I'm interested to know about car hire in Slovenia and Croatia. We are 3 couples (50's), planning to spend about 12 days in this region in September 2012. We need to accommodate 6 plus luggage, so I think we'll need a minivan. Our itinerary is 3 nights in Lake Bled (arriving from Hallstatt, Austria), 3 nights in Rovinj, 1 night in Plitvice Lakes National Park, 2 nights on Hvar and 3 nights in Dubrovnik – using these as bases and taking day trips to other places. (I know we won't need the car in Dubrovnik - can take bus trips here.) Can anyone recommend a suitable car hire company? Will we need to hire and return in each country or is there a car firm which allows a pick-up in Slovenia and drop-off in Croatia without a massive fee?
Any advice would be most gratefully received! Thank you in anticipation. Read more: http://forum.virtualtourist.com/forum-395-1-Travel-Croatia-1-forum.html#ixzz1LcY08Gro
Posted by
Seattle, WA
689 posts
There is a section on this in Rick's guidebook, because it's a question that everyone wants an answer to (it gets asked all the time here), but the short answer is, you WILL get hit with a big drop off fee if picking up in Slovenia and returning in Croatia. Either start the trip in Zagreb (easy to train or fly there) and drive to Bled, or, drop off when done in Slovenia, train to your next destination in Croatia, and pick up a new car. All of us Slovenia/Croatia travelers have to deal with this.
Posted by
OP
Adelaide, South Aust, Australia
35 posts
Thanks, Christy and Richard for your advice. You've helped to confirm my thinking! I'm now looking into catching a morning train from Hallstatt to Graz and doing some sight-seeing there before boarding an early evening train to Zagreb for an overnight stay.
We pick up a vehicle the next morning and drive to Ljubljana for the day, before heading further north. I think these tweaks to the itinerary will work, and best of all, when we drop off in Dubrovnik, we won't have the huge fee!