Croatia/Slovenia Itinerary Feedback

Hi Jami,

For the specific travel criteria you mentioned that you prefer, I think your itinerary looks great.

A few notes:

1) Although 3 nights at Lake Bled might sound like more than enough, there are actually a ton of things to do if you are open to driving excursions. The area is stunning! And if you were really motivated, you could even do a day trip down into Istria to see a little bit of that, too. Another day trip option could be going to Klagenfurt, Austria, which is a lovely, short drive (but I'm not sure if you need a special sticker for the car - we didn't have one but I thought I read somewhere after we got home that you need it. Guess we got lucky!).

2) The day you go to Plitvice, maybe consider spending a few hours first in Zagreb, unless it is on a Sunday. Most everything is closed in Zagreb (and Ljubljana) on Sunday.

3) Vis-a-vis Mostar, I strongly urge you to consider spending a night there (maybe take a night off Dubrovnik?). It feels so different from Croatia, and is truly worthy of an overnight.

4) A day trip from Dubrovnik to Montenegro is definitely do-able, but since you are traveling with a small child you may want to consider renting a car for the day (as opposed to taking a bus tour).

Hope this helps, and if you'd like any lodging recommendations, feel free to PM me. Happy planning!

Jadrolinija changes to its 2009 low-season schedule on September 29. If your Split to Korcula leg is after that date, you'll have fewer options. Number of ferries and departure times vary by day of week. You can use their website www.jadrolinija.hr to view schedules.

I second Angela's suggestion that you overnight in Mostar, as driving from Korcula to Dubrovnik via Mostar would make for a very long day. Villa Fortuna is nice and has off-street parking. I would replace a night in Korcula with a night in Mostar and stick with 4 nights in Dubrovnik.

A day trip to Montenegro is definitely worthwhile. I took a bus tour through Atlas Tours, but not sure whether the 11 hour length would be too long for your toddler.

Great thoughts Angela & Frank. I had an extra night not accounted for so I may keep the itinerary as is, but add that 14th night in Mostar between Korcula & Dubrovnik.

I'm having a hard time figuring out how to get from Ljubljana Airport to Zagreb once we turn the car in. I know that I can take a train from Ljubljana proper, but am not sure the most economical way to get from the airport to the train station. Any thoughts there?

Maybe we'll keep the car for the first day in DBV and do the daytrip to Montenegro on our own and then turn the car back in.

Yay! A night in Mostar!!! I whole-heartedly, without a doubt, absolutely, 100% second Frank's suggestion of staying at the Villa Fortuna in Mostar. Nela and her husband Mili are just the sweetest people (we stayed there last March and Nela and I still communicate via email), the rooms are fantastic and very safe, it is conveniently located to Old Town, and they also run a travel agency and can help you with any questions you may have about the area. Their website is:

http://www.villafortuna.ba/

As far as getting from the Ljubljana Airport to the train station to get to Zagreb, I did a little research and it appears there are regular buses that run from the airport and end at the bus station (which, I believe, is next door to the train station). Here is the airport website page with that information:

http://www.lju-airport.si/eng/vsebina.asp?IDm=100

Another option is taking a taxi, and the ride supposedly is about 25-35 euro (according to the pundits at TripAdvisor.com). I would caution you if you decide to go the taxi route to confirm and re-confirm with the driver before you get in as to how much the ride will be. If he/she quotes you much higher, check with another taxi.

Lastly, keeping the car for another night in DBV would work well, but make sure to get advice from wherever you stay about parking. Parking in DBV can be a bit of a nightmare, although since you'll be there in fall, it may not be a very big deal.

Good luck!

Ljublajana airport website www.lju-airport.si shows the schedule for frequent buses to Ljublajana train station. It also has taxi information - about EUR 39 to the station. I've only used the bus between the train station and Bled, and it was inexpensive and easy.

The bus station in Ljubljana is directly next to the train station. Trains from there to Zagreb cheap and easy.

One thing I would seriously consider J is taking a day/half day to go down to Postojna and see the caves, and Predjama. It is a 38 min drive from Lju, under 2hr tour through caves, and about $30 for the Postonja, and Predjama. So it's definitely doable in a day. Tours start at 9AM, and are sooo well worth it!

I hope you have a great trip!

Great stuff, Chris & Kay...thanks so much! I had thought about doing the caves, but was afraid it would be too much for my little one. Do you remember seeing any children at either place, Chris?

My husband and I visited Slovenia & Croatia several years ago, and absolutely loved them both. We plan to return also.

My first suggestion would be to schedule some time in Ljubljana, as it is a great place. We rented a car and based out of Ljubljana - one day to Lake Bled and Lake Bohinj (very few tourists here; loved it), another day south to Predjama castle and Skocjan cave.

We took the train to Zagreb, overnighted, and took another train to Split.The ferry schedule was limited(this was in mid-May), so we spent longer in Split than we wanted, and less time in Korcula than we wanted. Loved Korcula, and only got to spend one night there. From there we took another ferry to Dubrovnik, and spent several days in Dubrovnik.

While in Dubrovnik we rented a car one day, driving north up the coast to Ston, Mali Stone, and through the little piece of Bosnia that juts to the sea. It was easy driving, and beautiful coastline.

Dubrovnik is a magical city, and we loved walking the wall around the old city. Make sure you try the "black risotto" while you are there - a local recommended it to us, and it was awesome!

Driving in both countries was so much easier than we had anticipated, but no cars were available to rent when we arrived in Zagreb. Our big regret of that trip was not seeing Plitivice Lakes. We also heard the day trip to Montenegro was awesome (some friends of ours did that on their trip).

With a toddler, your itinerary will be different that ours, and I can't give you any recommendations there. I can tell you that the people in both countries were incredibly friendly and helpful. When we were having dinner at an outdoor restaurant in Ljubljana, a car hit our rental car. Other patrons of the restaurant took down the license plate number, others took pictures, and they all volunteered as witnesses. The police were very helpful and friendly.

I can't remember when the 'prime' ferry schedule ends, but you should verify that before your trip.

Yes, there are lot so kids at the caves. (Depends on how little your little one is.. hehe) The most strenuous part is right at the start, so you get through it quick. You take a 10 min train ride in, and the tours start on a little "mountain" inside the English tour is about half way up - that's the only real steep bit (at the end it's a gradual climb). After that it's not too bad, you slow/stop often to look at things, and the pace is fairly ok. PS - I'm a 350lb guy, so it's doable ;). It's cool enough too, that I don't think a child of any age would be bored! :)
Let me know if you have any other questions here our in private.
I've been to Postojna 4 times, and a very close friend of mine grew up 1km from the caves and was a guide. :)
FYI - Skotsjan the the big cave is much more strenuous, and slippery. Postojna is the better choice with kids. :) Hope you have a great trip J! What made you want to hit Slovenia? :)

Hi J,
Chris is right - I wouldn't recommend the Skotsjan cave for a toddler. It was a walk to the entrance, plus it was slippery inside. I think it took us approximately 2 hours to go through - way too long with a toddler in tow! When you return (when your child is at least 7), you should put it on your 'must see' list! It was awesome.

Frank stated earlier that Jadrolinija changes to its 2009 low-season schedule on September 29; if you go after that, make sure your schedule has taken into account the specific days that your desired ferries run. Hopefully their online schedules have gotten more 'user-friendly' since our trip there!

We stayed in a wonderful place just outside the old city in Dubrovnik; it was spotless, spacious, with a kitchenette, and parking! Let me know if you'd like the name, and I'll look it up for you. The owners were great, and very helpful.

This discussion brings back so many great memories from that trip; we have so many new places we want to visit, but I definitely see us returning to those countries.

J..

your question has brought back a flood of memories as we did this trip last year.

It was last year in May

we had to deal with same ferry schedule you will have and it does take a lot of finagling as it runs 2 days a week with several days in betweeen.

we were very comfortable spending 1 night in Korcula and seeing everything, keeping in mind you have a child in tow, 2 days would be fine.

with those extra 2 days I think you would really enjoy Split..

I will differ to others that have personally driven to Mostar.

We used Dubrovnik as a base and hired a driver for Mostar and Montenegro.

In Mostar our van was surrounded by teenage gypsys..and you know the phrase where's a policeman when you need it..they came zooming over when they saw we were in trouble. at that time I was very happy that we didnt venture on our own.

Dubrovnik was wonderful, Mostar really rocked us to our emotional core, and Montenegro was so picturesque.

I would also love for you to see Hvar...it was a wonderful island for downtime.

In complete honesty I would have swapped Korcula for more days in Hvar

I think your itinerary is very well paced and you've really give yourself a fabulous overview. I do agree with your mentality that you will be back...

If you want to view our photos of Montenegro, Mostar and Croatia trip they are on our website. In the albums are cheap eat suggestions, pictures of our hotels, etc.

I also have videos of Mostar which are very moving and Montenegro, Croatia.

The website is ourpassportstamps.com go into Photos and also the where we've been section.

You've probably already discovered the website croatiatraveller.com, but if not ...we found it to be a great resource

BTW, baby food was found everywhere in all Konzum grocery stores..I know this because we had a bit of a bug and babyfood is perfect to eat for that.

If you have a questions let me know..

peace and olive branches

K.

I would definitely recommend that you spend at least some time in Split. It is absolutely beautiful and I can't imagine a trip to Croatia without Split. Unfortunately, many people just consider it a port city for transferring to and from boats. It took my third trip to Split to discover it's lovely, long beach area called Bacvice. It has plenty of kid-friendly area as well. Sounds like you have a wonderful trip planned! :)

I'm excited by your itinerary and think it is a perfect trip to take with a small child. Both Slovenia and Croatia have a very distinctive flavor to them and a nice pace but are not as crowded and overwhelming as more popular European destinations.

Your idea for muliple nights in a destination is particularly well-suited for these two countries. I would suggest adding some time into Ljubljana by taking a day off of Bled, though. Bled is so relaxed and peaceful that two days really is enough. Ljubljana is very walk-able and compact, and will be fun for the little one to explore with you.

Having been to Bled three times, once by bus and once by private taxi (we called a taxi to take us to the train station to get to Bled, and he offered to take us for a price that was less than the train tickets would have been), I would suggest that you don't really need to rent a car unless you are wanting to do lots of scenic driving en route to Bled off of the main road (like Rick's driving tour).

I have been to Zagreb but not to your other destinations yet, so I can't comment on those. I am sure that you will all have a lovely trip! If you are going in October, expect beautiful colors on the trees and mountains surrounding Bled!

I agree, a visit to the Škocjan Caves would be too much for a toddler (although it is amazing). Near the caves is the town of Lipica and the Lipica Horse Farm, where the white Lipizzaner horses (famous Vienna, Austria horse show) have always come from. A toddler would love that. They put on a fantastic show. It is really, really old and is full of history. I couldn't get tickets to see the show in Vienna, but enjoyed practically the same show in Lipica. You'll enjoy Slovenia, it is a real treasure.