Oh, Croatia. When Rich first proposed that we spend 14 of our 301 total days abroad in Croatia, I thought that might be a bit excessive. I imagined a day or two in a city, a day or two at a beach, we would do some Game of Thrones stuff, but a full two weeks?
I. was. wrong. Croatia is paradise, and if you have never thought about visiting, start thinking about it. The beaches are beautiful, it is affordable, it is easy to navigate, and every little town is different from the last.
And when you do visit, make time for Split and Hvar!
Day 15: Travel from Rovinj to Split
As I shared before, we really loved Rovinj, Croatia and would have added days there in a heartbeat. However, Rovinj is not the closest to the rest of what we wanted to see so I will quickly share the highlights of what was a long travel day. We want to paint a realistic portrait of what traveling for a year looks like, and some days, well, it looks like a lot of traveling.
First, we knew we were going to sit for the majority of the day, so we decided to walk the three miles back to town with our packs for exercise. Still painful, but not as bad as the first time since we took on the challenge willingly.
We boarded our first bus at 8:45 AM and traveled about 3.5 hours to Rijeka. After a quick lunch break, we boarded our second bus at 1:30 PM that delivered us to Split at 9:15 PM. The distance between Rijeka and Split? About 257 miles (~415 KM).
Why did it take us nearly eight hours to travel 257 miles? We were on the slow bus. That’s what they call it. It not only operates interstate travel, it also picks up Maja at the grocery at a city bus stop and drops her off seven minutes later down the road. We must have stopped sixty times. And stopped for two bathroom breaks. Because obviously there was no bathroom and no free WiFi on board.
But Croatia, the gift that keeps on giving, was beautiful so it was easy to look out the window for hours and hours imagining all the other Croatian towns we would love to visit…
And then we arrived in Split!
Day 16: Seeing the Sights in Split, Croatia
Split is the second largest city in Croatia, behind its capital, Zagreb. It is an ancient city, home to Diocletian’s Palace and other Roman ruins. And it is loved by backpackers! There were tourists everywhere, taking it all in.
We enjoyed coffee at Matejuska Port along the Riva (imagine: Hollywood palm trees meet European riviera), a hike up to Sustipan Park to take in views of the city, and a few beers out at a very local pub. It was the only place we could find a seat to watch a Croatia victory over England in the semifinals of the World Cup, and the jury is out on whether they wanted us there. I think our English made them doubt our allegiances!
Day 17: Avoiding the Tourists in Split, Croatia
The next day, we got off the beaten path a bit and climbed to the top of Marjan Hill overlooking the city. We have noticed that in Europe they like to categorize hikes as “easy” that are anything but. It was a big climb, but the views from the top were stunning.
And as a reward, we hiked down to a beach! Like in Rovinj, all you need is a good rock, and you have a beach of your own. The water was so clear I could see the peeling polish on my toenails, and we were out of the crowds of the day before. Oh, pretty Croatia.
Day 18: Travel from Split to Hvar
We took a ferry from Split to Hvar. Ive, the host of our next AirBNB, picked us up at the port in Hvar holding a sign with my name on it. Our AirBNB had a beautiful balcony. We went out for lunch, then swam, and then shared a bottle of wine on the balcony, watching the sun set. Croatia, the gift that keeps on giving.
Day 19: Enjoying the Paradise that is Hvar, Croatia
Our full day in Hvar was perfection. We went on a three mile run that took us to an end of the island we had not seen. At the end of the run, we jumped in the Adriatic, running clothes and all, for a refreshing ice bath cool off (totally normal- another couple did it before us!).
I made omelettes at home, and we headed out to a beach to read and sunbathe. We came back in for lunch, and then we headed the mile into town to buy ferry tickets for the next day. We showered, got spiffy, and then went back into town for a delicious seafood feast.
The end. Perfection. Croatia!
