Croatia
My Grandma wanted to take a family trip to Croatia, so to Croatia we went…
Day 1: Fly into Dubrovnik
Drew, Monica and I flew into Dubrovnik a few hours before the rest of my family (grandma, grandma, mom and little brother) with enough time to pick up the rental car. What was supposed to be a minivan turned out to be a huge sprinter van we fondly named “Bad Larry.” We had so many laughs in this massive vehicle, the best of which was trying to park it in a tiny parking lot in Split. Poor Drew, the driver throughout the trip, had to inch it around cars (and it was a manual!) with hand signal directions from friendly locals who, I’m sure, took amusement from the dumb Americans.
Day 2: Explore the City Walls, Dubrovnik Old Town
The first morning, we walked the city walls to get a view of the old town. You can buy tickets online or at a desk by the Pile Gate. The walk was about 1.2 miles with lots of steps. My grandparents did so amazing, I’m always impressed by how fit they are for their mid 80s. We spent the remainder of the day exploring the sites in the city including Gundulic Square, St. Ignatius Church, and the Poljana Market. We saw most of the sites where they filmed Game of Thrones just by walking around. After an amazing lunch at Gradska Kavana Arsenal Restaurant we walked up to Fort Lovrijenac which had a great view of the walled old town. We booked a private tour for that evening on Mount Srd which included a small wine tasting. It was such a beautiful place to watch the sunset.
Day 3: Travel to Split, Explore Split
The net day, we drove three hours to Split. The coastal road goes through an annexed area of Bosnia so we decided to get lunch in Neum to say we went to another country. They are currently building bridges so people can stay in Croatia the entire drive and not have to go through boarder security twice. We arrived in Split in the early afternoon. There are not many sites to see in the city but it is fun to walk around and shop. We walked by Diocletian’s palace, the Cathedral of St. Domnius, and along the harbor.
Day 4: Hvar Island Day Trip
The next morning, we took the ferry to Hvar. We started by climbing to the Spanjola Fortress before the heat of the day. We got a taxi down to save our knees and spent the next few hours on the beach. We went to Beach Robinson by the recommendation of our taxi driver to avoid some of the crowds at the more popular beaches (Malo Zarace Beach, Dubovica Beach, and Pokonji Dol Beach). After getting too much sun, we explored the old town and caught the ferry back to Split. Hvar was the highlight of our trip!
Day 5: National Park Day Trip
The next morning, we drove 1.5 hours to Krka National Park. Croatia is known for the pristine, clear water and waterfalls in its National Parks. Krka is the smaller (and we realized far more touristy) of the parks but still absolutely beautiful. If we did it again, we would have driven further to go to Plitvice Lakes National Park. That night, we drove back to Split and celebrated Monica’s birthday with dinner.
Day 6: Travel back to Dubrovnik
The next day we drove the three hours back to Dubrovnik, relaxed by the ocean, and had a final family dinner before our flights the next day.
What an incredible week with my family. I’m incredibly grateful for the health of my grandparents and the ability to travel with my favorite people. Until the next!
