I'll be heading to Croatia on the ferry from Puglia in September and, though we'd planned on Dubrovnik --> Hvar --> Split, I've read in a few places that Kotor can be a better, more laid-back experience (one place even compared Dubrovnik to Disneyland). It seems close enough to be a straight swap (especially if we rent a car) for Dubrovnik. This will be my first trip to Croatia.
Does anyone have any thoughts? Cheers!
My husband's grandmother and many family members live in Dubrovnik and I recommend it. There is more to see and do there and you can have a laid-back experience there if you want. You'll miss a lot if you skip Dubrovnik.
I was in Dubrovnik for three nights last May and did a day trip to Kotor on one of those days. May (like September) is shoulder season, but the crowds were huge in both Dubrovnik and Kotor. I more or less expected this in Dubrovnik, but I was completely caught off guard in Kotor.
The advantage to staying somewhere is that in the evening many of the tourists go back where they came from, and that leaves you to enjoy the city without the crowds.
Both cities have charms. Dubrovnik is bigger, so it has more. You might run out of things to see and do in Kotor (though you don't say how many nights you are planning to spend). I'm sure it would have been lovely to spend the night there, but I suspect one night would be adequate.
They are very different so it's hard to compare. Kotor probably has less tourists overrunning the town, although it's still a big draw in Montenegro. Go on Tripadvisor and look at "things to do" in each city, and pick the city which appeals most to you based on what you'd actually want to see or do on your trip. Sometimes also looking at photos of each elicits a gut feeling of which to pick. Either way, you can't go wrong since both are quite lovely. If you're in Split and want smaller, more laid back, also consider Trogir. And same goes for Hvar - there are other islands you can pick to get a different experience. I went to Brac, for example.
