Flying to Coatia and Slovenia

It's a lot about personal choice. But most might want to go into Ljubljana and out of Dubrovnik; or reverse. Just get on Google flights and play with dates and directions. I might also play with Zagreb instead of Ljubljana and Podgorica and Tivat instead of Dubrovnik. Actually departing or arriving in Podgorica or Tivat would be a real bonus.

For the Rick Steves Adriatic tour, a number of people flew into Venice and out of Dubrovnik.

Wait! How are you moving around? If you are driving a rental car and you do what i just said the drop off fee might be expensive; I could be wrong. That might dictate not seeing anything more than northern Crostia and slovenia so you pick up the car and return it in the same city and do round trip flights using Zagreb or Ljubljana.

I dont think its a good solution because you have time to see more but to use it you will have to use buses and/or transfers or possibly pay a lot for a drop off fee on a car. I refuse to rent a car on holiday so I am not the expert here, but research it. Remember if it is too good to be true, it is.

My vote is buses and transfers Ljubljana to at least Dubrovnik if not Kotor.

Time of year might matter too, as might How many in the trip.

Check round trip and multi city on google flights to see what looks ideal for your budget and timeline.
I’ve never paid more for multi city and it can save you important time.
If you have ample time you can fly to a larger airport and switch to a low cost carrier, but I always see what I’m working with first, as I have a tighter timeline and I want to fly in and out exactly where I want to be.
It’s easy to do a round trip loop to Slovenia via Zagreb.

Thank you all for your input.
I need to clarify that I just started to plan this trip. A few days ago I purchased Rick Steves book.

I look at his 14 day itinerary and most likely we are planning to travel 14 days or so. For sure, minimum of 14 days.

I was looking to rent a car in some places but not cross any borders. Another possibility is to use buses between towns.

We still have to decide to go at the end of April or at the middle of September. I'm a photographer, therefore I'm always thinking what to photograph.

Many decisions to make, and plenty planning.

Any comments are welcome.

I’ve always found that airfares to Ljubljana, Split, Dubrovnik, and Zagreb are significantly more expensive than if you fly into the major hubs ( ie Frankfurt, Munich, Venice, Milan, Amsterdam ) and then book a separate ticket for Ljubljana, Zagreb. Split or Dubrovnik continuing on from the arrival city. Flying into Venice makes the most sense if you’re going to Slovenia because there are 3-hour express buses from Venice Mestre train station to Ljubljana. When the airlines sell you the whole journey with a connecting flight, it’s usually several hundred dollars more for each ticket than if I buy two tickets myself.

The caveat here, of course, is that you need to be careful to allow plenty of time between the flights, buy travel insurance covering trip delay/interruptions, or overnight in the arrival city and buy the ongoing ticket for the following day,

I go to www.Skyscanner.com and check flights from my home base to the cities mentioned above and see what works best.

For car rentals, AutoEurope brokers for many major car rental agencies and has some of the best rates available— even less than what the car rental companies themselves offer. They offer cars in several Venice locations and in Padua, in Ljubljana AutoEurope offers car rentals near the train station through Sixt, along with other agencies in more locations. In Croatia, AutoEurope can set you up with a car rental pickup in Zagreb and a dropoff in Split or Dubrovnik. You can reverse the pickup and dropoff locations as well, There are many other locations throughout Croatia, but these are the most popular for travelers,

Weather-wise, in addition to photography (think both would be good, though I’m partial to the September colors and light), consider your preferred temperature range. I’d find late April chilly, certainly at night, whereas September will be balmy and better if you have any intention at all of swimming.
You’ve got plenty of time to sort out the flight later unless your budget is really tight, so I’d focus on making your must list first as you don’t want to choose a flight plan that locks you into something.

I haven’t been to Slovenia; Croatia I have visited a bit more than I wanted to. But it’s lovely. So, as I write, its Croatia I am thinking about.

I look at his 14-day itinerary and most likely we are planning to travel 14 days or so. For sure, minimum of 14 days.

Two weeks is 16 days if you use the ending weekend. Every day makes the trip more efficient because you get more fun out of the airfare cost.

I was looking to rent a car in some places but not cross any borders. Another possibility is to use buses between towns.

The decision has less to do with crossing borders as that’s generally not an issue. It does have to do with pick up and drop off locations. If you picked up the car in Zagreb and dropped it off in Dubrovnik, you will have a drop off fee, rental, insurance, tickets, parking (budget 35 Euro a night), gas. Do read the issues raised on the forum with European rental car companies so you can protect yourself.

There are not a lot of trains in the region. South of Zagreb, just one that I know of that goes to Split, but that doesn’t work if you want to go to Plitvice. So, you are down to buses and private transfers. Croatia is expensive so private transfers are an issue for many. Buses are cheap but they fly past all the photos and the great places in-between.

I cant imagine going from Plitvice to Split without stopping at a vineyard or olive plantation or traditional village or … https://maps.app.goo.gl/R7eAG4EEPXARwYrk8 and https://maps.app.goo.gl/P8tkyFWBGLnttnrKA or https://maps.app.goo.gl/QQEcPiyoD2CKjfVg6 or https://maps.app.goo.gl/fPcMxCyN6SbqepRU6 as examples of categories. I just love the places in-between on all of my trips.

We still have to decide to go at the end of April or at the middle of September. I'm a photographer; therefore I'm always thinking about what to photograph.

I would vote for starting in Slovenia and then crossing the border into Croatia on the first of June or 15 of September. 1 June is still early enough to miss the worst of the tourism, and 15 September is late enough to miss the worst of tourism. Both dates provide a good opportunity to get the most out of the trip as it’s pretty much close to prime Mediterranean weather.

Slovenia will have "Fall colors". Croatia will have "less green" colors along the coast.

Do it on one ticket (at least each way) so you don’t get stranded someplace and for better use of time. You only have 16 days. Separate tickets, in my world, only works if you are spending the night between them. Otherwise, you land, claim your luggage to recheck it, then in some airports you might have to go back through immigration and security and if your first flight is delayed or rescheduled you lose your connecting flight ticket. It can be a mess. Your 14-hour trip is now 17 hours or longer.

I just did a quick check from 29 May to 13 June, and it was $1300 economy with a checked bag from San Francisco to Zagreb and then returning out of Dubrovnik. That’s not bad and it sort of works. Rent your car in Zagreb and do a driving tour for a few days in Slovenia and that way you can get some great photography in. Then return the car in Zagreb and start the tour down Croatia.

I found about the same prices returning from Podgorica and Tivat and that gives you the opportunity for this these photos from a few days ago. All within 1 or 2 hours of the Podgorica airport: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1z4-CwCkZCAlH36M42Ul_r9Ae1Dq3xYO_?usp=sharing okay, I am not a great photographer.

There are international airports in Ljubljana, Pula, Zadar, Split, Zagreb and Dubrovnik.

To see both in 14 days is ambitious. Either pick Slovenia and northern Croatia or just southern Croatia. If you do Slovenia and northern Croatia, then fly into Ljubljana, rent a car to explore Slovenia. Return the car. Take the bus or train to Zagreb, rent another car.

We live in southern CA and flew direct to Dubrovnik from Newark, NJ after attending a wedding in western Mass. After a few days we rented a car and drove to Kotor, Mostar, back to Croatia and up to Slovenia. We returned the car in Zagreb and flew to LAX, connecting in Munich. We spent one month there. Obviously you have less time and can't go to as many places as we did. But flying in and out of different cities was great. The driving was usually pretty easy. I think there are more direct flights to Croatia from the east coast in the summer.

Once again I would like to thank you all for all the responses and providing me with great feedback.
I now feel that I need to rethink our trip in terms of days, places to visit and arrival and depart airports.

Most likely we'll travel for 14 days, hopefully not counting the time flying in and the time to get back home.
Probably we'll chose to arrive sometime in September so we can also catch the colors.
We are seniors that need to take our time traveling (I'm 80 and my wife is a few years younger) therefore we would like to stay in places for at least two days.
I like the suggestion of visiting Slovenia and northern Croatia.

Now, I need to figure out which places to visit in 14 days or so stay.

Any recommendations will be appreciated.

I have not explored northern Croatia as much as I’d like, but in addition to Istria, you could explore parts north and east of Zagreb, where there are castles ( https://www.expatincroatia.com/castles-croatia/).
Or, you could delve into the northern islands, where I have a little experience. If you are into wildlife photography, Cres has some facilities for the vulture. It’s got a dramatic appearance with rocky outcrops.

Here are some interesting ideas.

https://www.ytravelblog.com/best-places-to-visit-in-slovenia/

And Fun Facts https://podaci.dzs.hr/2025/en/97094

The County of Istria holds the first place, accounting for almost a third of total tourist nights

The County of Istria had the largest number of tourist arrivals and nights, as many as 5.0 million arrivals (which accounted for 24.1% of the total realised arrivals) and 28.3 million nights (which accounted for 29.9% of the total realised nights). Compared to 2024, the County of Istria had 2.4% more tourist arrivals and 1.5% more tourist nights.

[population of the region is 195.000 / Ratio: ~133 overnight stays for every local resident, making Istria one of the most intensely visited regions in Europe. Land area: 1,086 square miles]
[largest group is German tourists]

The County of Split-Dalmatia holds the second place, with 3.9 million arrivals and 18.4 million tourist nights, whereas the County of Primorje-Gorski Kotar is in the third place, with 3.2 million arrivals and 15.5 million nights. Compared to 2024, the County of Split-Dalmatia realised 2.5% more arrivals and 0.9% more nights, whereas the County of Primorje-Gorski Kotar realised 2.5% more arrivals and 0.5% more tourist nights.

[population of the region is 425.000 and 1,750 square miles]
[largest group is America tourists]

Tourist destinations Rovinj – Rovigno and Dubrovnik share first place with the most realised nights in 2025

In 2025, tourist destinations Rovinj – Rovigno and Dubrovnik shared the first place when it comes to the number of realised tourist nights. Both cities are at the top of the list of the most successful tourist destinations in Croatia, with 4.2 million nights realised in each. Compared to 2024, both destinations realised an increase in tourist nights, namely, Rovinj – Rovigno, of 3.9%, and Dubrovnik, of 0.3%.

As regards the number of realised tourist nights, Rovinj – Rovigno and Dubrovnik are followed by Poreč – Parenzo in the third place, with 3.3 million nights. Those were followed by Split, with 3.2 million nights, and the City of Zagreb, with 2.7 million nights. Compared to 2024, those cities realised an increase in tourist nights, namely Poreč – Parenzo, of 2.2%, whereas Split and the City of Zagreb realised an increase of 2.8% each.

Also in the region

The Country of Slovenia had 5,47 million arrivals generating 13,36 million overnight stays
The Country of Montenegro had 2,7 million tourist arrivals and 15,37 million overnight stays

To see both in 14 days is ambitious. Either pick Slovenia and
northern Croatia or just southern Croatia. If you do Slovenia and
northern Croatia, then fly into Ljubljana, rent a car to explore
Slovenia. Return the car. Take the bus or train to Zagreb, rent
another car.

I know that Emily goes there often, so I would trust her suggestion which leans to the north.

I also think its a pretty good match for you. Slovenia caught your eye and its my impression that Slovenia has a Western European vibe in all the good meanins of the suggestion. Northern Croatia I know feels much more western than the south which may appeal to you.

For two weeks? Because this is a photography trip to some significant degree, sure. General tourism for a guy like me? Probably not. If it were not for the photography I might argue that 16 days is enough time to get a pretty good tour:

1. Leave US
2. Arrive Zagreb
3. Ljub
4. Begin driving tour of Slovenia.
5. Slovenia
6. Slovenia
7. Return to Zagreb and drop car.
8. Head south to Plitvice (two stops along the way)
9. See Plitvice and head south, stop at winery for the night.
10. Head to Split
11. Split
12. Split to Dubrovnik (one stop along the way)
13. Dubrovnik
14. Dubrovnik
15. Depart for home.
    

Way too fast for a photography trip and relies on bus and transfers which means you drive past all the good photos. Or, rent a car for the whole thing .... naaaaa, do what Emily hinted at. Stay in the north. Very traditional, easy to anticipate and you wont be disapointed.

Looks like you’re getting plenty of advice, but I’ll share my experience with a couple trips to the region. Itinerary planning in this region is a big, big puzzle. Lots of things to see, and everything is a couple hours from the next. Tip #1, just come to terms with the idea that you will leave something major on the table. A ruthless sacrifice (like nixing Dubrovnik) can actually make for a massive itinerary improvement.

I’d go in September. Don’t sweat potential crowds. Croatia does a bang up job ramping up/down based on the crowds. It won’t spoil anything, in fact the added tourist support that comes with it can be helpful.

Flights: Book direct through an airline. I found the major aggregator websites like Travelocity just don’t list a lot of flights here. They’ll show you 12hr layovers at Heathrow when theres 2hr layover somewhere else. You’ll also have pick of times, etc. These tickets will not be cheap, but they will be what you want. Cheap flights here are a pipe dream. Given the distances between destinations, round trip flights usually don’t make a ton of sense and a multi-city flight is beneficial. Zagreb is pretty affordable to fly though (and a great town in its own right). It seems like the de facto hub. Ljubljana’s airport is more expensive (extra taxes) and a lot of the recommendations to use Venice reflect that.

Since you've settled on Slovenia + northern Croatia, here's a rough shape that suits a slower, 2+ nights per stop pace: Ljubljana (2 nights) as your base — it's small enough to see well without rushing, and everything else is a manageable day trip from there. Then Lake Bled (2 nights) — the lake, the island boat ride (no strenuous walking involved, just the boat and a short walk up to the castle if you want the view, otherwise skip it), and Bohinj as a quieter half-day if you want less crowds than Bled itself. This page has good detail on costs and pacing if it helps: https://tipsinslovenia.com/destinations/slovenian-cities/bled/

From there, Piran (1-2 nights) on the coast is a nice change of pace and sets you up well to continue into Istria/northern Croatia by car or bus without backtracking. That's roughly 5-6 nights for Slovenia, leaving the rest for Croatia. Postojna Cave fits neatly as a stop on the way from Bled/Ljubljana down to Piran.

Wow, I love all the advice I'm getting. Lots to digest but extremely good ideas. I most likely stick to the 14 to 16 day trip except the flight in and out. I believe that will give us a good taste of Slovenia and Croatia. I still planning for mid September and hopefully catch the change in colors.

I’m using miles into Ljubljana with a terrible layover in Istanbul for 10/8 Rick Steves Best of Adriatic tour. I’m not happy with the flights but that is all I could get the airline to give me.

We fly back from Dubrovnik.