Will be spending 9 hours in each city while on a cruise. What is the must see or do in each city? One place my son said to visit is the Krk National Park. Anything else? My husband would like to do the Games of Thrones tour. Best place to purchase this tour?
Thanks,
Cindy
Split has the palace as well as a very nice Archeology museum. Both are easy walks from the harbor.
At Dubrovnik, walking the walls is fun, and there are 2 little museums that are included. Haven't taken the Game of Thrones tour, but I'm sure it's a hoot.
If you can arrange a day tour of Krka National Park (not to be confused with the completely separate island called Krk, which is nowhere near the park on the mainland), it's definitely worth doing. While it can be done from Split via public transportation, the timing might be a challenge given the limited time on land (nine hours is not really a lot of time once you figure out how to get there and back, travel time to and from, waiting for the return, etc.) Krka park is very spread out, though. There are sites to see among the park that an organized tour could hit in an efficient way. I had my own car and saw only the big magnificent Skradinski Buk waterfall. (You can walk up and around it and even swim below it if you want to - in summer some people will.) You could rent a car for the day and see/do it yourselves, if you are experienced in driving in foreign countries. Driving in Split itself can be challenging, but outside of the city it's very easy.
If you choose not to visit the park, you could of course explore the old city of Split, which is built among the ruins of the sprawling Diocletian's Palace. There are museums (didn't see them) you can simply walk through it (modern shops and stores populate much of the palace). You could walk up Marjan Hill for a nice view down on the city. You could take a ferry (or bus) over to the old city of Trogir, which is more compact and charming than Split (but less interesting and more touristy).
Rijeka is an old industrial port city - generally not of big interest to tourists. The more popular tourist town nearby is old Austrian spa town of Opatija (it's OK - wasn't a favorite of mine, a bit glitzy). You can walk from Opatija to several seaside towns along the Lungomare, a long seaside promenade that passes a lot of old Austrian villas.
If you want to see something inland, a lot of people enjoy exploring the hills towns of nearby Istria. You'd need to get an organized tour for this or rent a car and do it yourself (again, if you are experienced in driving in foreign countries, this is pretty easy to do). Or you could venture over to Pula, another big port city but with a lot of old ancient Roman ruins (I wasn't that excited about Pula; I'd seen my share of Roman ruins in Italy.). The old Venetian port town of Rovinj north of Pula is lovely and charming, worth a stop, about an hour from Rijeka by car. It might be possible in a long day to see both Pula and Rovinj or Rovinj and a couple of hill towns with a rental car.
Nine hours is just to enough to explore each of these cities. I wouldn't try any other day tour. Visit to Krka would be too difficult. Instead, while in Split, explore amazing Diocletian's Palace, and optionally climb Marjan hill.
For Dubrovnik, you have just enough time to do two main activities: walk on Stradun street, and walk on the walls.
I agree, it isn’t enough time to go out side of the cities. Dubrovnik has the wall, the cable car up to Mt. Srdj and just walking around the city itself. There are some beautiful churches and small museums. In Split, the city itself is an open air museum. Rijeka has the Korzo, equivalent to Dubrovnik’s Stradun, and some beautiful old buildings. It will remind you of Italy. If you look through toursbylocals.com website, you can find private guides in each city. This will help you get the most out of your short stay. In Split I recommend Pero Ugarkovic. We have used him, as have friends this past November. His email is lignja@gmail.com.
Although I didn't spend a lot of time in Rijeka, I can't really imagine spending nine hours there.
It is easy to spend the day in Rijeka, especially if you have a private guide. Of course, as always, it depends on what interests you. a guide can take you up to Trsat and the Church with beautiful Cloister and views of the city. There are several great museums, and he could even get you over to Opatija for a quick walk around. Not every stop on a cruise is a top city to visit, but each has its charm.
In Rijeka you can walk to town center (from ship) on your own and explore Korzo (main promenade) and downtown area. However, I think that you might want to book a ship's tour in this port of call. There is not much to do in downtown Rijeka (industrial port with some secession buildings) and a ship tour might help you to expand your knowledge of the area.
Split is the right port of call if you want to go to Krka Waterfalls. You can do it on your own, rent a car in Split and get to the waterfalls. Or, you can take one of the local guides/drivers to take you there. There is 70 minutes drive from Split to Krka National Park.
If you opt not to go there, you can stay in Split and explore it. This town has magnificent Diocletian's Palace https://www.tourdesksplit.com/diocletians-palace-split-croatia/
You will love Split! Also, you could do Game of Thrones tour in Split. Some parts of Diocletian's Palace and Klis fortress (9 km from Split) were used for GoT in season 4 and 5.
In Dubrovnik you could definitely do GoT tour, Dubrovnik was King's Landing for 7 seasons.
Dubrovnik:
1. Stroll the limestone streets inside the wall, however, if it rains be careful because they’re slippery when wet.
2. Walk above the city walls overlooking the old town and the Mediterranean Sea for spectacular vistas so don’t forget your camera.
3. Afterwards, visit Mount Srd for the views and check out its museum.
