Slovenia and Croatia in October

Every place you name is highly touristed - Rovinj, the lakes and Dubrovnik especially. October is off season for the islands.

That said, the pace is good. If I had two extra days, I’d spend them in Split.

I agree with Emily. The pace is reasonable. The only consideration is that it will be a long drive (about 4 hours) from Rovinj to Plitvice, and from Plitvice to Dubrovnik (about 5 hours). I'd suggest getting an early start from Rovinj, getting to Plitvice late morning, and walking the park after you arrive. It's generally recommended to visit the park first thing in the morning, but in October I don't think it will be so crowded. Then the next day you can get to Dubrovnik early enough to return the rental car and relax.

Split is a good option for 2 extra days, but Mostar would be another great choice.

You could add Split between Plitvice and Dubrovnik. That's what we did, although in the reverse order. We started in Dubrovnik for 3 nights, then drove to Split for 4 nights, and then drove to Plitvice. I think Split would be great for those 2 extra days. We visited Hvar as a daytrip from Split, but the islands close down in October. We also visited Trogir from Split. And did a private walking tour of Split's Old Town and Diocletian's Palace with Maja Benzon, who Rick recommends. Split is lovely with gorgeous architecture and its wonderful location on the Adriatic.

I think Mostar would be a good choice, too. We didn't go there but I always wished we did.

We hired a private driver for a tour around the Bay of Kotor, including Budva, Kotor, and Perast. Contact info:
Julija Antunovic
https://guideyourtrip.com/en/tourguide/dubrovnik/julija-antunovic

I am with Emily about the trip being to the heavily touristed destinations.

But!!! There are those that love Plitvice enough to be glad they spent two days and a night. You might be one of those, but you will miss all the small stops on the way in and on the way to Dubrovnik.

Have you figured out what you will do with 6 nights in Slovenia? 3 nights in Rovinj I get. 3 nights in Dubrovnik is fair as well. The idea of going to Montenegro for a day isn’t one that excites me. It’s a magnificent country and if you do a day trip, you will never come back and see what you missed. (I am biased, trip 6 to Montenegro begins in 3 days). However, if you insist, I know a private driver for the trip. But in one day, there will be no winery, no olive plantation (and olive oil tasting), no ancient hillside stone village, no magnificient view of the Bay of Kotor from the mountain top, no oyster farm, no prosciutto house to see the hams hung from the rafters curing, no cable car up the mountain. But you will get 3 or 4 hours in Kotor which is maybe the only overly touristed (by day trips from Croatia and cruise ships) city in Montenegro. Oh, but it really is a lovely city, I was there in June. Loved it.

To be honest, it’s hard to do Slovenia and Dubrovnik in the amount of time that you have. It’s not that it’s too rushed, it’s that you will be flying by so much good local culture stuff trying to get to the big tourist attractions. The kind of things I described in Montenegro exist in Croatia as well, and you will miss them all. I just wouldn’t do it.

I would choose north or south, but not both unless you had more time. At least four, maybe even 5 more nights.

Slovenia pairs well with Italy, Austria, Switzerland and I have been waiting until I was in that part of the world before I did Slovenia. What has held up that trip is that I screwed up and have seen some of northern Croatia and now its harder to build a good trip.

But I do visit Southern Croatia and Montenegro and Bosnia & Herzegovina often because they pair well.

And you checked the drop off fee on that car, and you are good with it?

I am very sorry; I am no help.

Oh, early or late October? Big difference.

I’d be curious what your six nights in Slovenia look like, and why they’re not on the table. Given the extended distances in the Croatia leg of this trip, it could benefit you to pull one of those nights into Croatia. Also, if you’re looping westward, Piran could be a nice overnight/transition day into Istria.

If Rovinj is your base for Istria exploration, three nights is good otherwise you could trim it to two imo. It’s much more of a summer resort town, and if you’re not swimming and stuff it might feel light.

Both Split and Mostar are great suggestions for add-ons. I would also suggest two nights (a full day) in Zagreb. It’s not clear, but if your plan was to head straight out of town I’d reconsider. It’s one of my top underrated cities, just a lovely town with a few terrific little museums.

I wouldn’t bother with an island on this trip. You’ve got enough going on. Rovinj is generally a similar experience, at some level they’re all atmospheric Venetian-era ports.

Personally, after all that driving I’d treat Dubrovnik as a vacation from your vacation and leave it free of major plans. Dubrovnik has a lot of sightseeing opportunities you can do off-the-cuff. Id wait until you’re there and see. I think you’ve deserved some relaxation at this point.

I have an aquaintance who is a dang good guide in Dubrovnik. We were talking a few nights ago and she said October last year was as full of tourists as August was a few years ago.

I still marvel that the CITY of Dubrovnik gets as many tourists a year as the COUNTRY of Montenegro and I suslect Bosnia as well. But I still love Dubrovnik.

Thanks for all the feedback. I do not like to overpack a trip and we prefer off the beaten path. I picked Rovinj as a desitnation to see some other Istria towns like Motovun. I did not realize that it would be highly touristed in October.
We have wanted to visited Slovenia for some time now and thought Croatia would pair well with it if we had 14 days. We were flying into Zagreb to avoid the international fee for picking up a car in one country and dropping it off in another but were not planning on staying there. We thought Ljubljana 2 nights, Julien Alps or lake Bovinj area 2 nights, possibly Piran. We could take a slower trip and spend a week there I am sure.
I read the distance to Plitvice from Rovinj was 2.5 hours. I would definitely consider Mostar but we had considered Montegnegro instead. I don't want to rush and miss all the opportunities in between. Did you have specific towns you are suggesting? I was loosely following the Rick Steves 14 day itinerary. We may do better to stay North in Istria but I have wanted to visit Dubrovnik even though its busy. Maybe southern Croatia is another trip.

I picked Rovinj as a desitnation to see some other Istria towns like Motovun. I did not realize that it would be highly touristed in October.

I haven’t been, so I will leave it to others. Croatia as a whole, however, has lot of tourists crammed into relatively small areas

We have wanted to visited Slovenia for some time now and thought Croatia would pair well with it if we had 14 days.

If you want to spend time in Slovenia, then that is exactly what you should do. I think it pairs fine with Norther Croatia but not so good with the South. But we all enjoy different stuff, so there is no wrong.

We were flying into Zagreb to avoid the international fee for picking up a car in one country and dropping it off in another but were not planning on staying there.

Go to any rental company. Doesn’t matter which one for this exercise. Pick the cheapest car and add the best insurance. Pick up in Zagreb and drop off in Dubrovnik and look at the drop off fee. I did check it a few months ago for someone else and the one company I checked with wanted 600euro for the drop off fee. If that and about 100 euro a day and 30 a day to park it and another 100 euro for gas is in your budget, great, have fun. Holidays are about doing what you enjoy.

I read the distance to Plitvice from Rovinj was 2.5 hours. I would consider Mostar but we had considered Montenegro instead.

Go to google maps and put in the destinations then add time to stop and eat and toilet breaks and time to retrieve the car in the morning and find a parking place in the evening. Okay, whatever google says plus an hour.

If you do that you will find that Mostar is sort of on the way to Dubrovnik; but you must spend a night in Mostar or it’s just not worth the effort. More of a death march than a holiday. Look in the forum where I did do a sort of detailed plan with small stops along the way. OP didn’t read it.

Montenegro is 3 hours in and 3 hours out along the same road (back tracking) flying past everything to get home. Don’t get me wrong, I prefer Montenegro 3 to 1 over Mostar, but you would need to dedicate 3 or 4 nights for it to be worth it. From Slovenia, that’s just too far.

I don't want to rush and miss all the opportunities in between. Did you have specific towns you are suggesting? I was loosely

Zagreb 2N
Drive to Slovenia. You still need to decide what to see other than Bled.

Slovenia 3N unless you have identified things that I can’t imagine that interest you.
Drive to Rovinj.

Rovinj 3N Emily goes here every year, maybe she will chime it
4 hour drive to Plitvice. I would find stops. Rastoke is one but that’s close to Plitvice. Sorry I am not familiar with northern Croatia, I have only done Zagreb, Plitvice, Rastoke, Zadar.

Plitvice 1N
Drive to Split. Between Plitvice and Split there are several wineries and olive plantations. I know that olive oil tasting sounds a bit strange, but it’s interesting and fun if it’s a good olive producer. So, 4 hours of driving but maybe 7 with the stops … a good day.

Split 2 nights. Three might be better but I am pushing it for you.
Now drive Split to Mostar.

Mostar 1 night (2 is better)
Then drive to Dubrovnik

Split to Mostar to Dubrovnik there are some really fun waterfalls (bring a swim suit … even in October if you are brave .. I would), there is a hillside town with a fortress at the top and local vendors at the bottom and wonderful old mosque inbetween, there is a 500 year old Dervish monastery.

Dubrovnik 3 nights and I believe that makes for 15 nights.

One last note, price out renting the car just as you described. Dont forget parking (maybe 30 euro a night is a good budget) and dont forget gas. Then price out renting and returning the car in Ljub and then using public transportation and private transfers for the rest. Croatia is expensive so I might be wrong, but it could be about the same price because of the dropoff fee.

No matter what I or anyone else here says, its your holiday. We dont have to like it, only you do.

If you are doing this trip to see Slovenia I would focus on seeing Slovenia.

I am not sure when you are going in October but October is very much the end of the season in southern Croatia. It would not be the worst time to go to Dubrovnik since it is before November but many things will be closed or closing on the coast, same I believe with Montenegro but I have not been there that late in the season. Also consider Prague is closer to Ljubljana than Dubrovnik. They are not really that close.

Also if you focus on Slovenia you can make trips to other places that are nearby. Graz in southern Austria may be the most interesting city in the region. You are very close to Italy. Tarvisio, most northeast town in Italy in the mountains, can be reached from Bled within 45 minutes. You would also have time for places like Celje castle and Postojna caves. Maybe even far north Croatia and see Trakošćan. They are not the alps but the river valleys to the east of Ljubljana are beautiful.

Rovinj goes back and forth with Dubrovnik as the most visited place in Croatia, I would say it is a tourist hot spot. However you have many options for Istria which is not that large, from resorts on the coast, Piran or Portovoz in Slovenia, staying in one of the hill towns, or even staying in Opatija. I might look at the hill towns unless you want to be on the coast.

If you want to see Dubrovnik I would fly there from Zagreb, start and end in Zagreb with the rental car and then fly to Dubrovnik at the end of your trip. I would say you do not need to stay in Zagreb unless you want to, it is a very nice place to visit but I have had people tell me they did not like it which I understand if you are on the main tourist path.

One way rental fees now seem possibly random, I have saved money this year on one way rentals compared to driving them round trip. There are vineyards between Plitvice and Split but wine and olive oil is possibly best saved for Istria, it is also truffle season in Istria when you are there. Rastoke is not really on the way from Istria to Plitvice but would be from Plitvice to Zagreb.

The cheapest cars are all manual, Croatian rental car company reputations can vary, the local ones, Unirent and Avax tend to be better, I have had good luck with Enterprise as well.

I would look at starting and ending in Zagreb, but driving up into Slovenia, down through Istria, then stopping at Plitvice on your way back to Zagreb, instead of trying to do southern Croatia on this trip. It is too rushed.

Thank you! We have decided to spend our time in Slovenia and Istria. We will look at accommodations in the hill towns. I am sure we will be back to see Montenegro and spend a concentrated time there in the future. For now I like the idea of a slower trip!

I think you are making a good decision. Sometimes you regret trying to go too msny plsces and you often never get back to do it correctly.

North or South, both excellent, just a personal decision. My flight for my Montenegro and a small piece of Albania departs in 3 hours.