booked)

Does it look less rush and more doable? This one requires only 5 hotels (instead of 6 previously), which is a big plus.
Thank you!

Hi Tom, Yes! I think it will work really well and you’ll have a great time seeing places your family will enjoy together. Ston, Diocletian’s Palace in Split, Šibenik, Trogir, Hvar Town ( hike up to the castle ruins) Piran, the Tolmin Gorges in the Soca Valley, the Skocjan Caves—-all are great attractions and most take just a couple hours to enjoy. You’ve got it down to four base cities plus Zagreb which is good. Ljubljana and Zagreb’s UpperTown (“Gornji Grad”) are easy cities because they can be enjoyed just by walking around the old city centers.

Have a great trip!

I really appreciate Kenko, Mr Ê 🇺🇸 🇺🇦, acraven for taking time helping me planning the summer trip for our family. This forum is very knowledgeable and helpful.
Happy Travel Everyone!