Help with Croatia/Slovenia trip

Its probably a great plan ... for you. Everyone is different. Too many one night stands for me. I dont do cars either. Lake Bled for this stage of my life is too much time and effort for too little reward and I wouldn't make the run to Venice just for a flight. I would keep all the time between Ljubljana and Dubrovnik and eliminate the one night stands and dive deeper on the route. I love the history of a place and I like meeting the people so I would hire guides in Dubrovnik and Split (and spend two nights in Split) Besides the cities I would be heading to oyster farms and olive plantations and vineyards; probably Rostoke with Plitvice. Venice and Slovenia are another trip (and just the two and maybe a bit of Austria makes a not so bad trip). If I did make a trip off the route it would be an overnight in Mostar with trips to the falls and the monastery.

You’ve correctly identified the challenges here, but I think you need to adjust for them more. Like, this itinerary tracks, but it’s one I’d rather have at least 22 days for. You should keep 1-night stops to one or two max. Anytime you’re moving you’re losing about half the day to travel, hotel, and general friction.

Easy call: combine Korcula/Hvar to one location. RS even says just “pick one.” They’re both gorgeous and roughly equivalent.

I practically insist on a night or two in Zagreb. Not only is it a very underrated city, but you might want a break there. A morning visit to Plitvice, to Zagreb, onto Ljubljana is a long day (though totally doable.)

Now the hard part. I would totally cut Piran and Bovecs (basically those last days) and put them back into the rest of the itinerary. IMO you need the breathing room. I loved Piran, but you’re already beaching it down south. It’s hard to squeeze much out the pass and Bovecs out this way. You just don’t have any time to explore, and would benefit putting those days back in the mix. Ljubljana to Venice is a pretty straightforward bus ride.

Bled was pretty, but idk I think a day trip was plenty enough for me. It was pretty crowded three years ago, and it seems it’s popularity (and Ljubljana’s) has exploded since then. Skip the boat ride to the island. I didn’t go to Vingtar, but I’d argue you’re kind of punching your “crystal clear waterfalls” card in Plitvice. If you really don’t want to pass these things up, I’d recommend a small group excursion out of Ljubljana like Slovenia Explorer. They know the ground and can do it efficiently (and save you a rental.) I’m definitely pointing you towards basing out of Ljubljana. It’s a delight you won’t regret spending time in, especially evenings.

You can’t see it all, and trust me you’ll just want to go back anyways.

Thanks! Will definitely take all that into consideration. Question for you on the islands. Is it worth visiting both if we just had a base in one? Is it easy to do a day trip to the other and return at night, that way it’s just one hotel.

You can take a day trip from one island to another, but I’d not travel between these two in a day, as it’s too long on a boat for me—if the schedules even allow for that. The beauty of the islands is rambling around and enjoying the scenery. There are several small villages on each island, so you can explore that way if nature is not your thing.

I agree with the other posters, time is your constraint here. Your original itinerary is good for the highlights of Slovenia but it’s too short for Dalmatia, and transportation is an issue given the range of your itinerary and you leaving out of Venice. With this plan you need to be on the move all the time and I feel you will spend more time than expected planning/figuring out the multiple transportation modes.

To make the most of this type of trip I would at a minimum flyout of Zagreb instead of Venice, so you could have a single car rental from Split to the end of your trip (or even for the whole trip — Korcula and Hvar are not small, it’s not pointless to have a car there, the Peljesac peninsula is pretty, etc). That way your itinerary could be more efficient, going for example from Plitvice to Piran, setting you up for Vrsic Pass through the Vipava valley, or Postojna on the way to Ljubljana, etc. That would also enable you to properly do the beautiful Adriatic Road in Dalmatia and the Kvarner.

To make the most of this trip, I would consider adding 4 more days. Or with the same total time, you could stick to Croatia, with a side trip to Mostar or Kotor instead of Slovenia. If you keep the Dubrovnik-Venice plan, you need to make a few more difficult choices. In my mind, the main risk here is that you’ll wish you stayed a few more days in Croatia but you gotta get on to the next stops, and in the last few days of the trip the wow factor is not there as much (although Vrsic/Vintgar are different from the rest).

It’s not easy to do Croatian islands on a day trip when you are already on an island, most popular day trips begin on the mainland (Dubrovnik to the Elaphite islands, Zadar/Murter to Kornati, Split to Blue Cave etc). On multiple trips we have been to Korcula, Krk, Cres and Losinj, they are all beautiful and a little different but you don’t have much time, just pick one. You will have some idea of the scenery just by taking the boat anyway. Keep in mind that without a car, visiting another island will basically mean visiting the main town on that island and nothing more.

Regarding Vintgar Gorge: it is a very different experience from the Plitvice Lakes, I don’t think there is much overlap. We have done both multiple times and they are always great, but you need to plan well and get there very early to beat the crowds and get the best light.

Regarding Vrsic Pass: the drive and views are the highlights, the Russian Chapel is pretty but it is a quick stop. There are countless hiking possibilities around Triglav if that’s your thing. The Soca River valley south of the pass is beautiful, whitewater rafting is a big thing there but there are also many opportunities to stop and take in the scenery. Further south in Kobarid there is an interesting WWI museum, and if you’re into that type of splurge you could consider booking dinner at Hisa Franko (we went before they got their Michelin stars and had an amazing experience, the price was OK back then… now, not so sure!). The rest of the valley has pretty villages that are a blend of Slavic Europe and Italy (Most na Soci, Kanal), and that part of Slovenia has two very underrated wine regions (Brda and Vipava) but you don’t have much time.

I did a trip to Slovenia in 2024 and traveled at a decent clip. I had intentions of doing Croatia + Slovenia but then as I started planning, I thought I had enough for two trips so I did Slovenia first. LOVED it! I wouldn't spend a lot of time in Bled as it's super touristy. I arrived in the evening, grabbed dinner and walked around the downtown and lake and then did a bike ride (free bikes from pension where I stayed) and then went to castle (via rental) and thought I had a great visit.

Here's the link to my itinerary/trip report for Slovenia - https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/slovenia-trip-report-june-2024-solo-traveler
Happy travels,
DWB

OP, there’s not really “quick” ferries between Hvar and Korcula, you’re basically traveling on the Split-Dubrovnik line so times are limited. I’d encourage you to let go of the very very real FOMO of Croatia/Slovenia as much as you can. Pick an island and let yourselves engage in it. I stayed in Korcula for three nights and loved it. There’s a couple nearby islands you can reach by convenient water taxi, the nearby town of Lumbarda and its wineries, and frankly I never got tired of strolling around the rather small old town enjoying the view. These are in essence, places to chill and best enjoyed at a slightly slower pace.

You keep saying "car" without being clear. When you cross national borders with a car, you pay a huge penalty on return. You must return in the same country. The penalty can be E500 or so, which is pretty high.