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Visiting Zagreb to see Ancestrial Home - Visit Slovenia or Sarajevo?

Hello!
We are planning a trip to Croatia. My ancesters are from Zagreb and I believe have family there. I am thinking of flying from the States to Sarajevo and then flying to Zagreb and then driving to visit the rest of Croatia (flying out of Dubrovnic). I don't think we have time for both Sarajevo and Slovenia. If you had to chose - would you start in Slovenia and skip Sarajevo or start in Sarajevo and skip Slovenia. If you suggest skipping Sarajevo - what is the best way to get from Slovenia to Zagreb? Thanks!

Posted by
528 posts

Though I have never been to Sarajevo, I have been to Slovenia, many times, and absolutely love it. Ljubljana is a great city, though there aren't that many flights. Depends on where you are coming from? What time of year will this be? How much time would you have in Slovenia? A great side trip from Ljubljana is to visit Lake Bled, though touristy, it is a gorgeous area. I used GoOpti to transit from Zagreb to Ljubljana, and I'm sure you can use them from Ljubljana to Zagreb. Slovenia has a great culture, food, and wine.

Posted by
4095 posts

I have been to both (not a ton of people here have spent time in Sarajevo). Maybe not everyone loves it as much as I do, but Sarajevo was fascinating for me (I was there for 6 nights in early October).

There isn’t a wrong choice - so if you don’t have a preference for one over the other, I would choose based on how your transportation options work out and how long you have. It IS a bit harder to get to Sarajevo for me, so I would probably choose it since it sounds like a real option this time. It is one of my new favorite cities.

Posted by
5 posts

I'd do both Slovenia and Sarajevo, and instead save Dubrovnik for a separate trip with Split, Zadar, Kotor, and the islands. This will save considerable transit time between stops, and make the car an occasional convenience instead of a necessity.

Sarajevo is a 1-hr flight from Zagreb. Ljubljana and Plitvice are both 2 hrs from Zagreb by bus or car. Zagreb and Ljubljana are also about 2 hrs apart by train.

Dubrovnik is over a 6-hr drive from Zagreb. So for a geographic US equivalent, the question is comparable to visiting Philly for family reasons, but choosing between NYC or DC in order drive to Niagara Falls. (Not comparing destinations, only proximities.)