Slovenia-Croatia itinerary

Did you use a travel agent for your planning? If so, who? Have you purchased air tickets? Where was the best place for looking for airline tickets? We are planning a similar trip in May-June, but will start in Dubrovnik and end in Ljubljana. We we only rent a car where/when it is necessary, as we prefer bus/train or private car for traveling. Have you checked a website called Croatia Travel Agency? THANKS!

Theresa - Travel agent? No (do they still exist? - only half kidding). I do all my planning myself, using the internet lots, and Rick's book as a starting point and a good source for accommodations. Our flights were booked last summer using frequent flyer miles (nearly free - about $125 per person round trip). I have found that getting usable info on some parts of this trip has been more challenging than usual, as it appears many travel companies in this area are not consistently reliable about posting accurate, up-to-date schedules, and/or seem to be cutting back their schedules significantly compared to prior years (I've found this to be the case for the Croatian ferry lines and some critical bus connections - where in previous tears there were multiple ferries running every day, now some runs have been dripped and/or go less frequently - it also appears some rail connections have been cut back, too, but we're not doing trains on this trip). Personally, I prefer trains where they're efficient (they do not seem to be here), and prefer to drive outside of big cities. I do not use commercial travel agency sites as I am confident I can find better deals myself, and I dislike being sold "packages" (I don't want to be packaged along with large groups). YMMV.

My husband and I did a similar trip a few years ago. From our limited, one-trip to the area experience, here's my advice: For the most part, we also followed the suggestions in the Rick Steves book and the advice was pretty solid. Looking at your itinerary, I'd add time to Ljubljana. The city is delightful and it was a good place to just stroll and explore on foot. There are several worthwhile museums that gave us a much-needed education on the history of the area. Lake Bled is beautiful, but personally I didn't need/want more than a day visit. We enjoyed driving east to west through the Julian Alps and then we had time for the small WWI museum on the western end of that drive. Instead of circling back to Lake Bled, I'd suggest continuing south toward the caves. We stayed at a farm-guest house recommended in Rick Steves books that turned out to be very pleasant. We easily visited Scocjan caves and Piran in one day. For the Croatia part of the trip, I wouldn't particularly recommend Pula. It's a bit "out of the way" and the ruins were not exceptional. Similarly, we were underwhelmed by the hill towns. Nice, but nothing unique. The ruins in Split were definitely worth seeing, but Split is a busy, non-descript modern city and the ruins are crowded with tourists. We greatly preferred staying in Trogir. Rick Steves gives Trogir little attention. I guess this is just a personal taste/interest thing. Be prepared for intense sun in the southern Croatia part of your trip. Feel free to write if you have any specific questions.

I agree with Anita. Make time for Ljubljana.

James, thanks for the tips. I'm wondering if we will have time to do al of the following in one reasonable day (Day 3):
Wake up in Bled, drive to and go inside both caves, stop for the obligatory picnic outside Predjama Castle (doesn't sound like it's really worth going inside), then continuing on to Piran, drop the car off at the rental agency, and have a little while to relax in Piran (maybe grab a late lunch or early dinner) before getting on the bus to Rovinj. That bus only runs on Mondays and Fridays (as best I can tell - there's some conflicting info online) so we need to be sure we don't miss it. Does that seem doable in a single day? We could just pick one of the two caves (and skip the other) if that's too tight (or if we're just caved-out after one). I wasn't really planning on spending much time in Opatija - just a stop for a meal and break in the long drive from Istria to Plitvice (I figure we will spend that morning wandering a couple of the hill towns, leaving early afternoon - I assume it'll be small roads and slow going until we get near Opatija, then after that motorways most of the way to Plitvice). Sounds like people are divided about whether the Roman ruins in Pula justify a half day there. Your take on Rovinj is interesting - will need to think about that.

Anita - thanks for your input. I would like to give Ljubljana a day buy may not be able to due to the timing of our connection across the border to Croatia (only 2 buses a week). I'll take a closer look. For Bled, we're really only planning one day there (Day 1), which would actually be less than a full day as we will start the day in Ljubljana (might linger there for a bit in the morning) then drive to Bled, so it's likely that we won't arrive in Bled and get settled/oriented until noonish. I assume that the Julian Alps loop takes a full (probably very full) day - yes? It looks like no more than a 2 hour drive from Bled to the caves, so I'm sure we can at least do one of them (both? we'll see) on the way to Piran. Interesting that you didn't feel the ruins in Pula were worth the time spent. Can you tell me which of the Istrian hilltowns you visited? I'm not expecting them to be the same as Tuscan/Umbrian hilltowns, but am hoping to find a couple that have retained some of their "lost in time" character without being overrun by crowds of tourists - I know it's tricky to strike that balance. I'll take a closer look at Trogir (I was looking at that for half a day) and maybe Zadar/Sibenik (as James suggests). I sunburn quickly (instantly) but am not too concerned as we will be there in May. I figure we'll be lucky if it's warm enough to just go for a quick swim at some point towards the end of the trip. :)

We did some parts of your trip. I agree with spending more time in Ljubljana. We spent 4 nights there and rented a car for one day for a day trip to Lake Bled and Vintgar National Park. Ljubljana is a great city! From Ljubljana we took the train to Zagreb and flew Croatia Airlines to Dubrovnik. We spent a few days in Dubrovnik, Split, Korcula (skipped Hvar) and Trogir. I'd plan for fewer destinations and more time in each for a more relaxed trip!

I have a few random thoughts, and, like Anita, this is based on our limited, one-trip to the area experience. Our trip was also in March, during which time we may have experienced less tourist traffic than you might in May. - We went inside Predjama Castle, but felt the cool factor of the experience was definitely viewing it from the outside and the way it just sort of hangs there. I also seem to recall there being caves under that castle, too, but no entry was allowed in March on account of the fact the "bats were sleeping." At any rate, if you are running out of time for Postojna or Skocjan, maybe you could visit the caves at Predjama to get in a cave experience. - We based ourselves in Opatija for the Istrian part and were able to cover a lot of ground from there as day trips (Pula, Rovinj, Hum, and a few other towns I can't remember right now). Instead of moving to Motovun on Day 5, have you considered just picking one base for all 3 nights? Then again, we also don't mind driving and there was little traffic when we were there. - I agree with James that Rovinj only needs half day, at most. Unless, of course, you are looking for some down time. - As for Pula, while it isn't as charming as a lot of Istria, we really liked the Roman bits and are glad we checked out the area. It gets my vote. The trip will be a lot of "on the go," but as long as you are prepared for that, overall it looks good. If you were looking to cut down on anything, I might throw a question out there for the experts if staying on 3 different islands will give you a widely varied experience and will be worth the time spent moving around. I have no experience myself, as we didn't visit the islands in March, but it is just something that caught my eye and I wonder about. Good luck with planning!

David, to answer a few questions: We drove from Ljublyana, saw Lake Bled, drove through the Julian Alps, visited the WWI museum, and arrived at our tourist farm near the caves by late evening. The mountain part of the trip could take a lot longer than we gave it. We kept moving because it was chilly and at spots there was still snow on the ground; we weren't dressed for hiking in those conditions. We were fortunate to run into multiple people who had visited both sets of caves. Everyone seemed to agree that one cave would be sufficient. Postojna was recommended for people with limited walking capacity, kids, or people who wanted a quick experience. We visited Skocjan and enjoyed it immensely. Visits must be escorted. We happened to arrive just as an Italian/English tour was starting. There was some walking and stairwells to climb, but I don't recall anyone struggling to keep up with the group. I wouldn't particularly recommend Pula because it is a bit out of the way. In addition, there was little information available about the ruins and they were less complete than those in Italy and France. We stopped in several hill towns but the only name I recall is Motovun (spelling?) because it was the birthplace of race driver Mario Andretti.

Hi guys. I'm heading to slo-cro for my honeymoon in late April and early may. Anything in particular I should be concerned about at those times? My biggest concern is that bad weather will ruin the day I have planned in plitvice or derail the ferry schedule which currently looks inflexible with my itinerary. Was planning two nights in hvar, but am wondering if this is a good time to visit, or if it is better to spend more time in Dubrovnik and day trip? Also, is booking hotels in advance worth it? Or isn't the same price if you just show up. Don't want to go the sobe route because it's my honeymoon, and I am willing to spend a litlle more on nice hotels for this trip. Any advice would be very welcome. Thanks.

@David, I think I might spend two nights in Korcula and day trip to Hvar. Also, I understand that Hvar is the most expensive of all the islands. Plitvice is very worth the effort! And I have to stand up for Split. I found Split to be very interesting. Yes, it's pretty big and sprawling by Dalmatian standards, but the center part incorporating the ruins of Diocletian's retirement palace is fascinating. That is where you'll no doubt be spending your time. @Mike Weather is weather. Bring rain gear for Plitvice. A little shower can't dampen that day! That being said, you're not travelling during a time noted for bad weather I don't think. And yes, book ahead. Especially on a honeymoon!

Having spent more than a week in Slovenia, I encourage you to spend as much time on day 2 viewing the WWI sights and to return to Lake Bled through Italy to avoid the mountain road on your return. The next day I would depart Lake Bled very early to spend two hours walking the picturesque Vintgar Gorge. Allow yourself only one cave so not to miss the 6:23pm bus.
Howard