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Late summer holiday in Croatia (Split)



Randsta

New member
Aug 8, 2011
2,997
Eastbourne
Hi Guys I know the lovely people of NSC are well traveled; the Mrs and Me are going to Croatia (Split) @ the end of the month and just wanted to see if anyone had some hints / tips / advise for while we are there? I'm going to be there for the Newcastle game too (Yes I know bad fan!!!) ...where would be good to watch the game?
 

spence

British and Proud
Oct 15, 2014
9,809
Crawley
Great question and a country finally to turn up on here that interests me. Will be looking forward to this and if anyone has been to Pula
 

Publius Ovidius

Well-known member
Jul 5, 2003
45,896
at home
Been to Dubrovnik and a few of the islands off there...lopud etc.

Croations very nice people, and weather decent when we have been there. Beer good and food typical south European fare, especially Italian!

If you get a chance, if there is a trip to kotor in Montenegro, I know it is a way, but it is one of the most beautiful places in Europe!

Smudge on here will also have done Croatia, being a cruise chap.
 
Feb 23, 2009
22,775
Brighton factually.....
Fantastic City and go for a walk around the Old Town & Park Šuma Marjan, good food which is better off the beaten track like Konoba Pizzeria Feral, they have lovely fresh fish aswell not expensive.



Must do if you have time go see Dubrovnik.
 

Everest

Me
Jul 5, 2003
20,741
Southwick
If you have a head for heights, go for a wander up the bell tower.
 


Igzilla

Well-known member
Sep 27, 2012
1,639
Worthing
We're off there October half term, place called Makarska.
 

WATFORD zero

Well-known member
NSC Licker Extraordinaire
Jul 10, 2003
25,551
Great question and a country finally to turn up on here that interests me. Will be looking forward to this and if anyone has been to Pula

Was in Pula Saturday (and missed West Brom :annoyed:), what do you want to know ?
 


spence

British and Proud
Oct 15, 2014
9,809
Crawley
Was in Pula Saturday (and missed West Brom :annoyed:), what do you want to know ?

Places to visit, prices,coastline etc

Oh and transport links. Is it easy travelling to other cities by train ?
 

WATFORD zero

Well-known member
NSC Licker Extraordinaire
Jul 10, 2003
25,551
The Amphitheatre and Roman bits were pretty good and there's some reasonable beaches (Croatian beaches !) 10 mins drive or bus away from the centre. I am afraid I drove in and out so don't know much about trains. It's not huge so a day or two would probably cover everything.

I've flown in and out of Pula airport a few times but tend to hire a car and drive somewhere (last couple of weeks spent in Umag, Rabac and Krk). Car Hire is cheap and there are lots of unspoilt areas once you get out of town. Prices are really good with a meal for two with wine being 250-350 Khuna (30-40 quid). The local Istrian wines are very good. Prices are up about 20% on this time last year - Cheers Nige and Boris :annoyed:
 
Last edited:

SeagullRic

New member
Jan 13, 2008
1,399
brighton
Been to Split three times, one of my favourite cities to visit!

How long are you going for? Depending on the length of your trip, I would recommend the following:

- Wandering around the old city (Diocletian's Palace) and just getting lost, also listening to 'Klapa'- Croatian barber shop style groups you'll find dotted around, the acoustics in the ruins are absolutely incredible (see this for a little example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lnb7G-revKc)

- Get one of the local free walking tours, where you pay what you want at the end. In my experience these are far better researched and much more engaging than an expensive pre paid tour, as the guide needs to keep you interested to earn as much as possible! They're also normally delivered by locals who can recommend the best restaurants/cafes!

- Walk up Marjan Hill for the best panoramic view of the city, a half an hour or so walk but its breathtaking and free.

- Wander around to the quieter beach over the Marjan Hill side of the bay front- the busier sandy beach is ok, but very crowded in good weather.

- Visit a fish restaurant and get a seafood platter, ask tour guide/hotel/airbnb owner for recommendations

If you have a week or so I would also highly recommend:

- Getting a boat across for the day to Brac about 60 - 90 minute journey), particularly Bol beach which is iconic- you'll probably recognise it from postcards! Can hire Quad bikes if you want to get about that way, the Olive Oil they make on the island is incredible and well worth picking up.

- Similarly, going over to Hvar for the day is well worth it. It's a party Island by night but you can get great tours of the Island which is known for its Lavender. You can get an airbnb of good standard very cheap (about 20/30 EUR for the night) so you could also stay the night in Hvar Town if you want, although Split is fantastic I think 3/4 days of actually being just in the city is probably enough.

- Hiring a boat from the port in Hvar. There are about 20/25 very small Islands about a 20 minute small boat ride away, and you can rent a boat for the entire day (just have to bring it back before the sun goes down) for about 40/50 EUR. You can then just anchor anywhere around these islands and explore them at your leisure- great beaches and rocky areas, there's also a restaurant on one of the islands accessible only by boat serving fish caught literally minutes beforehand.

- Get some Cevapcici- spiced meatballs eaten with flatbread and onions.

- If you are hiring a car and fancy a drive then Dubrovnik is well worth it, as is a trip to Mostar in Bosnia. Easy to cross the border and you absolutely have to do the 'Death of Yugoslavia' tour which takes you through Bosnia's history from 1945, through the reign of Tito and the relationship with the USSR right up to the Bosnian war, including trips to an old underground cave where military weapons were secretly stored to key sites of the Bosnian-Croat and Bosnian-Serb battles. https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowU...Travel-Mostar_Herzegovina_Neretva_Canton.html

- If you're going to be in Bosnia, the Kravica waterfalls are also simply stunning and very good value for a whole day out!

I'll have a think about a few more places I'd recommend but please PM me if you want any more specific info on the above :)
 


dannyboy

tfso!
Oct 20, 2003
3,618
Waikanae NZ
My favourite country . Went last 3 years but won't be going there again probably now which is a real shame .
Each time we flew into split then went off for a holiday on a holiday to an island . They are all nice
You'll love it . The only thing I'll add that hasn't been said I think is you must go to trogir . It's a 20 min bus ride from split . Old walled city which is also an island .
 

LockStock

Active member
Jan 29, 2008
139
Sussex
Thinking of going myself end of October. We have 3 young children, can anyone recommend what area would be best to look at for child friendlyness. Was thinking of around 5 days so ideally not to far from the airport.
 

spence

British and Proud
Oct 15, 2014
9,809
Crawley
Been to Split three times, one of my favourite cities to visit!

How long are you going for? Depending on the length of your trip, I would recommend the following:

- Wandering around the old city (Diocletian's Palace) and just getting lost, also listening to 'Klapa'- Croatian barber shop style groups you'll find dotted around, the acoustics in the ruins are absolutely incredible (see this for a little example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lnb7G-revKc)

- Get one of the local free walking tours, where you pay what you want at the end. In my experience these are far better researched and much more engaging than an expensive pre paid tour, as the guide needs to keep you interested to earn as much as possible! They're also normally delivered by locals who can recommend the best restaurants/cafes!

- Walk up Marjan Hill for the best panoramic view of the city, a half an hour or so walk but its breathtaking and free.

- Wander around to the quieter beach over the Marjan Hill side of the bay front- the busier sandy beach is ok, but very crowded in good weather.

- Visit a fish restaurant and get a seafood platter, ask tour guide/hotel/airbnb owner for recommendations

If you have a week or so I would also highly recommend:

- Getting a boat across for the day to Brac about 60 - 90 minute journey), particularly Bol beach which is iconic- you'll probably recognise it from postcards! Can hire Quad bikes if you want to get about that way, the Olive Oil they make on the island is incredible and well worth picking up.

- Similarly, going over to Hvar for the day is well worth it. It's a party Island by night but you can get great tours of the Island which is known for its Lavender. You can get an airbnb of good standard very cheap (about 20/30 EUR for the night) so you could also stay the night in Hvar Town if you want, although Split is fantastic I think 3/4 days of actually being just in the city is probably enough.

- Hiring a boat from the port in Hvar. There are about 20/25 very small Islands about a 20 minute small boat ride away, and you can rent a boat for the entire day (just have to bring it back before the sun goes down) for about 40/50 EUR. You can then just anchor anywhere around these islands and explore them at your leisure- great beaches and rocky areas, there's also a restaurant on one of the islands accessible only by boat serving fish caught literally minutes beforehand.

- Get some Cevapcici- spiced meatballs eaten with flatbread and onions.

- If you are hiring a car and fancy a drive then Dubrovnik is well worth it, as is a trip to Mostar in Bosnia. Easy to cross the border and you absolutely have to do the 'Death of Yugoslavia' tour which takes you through Bosnia's history from 1945, through the reign of Tito and the relationship with the USSR right up to the Bosnian war, including trips to an old underground cave where military weapons were secretly stored to key sites of the Bosnian-Croat and Bosnian-Serb battles. https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowU...Travel-Mostar_Herzegovina_Neretva_Canton.html

- If you're going to be in Bosnia, the Kravica waterfalls are also simply stunning and very good value for a whole day out!

I'll have a think about a few more places I'd recommend but please PM me if you want any more specific info on the above :)

Wow superb. The 'Death of Yugoslavia' sounds exactly my kind of thing. I agree with you about the walking tours. They have them in Krakow and were fantastic. Would love to also pop over to Sarajevo
 


spence

British and Proud
Oct 15, 2014
9,809
Crawley
The Amphitheatre and Roman bits were pretty good and there's some reasonable beaches (Croatian beaches !) 10 mins drive or bus away from the centre. I am afraid I drove in and out so don't know much about trains. It's not huge so a day or two would probably cover everything.

I've flown in and out of Pula airport a few times but tend to hire a car and drive somewhere (last couple of weeks spent in Umag, Rabac and Krk). Car Hire is cheap and there are lots of unspoilt areas once you get out of town. Prices are really good with a meal for two with wine being 250-350 Khuna (30-40 quid). The local Istrian wines are very good. Prices are up about 20% on this time last year - Cheers Nige and Boris :annoyed:

Thanks for this. Hiring a car is a no no. I simply cannot drive on the other side. God knows why not. Sounds like Split is the better option.
 

Charlies Shinpad

New member
Jul 5, 2003
4,415
Oakford in Devon
Had a week in Hvar a couple of years ago and it's a great little island with lovely bars alongside the harbour and went to Dubrovnik last year
Do the walls of Dubrovnik but do it when there aren't many cruise ships in and also do the Cable Car up the mountain and have a beer up the top as the views are stunning
30d6095fbc9c97d52ba5bfcc095a0d89.jpg
 

SeagullRic

New member
Jan 13, 2008
1,399
brighton
Wow superb. The 'Death of Yugoslavia' sounds exactly my kind of thing. I agree with you about the walking tours. They have them in Krakow and were fantastic. Would love to also pop over to Sarajevo

It is absolutely fantastic, the same company (iHouse) run 3 other tours as well which I haven't been on but all the reviews look very positive. Meant to mention in Bosnia the value for money eating out is incredible, get a mixed meat platter with chips although with the portion sizes you'll probably not need to eat for a week.

Sarajevo is also very interesting and the free tour from their is brilliant too, cafe culture is brilliant and you need to try Bosnian Coffee made in the traditional way and served with a piece of Turkish delight. The history feels so present still now across the country in quite a harrowing way, you see a lot of amputees who lost arm or more commonly a leg from stepping on a land mine, and for that reason it's highly recommended you stick to roads/paths across the region as there are still a lot of unexploded mines dotted around!

My real top tip for Sarajevo would be walking all the way along Ferhadija (due to the eclectic mix of religions this is often described as like walking from Istanbul to Vienna) and also visiting the Srebrinica musuem which helps you understand more about the atrocities which took place.
 

spence

British and Proud
Oct 15, 2014
9,809
Crawley
It is absolutely fantastic, the same company (iHouse) run 3 other tours as well which I haven't been on but all the reviews look very positive. Meant to mention in Bosnia the value for money eating out is incredible, get a mixed meat platter with chips although with the portion sizes you'll probably not need to eat for a week.

Sarajevo is also very interesting and the free tour from their is brilliant too, cafe culture is brilliant and you need to try Bosnian Coffee made in the traditional way and served with a piece of Turkish delight. The history feels so present still now across the country in quite a harrowing way, you see a lot of amputees who lost arm or more commonly a leg from stepping on a land mine, and for that reason it's highly recommended you stick to roads/paths across the region as there are still a lot of unexploded mines dotted around!

My real top tip for Sarajevo would be walking all the way along Ferhadija (due to the eclectic mix of religions this is often described as like walking from Istanbul to Vienna) and also visiting the Srebrinica musuem which helps you understand more about the atrocities which took place.

Cheers for this. Might pm next year about this. Going to Poland in two weeks time. Next year it was a toss up between Budapest or somewhere in Croatia for 5 nights. I'm deffo leaning towards Croatia. As for Bosnia my step brother served out there as a peace keeping force. He is a tough lad but won't ever talk about the Bosnia war.
As for anything Turkish i'm sure i've already tasted it. Been about 9 times to that country. Eastern Europe has always fascinated me more than the rest of Europe
 


SeagullRic

New member
Jan 13, 2008
1,399
brighton
Cheers for this. Might pm next year about this. Going to Poland in two weeks time. Next year it was a toss up between Budapest or somewhere in Croatia for 5 nights. I'm deffo leaning towards Croatia. As for Bosnia my step brother served out there as a peace keeping force. He is a tough lad but won't ever talk about the Bosnia war.
As for anything Turkish i'm sure i've already tasted it. Been about 9 times to that country. Eastern Europe has always fascinated me more than the rest of Europe

No worries, yes please feel free to whenever. Budapest is also great to be fair so can't really go wrong either way though personally I prefer Croatia for the variety. Yeah I've read quite a bit into it and my great uncle has lived over there on and off for 30 years, I'm sure he saw some absolutely unspeakable things.

Bosnians are very proud of their coffee and will delight in telling you that they had the first coffee in Europe (before Vienna!), there is also an entire street made up of skilled coffee set makers who etch the skyline of Sarajevo into the copper plates and personalise it if you want them too which is pretty cool to see, although the actual coffee itself is no different from Turkey in my opinion!
 

Blue3

Well-known member
Jan 27, 2014
5,553
Lancing
Hi Guys I know the lovely people of NSC are well traveled; the Mrs and Me are going to Croatia (Split) @ the end of the month and just wanted to see if anyone had some hints / tips / advise for while we are there? I'm going to be there for the Newcastle game too (Yes I know bad fan!!!) ...where would be good to watch the game?

Hi we wnt to split for ten days in July if you like history it's a fantastic place to visit with a huge must do list, I thought it a safe place lots of good resturants and bars, travel from the airport easy the local bus company arrange for busses to be waiting when planes arrive and bus you right to the sea front for a few Kuna then you can walk or taxi to your hotel, night times I thought were nice all the locals parade along the prom it's the seen and be seen place to be, there are a couple of sandy small beaches for Croatia this is unusual, lots of good walks it's a big city but easy to find your way around, the old city is compact and fascinating make sure you do some people watching it's also a good base to explore further have fun
 

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