Am flying into Split this summer for hols, and most likely flying back out of Dubrovnik 2 adults, 2 kids 13/11

any must see/do things in Split through to Dubrovnik?

Is Montenegro worth a visit?

Hire a boat and cruise around the islands for a day.

Wrong direction, but Krka National Park is great.

Montenegro is lovely.

Spend some time in the old city at Dubrovnik. It’s amazing.
I wish we hadn’t left it until the end of our holiday to visit, because I’d like to have been able to spend more time there.
We went by boat from Plat where we stayed. That was a great little trip. 🙂

Any suggestions for accommodation, haven’t booked any yet?

Have had 2 wonderful holidays in Croatia. Both times I flew into Dubrovnik.

First time I stayed in Cavtat. Literally 15 mins drive from the airport (no problems with airport noise tho). Rocky little coves and beaches. Nice little town with loads going on around the harbour. Dubrovnik was 30 mins on the bus or an hour on a fishing boat ferry.

Second time I stayed in Orebic. On the dalmation coast 4 hours transfer from Dubrovnik. On the mainland just opposite the Island of Korcula. (Korcula old town is also known as ‘little Dubrovnik’).

Fond memories. Friendly people. Don’t expect golden sandy beaches and take some shoes for swimming as there are urchins in the water.

Yeah, Cavtat is great!

From Split, go and scope out Bol and Hvar. A catamaran goes from split once or twice a day. Bol is on Brac, very chilled watersports type small town. Hvar is a bit more showy and lively but very nice!
Digs can be picked up usually from locals waiting on the ferry dock for a very reasonable sum.

We did the same last summer, flew into split and home from Dubrovnik.
Really enjoyed it. Would have been even better if I hadn’t fallen off 4 days before due to fly out, breaking my wrist and needing surgery so missing the first 4 days of the 11 day holiday…
However, we booked cheap accommodation through booking.com. Apartment in Ömis which is about an hour from split then hotel cavtat in cavtat, 40 mins by road or an hour by boat from Dubrovnik.
If I hadn’t been injured I’d have done some riding but had a good time anyway.
In Ömis the others went out n a canoe trip down the river who’s name I forget, seemed good. Went to split and Dubrovnik during the evenings, boat taxi back from Dubrovnik was great at 11pm or so. Less good getting the bus back from split. Massively busy and fighting to get on. A charming local lass threatened to break my other arm…
We didn’t hire a car and negotiated a local taxi to take us from Ömis to cavtat. Queue difficult conversation three hours into the journey as he tried to renegotiate the price as my pals had been to vague with the destination…
We hired a boat for a day with a driver/pilot/captain to takes around the islands. Really lovely however also due to poor communication we had an arguement about the price afterwards.
All in all lovely place great weather cheap as chips but be very sure what prices you agree for an in resort excursions as there seems to be a bit of scamming going on.

Edit: oh yes sea urchins. They are everywhere and my son trod on one on the first day. Stopped limping after about a week.

I lived on Kor?ula for seven months in 2004 and drove down there in the camper in 2012.

Unfortunately I don’t know the other islands too well, but Korc and Mljet are both well worth a visit. The town of Kor?ula is small but perfectly formed, and Mljet is ? national park. To get to Kor?ula I’d recommend taking the ferry from Plo?e (which is a dive) to Tripanj (which is gorgeous), driving over the Peljšac peninsula to Orebi? and taking the ferry to Kor?ula. On the way back drive south along the Peljšac back to the mainland and toward Dubronik, and have a look at the village of Ston – it’s quite bizarrely amazing. By doing this it does mean you miss the amusing border crossing into Bosnia’s small coastline (if you do go have a look at where the flags are), but it’s not really a big deal.

I’ve not been to Montenegro, but wanted to go there in 2012; been told it’s stunning.

Overall it’s a beautiful part of the world. My experience is that Split is amazing, Dubrovnik is more stunning but also more touristy with lots of beautiful people seeing to be seen. The coast road is gorgeous to drive, but full of absolute nutters. The inland highway is very expensive, but fast and empty. The islands are more laid back – both in terms or driving and people. The history is also fascinating, and personally I loved the architecture – there’s so many different influences (Austro-Hungarian, Venetian, Communist functionalism). Unfortunately a lot of it was still bearing the scars of conflict, especially from the first floor up, 12 years ago.

Avoid August if possible as the Italians are all on holiday, and head over the Adriatic and Ionian. It’s also very warm.

Otherwise from Dubrovnik I’ve been told there’s some amazing stuff to see in the area, especially relating to the Balkans conflict. Crossing into Bosnia, Mostar is apparently well-worth a visit. The bridge there was reopened while I was living in Croatia – some guests that came out headed over and sang its praises.

Finally, the conflict has finished and been gone for 20 years, but back in 2004 the wounds were still very sore. I met both Croats and Serbs that said the same things almost word for word, just replacing one fighting faction with another. The animosity is still there (I suspect it always will be) but – certainly back in 2004 – you shouldn’t see it overtly unless you go a long, long way inland and off the beaten path.

Regarding accommodation, this is run by Jon (British Columbian of Chinese descent) and Sanja (Slovenian, if memory serves) who are an awesome couple: http://freshsheetskathedral.com

In short – I love it there. Enjoy!

If you’re interested, some pics here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/pimpmasterjazz/albums/72157631537644890

When in Dubrovnik, look up Buza2, a bar on the outside of the walls , you can jump off and swim or just soak up the sun (or hide from it in my case).

Croatia is great, if you get a daytime flight into Dubrovnik and look out the window as you approach it looks like the picture from a brochure cover, but without the colours being enhanced, I was amazed the first time we flew in.

Islands off the coast of Dubrovnik are worth a visit too.

From Split to Dubrovnik you should island hop on the Ferries though that’ll mean dispensing with a car and using public transport on the islands. Whilst you’re up at Split there’s plenty to see and you might head north to Krka National Park or Trogir.

EDIT Buza2 FTW!!!

We are doing exactly the same holiday in the opposite direction, Dubrovnik to Split. We have small kids in tow and will spend a week self catering in Milini, a week in a static Caravan on Hvar and one week in Supetar also self catering. We will not hire a car, so will be taking water taxis and ferries.

This will be our third time in Croatia, the previous times we stayed in Supetar on Brac, so I can only vouch for Supetar. It is very child friendly, more so than Bol (in my opinion), and there is a lovely sandy beach to the west of the town. And for a day trip you can take the ferry to Split.

I should add – public transport (including ferries) certainly was pretty good, if a little interesting when trying to work out what goes where.

Cheers, some helpful hints from all you budding Judith’s!

Nice pics @PMJazz

Hvar is worth a visit, Brac is closer to the mainland but unless you are going to Bol (the famous beach), there isn’t much to see.
I prefer Split to Dubrovnik, they are both great cities but Dubrovnik can be too much of a tourist honeypot when the cruise liners dock.