Here is what I have for our Itinerary so far:
Flight booked to Dubrovnik 4/27/26 - stay 3 nights in Dubrovnik with a day trip to Mostar (hotel booked)
Ferry to Korcula for 2 nights (hotel booked)
Ferry to Split (bus to Trogir?) 3 nights Trogir (hotel booked)
Heres where it gets tricky for me. Do we take the bus to Split to go on a day tour to Plitvice Lakes? I really don't want to spend the night in Plitvice.
I was thinking the next 3 nights would be in Rovinj ( not sure what mode) and from there we would head to Ljubliana and spend 3 nights or so and see Lake Bled. At some point we may need to rent a car but would have to turn it in before we get to Ljulbliana and not sure where.
I havn't booked the return trip from Ljubliana so our days are flexible.
Our interests are history and local culture as well as wine.
Thanks in advance.
Posted by
6176 posts
I have a hard time picturing a visit to Plitvice that does not include an overnight given the drive time from Split.
Perhaps you could rent a car in Split, use it for Plitvice and Istria and then drop in Zagreb (or possibly somewhere in Istria), bus to Ljubljana. That may not be the perfect solution in a tight timeline but something like that could be the solution.
Posted by
Citizen of the World
3546 posts
Just completed a couple weeks in Slovenia & Croatia.
Stopped in Trogir for lunch. Trogir is worth visiting, but it’s tiny— about 1,600 feet by 800 feet. For me, it would be difficult to spend more than a few hours there. Not only that—but it’s quite expensive compared to Split and Zagreb.
I would highly recommend substituting in two nights in Split and one night at Plitvice Lakes NP for the three you have in Trogir. From Diocletian’s Palace, you can catch bus #37 nearby to Trogir and be there in about 30 minutes. See it as a daytrip from Split.
From Plitvice Lakes NP to Zagreb is 2:15 hours by bus. Then 2:15 hours by bus or train to Ljubljana. Then 1:15 by bus/train from Ljubljana to Lake Bled. To get to Bled by public transit from Plitvice Lakes NP basically requires going through Zagreb and then Ljubljana.
Have you considered Lake Bohinj? Lake Bohinj is actually inside Triglav National Park— which Lake Bled is not. Bohinj is far less touristed and is less expensive. Lake Bohinj is just 45 minutes beyond Lake Bled. Ribcev Laz is a good base town for Lake Bohinj.
Rovinj is the outlier in your plan and is going to be a substantial time sink from your route. We skipped it for that reason.
Posted by
Austin TX after living in Boulder CO for 25 years
1188 posts
I would also suggest a night in Plitvice and take a day from Rovinj. We have visited 107 countries, and Plitvice is in our top 10 experiences. You WANT to go and thoroughly enjoy it.
We stayed one night in Rovinj, one night in Ljubliana, and 3 nights in Lake Bled. Spectacular area for scenery and hiking!
We are sorry that we missed the Julian Alps....
We rented a car for our two week journey through Slovenia and Croatia.
Posted by
Republic of Texas / U.S.A. / Magyarország / Budapest
23960 posts
Sounds like you have about 11 nights total? I wouldnt burn one night at Plitvice either. You are going in April, not exactly the high season so that should help on the crowds. They now have timed tickets I believe and they limit the number that go in; all that should be helping a little. There is a trip report from a few weeks ago where the OP went to Plitvice late morning and everything worked out fine. That was in August I believe. I went once in early July late morning and I also had no trouble with crowds, but I paid for a driver, got an early start out of Zagreb and got dropped off at the gate about 10:30 .... had all wanted in about 3 hours and exit stage left to a waiting car to Split.
By the way, I am in the minority position on this.
Posted by
140 posts
I agree that you should stay in Split 2 nights, then rent a car to drive to Plitvice, spending the night and hiking the next morning. You could stop at Trogir for a few hours along the way----we didn't think Trogir was worth the hassle of traffic and parking. You'd need a car in Istria anyway unless you plan to pay for tours to drive you around. Rovinj itself (IMO) doesn't have much to see or do. Then you could drive to Slovenia and base yourself near Lake Bohinj. We loved staying in Radovlijica and just took the train into Llubliana for a day trip. We only spent an hour at Lake Bled but loved hiking other areas nearby. If you pick up a rental car in Split, you should return it in Zagreb.