Croatia

Things we like!

  • Plitvice National Park is magical.  A must see!
  • Infrastructure of the roads made it very easy to drive.
  • Bakeries!  They have strudel to die for, and also pizza!
  • Cheap good tasting beer.
  • Some of the most beautiful scenery anywhere!

Things we didn’t like as much

  • The taxi drivers like to charge tourists “extra”
  • The train system in Croatia was disappointing.
  • The Croatian people seemed a little less friendly.
  • Lots of graffiti!

We didn’t arrive in Croatia in the best of circumstances.  Both of us were sick after spending 16 days on a transatlantic cruise that we’d taken from NYC to Rome.  Arriving in Croatia on a cold, rainy day, we had planned on staying in the city of Split for 4 days before moving on to Zagreb.  We ended up not seeing any of Split since we were both sick, and it rained heavily all 4 days we were there.  Still sick we endured a miserable 8 hour train trip to Zagreb, and then quickly got overcharged by our taxi driver who took us to our Airbnb where we would spend the next 8 weeks.  (Another “stupid tax”!). In the end, we left Zagreb 2 weeks early, but not before seeing the most beautiful, magical places we’ve ever seen…which made our whole trip worthwhile!

Helpful Apps!

  • Google Translate
  • Google Maps
  • Bolt  (this is used both for ordering taxis, and food delivery
  • FLIXBUS (to buy bus tickets to anywhere in Croatia online)

Links to our Accommodations:

Places We visited

Zagreb

Zagreb is the capital of Croatia, and we spent about a month here.  Although it is the capital, we found that there wasn’t really much to do here.  

While we were here, there was construction going on everywhere, with many of the churches and buildings clothed in scaffolding.  On March 22, 2020 a 5.5 magnitude earthquake hit at 6:24am, claiming one life and damaging 25,000 buildings.  The pandemic slowed reconstruction, but three years later there are indications everywhere that things are well on their way to being repaired and rebuilt.

One of the many statues found in the town square
This is the Zagreb Funicular. Its 66 meter track makes it the shortest Funicular in the world!
We found a walking trail behind our apartment.
zagreb, tram, city-2582608.jpg
Zagreb has skinny little trams that run throughout the city
Skyline shot with construction cranes in the background
Cool little street that led to the Cathedral in the background, which was closed and under reconstruction

Plitvice Lakes

Plitvice Lakes National Park is an experience of a lifetime!  Michelle and I were both mesmerized by the overwhelming beauty of this Croation treasure!  The lakes in Plitvice are numerous, and are all connected together by waterfalls that come from all heights and directions.   The water in the lakes is emerald green and crystal clear.  The best word that I can find to describe this National Park is ENCHANTING!  If there is one place that everyone should see before they die, it’s this place.  We will never forget the impression it left on us.  

One of the countless lakes
A wooden walkway leads everyone around the lakes but at the half way point, a boat ferries everyone across to the next part of the trail.
We saw more waterfalls on this one day than we'd seen in our whole lives!
Don't look at me. Look at the waterfalls behind us
Looking down from one of the many lookout points
Aerial view of Plitvice!

Rastoke

On our way home back to Zagreb from Plitvice, we came across Rastoke, a picturesque little town with even more waterfalls!  We stopped our car and walked down to the river.  The scenery was stunning!  

We didn’t stay here, but if we ever come back to Croatia, this is definitely a place we’d love to spend more time!

The little river below Rastoke
Waterfalls everywhere!
This was our rental car. It was the first Hybrid I'd ever driven. We were impressed!
If we could, we would live here!
Along this little trail down to the bottom, we saw the largest earthworm we'd ever seen. At first we thought it was a snake.
One last waterfall picture!