Croatia

Croatia gained popularity among Americans because the hit TV show Game of Thrones filmed scenes for the city of King’s Landing in Dubrovnik. However, Croatia has one of the world’s greatest National Parks with Plitvice Lakes and a quaint, Italian-esq countryside in Istria. 

Getting Around

Rental car is the way to go for Croatia. There are buses throughout the country, but rental cars give you flexibility even though it might be more expensive than public transit. They are in the process of finishing up the country-long A-1 highway from Zagreb to Dubrovnik via Split, but the freeway ends about halfway between Split and Dubrovnik. Roads are for the most part really good in Croatia so there should be no problems driving around.

Dubrovnik

My favorite part of Croatia was the pearl of the Adriatic, Dubrovnik. An absolutely stunning coastal city, the moment you arrive, you can see why HBO chose to film King’s Landing here. A walk along the Stradun (main street), the city walls, and a gondola ride to the peak of nearby Mount Srd at sunset are absolutely essential to seeing the majesty of Dubrovnik in full. If you’re into Game of Thrones, a film location tour is an interesting way to see Blackwater Bay and the Walk of Shame stairs, among other sights. 

Plitvice Lakes National Park

Plitvice Lakes National Park might be the best national park I have ever been to. It’s a series of 16 terraced lakes connected by hundreds of gorgeous cascading waterfalls, all of it set in a green valley in central Croatia. When I was there, I spent about four hours exploring the park and wandering around on the wooden platforms exploring the park. One tip: the park gets extremely crowded later in the day, so arrive early to see the park before the loads of tour buses arrive. 

Split

Split, a large coastal city in central Croatia, was the retirement residence of the Roman Emperor Diocletian. Built in the 4th century AD, it is where history literally meets the present day. In most ancient Roman cities, like Rome or Ephesus, the ruins are set apart from the rest of the city. Not in Split. Here, Diocletian’s Palace makes up the old part of the city and ancient Roman storefronts are now occupied by modern restaurants and souvenir shops.

Rovinj and Istria

This peninsula at the northwestern end of Croatia is not to be missed. The quaint countryside is dotted with various “hill towns,” which are cute little towns on top of the rolling hills of Istria. This region is also truffle country and these people go all out for these expensive fungi. I had a delicious truffle pasta in the hill town of Motovun. Rovinj is a picturesque seaside town complete with an old bell tower and narrow streets lined with colorful buildings.