After months of months of planning with my sister, I couldn’t believe that our Europe trip was finally here! Our first stop on this adventure was Dubrovnik in Croatia.
Of course, we hit a few snags before even arriving. Because American Airlines doesn’t travel directly to Dubrovnik (at least, not on award travel), we had to book first a flight to London, and then a separate flight to Croatia. In total, the journey to Europe was four flights! We had a half hour layover in Zagreb, Croatia. In my communications with the airlines, they informed that this was enough time to make the connection since it’s such a small airport. We proved them wrong of course! Since the flight from London to Zagreb was slightly delayed, not to mention the long line for passport control and then back through security, we missed our final flight. Luckily, Croatia Airlines automatically booked us on the next flight….8+ hours later! Because we didn’t want to adventure through the HOT city of Zagreb in our airplane clothes (I was wearing leggings) we toughed it out in the lobby. With no food. Or water. Because on the domestic side of the airport, apparently cafes and vending machines don’t exist at the gates. Nevertheless, we arrived with our luggage (yay) in Dubrovnik at around midnight and were picked up and shown to our air bnb by a driver that our host arranged.
This leads me to tip #1: stay at an air bnb! I recommend reading air bnb reviews and reviewing the location. It really helped to communicate with the host prior to arrival on transportation and housing nuances. Our air bnb had a wonderful view of Lapad Bay and was spacious enough that we got our own rooms. Although it was somewhat hard to find on our second night, it was located in a quiet neighborhood. You can find our air bnb here: Dubrovnik AirBnb
Tip #2: Visit the Elafiti Islands!
The next morning, bright and early, we were picked up to start a pre-booked tour via a boat to the Elafiti Islands. The Elafiti islands is comprised of numerous islands off the coast of Dubrovnik, but on this day we would visit the three largest: Sipan, Lopud, and Kolocep. The boat ride to the furthest island, Sipan, was so relaxing…or maybe that was the wine. Anyhow, we got our longest stay on Sipan where we finally ate our first meal of pizza, fries, and beer. We also did a little sunbathing and we were served a lunch on the boat after our visit a few hours later. The next island, Lopud, was nothing worth writing about (we only got 45 minutes there), and Kolocep was a nice way to end the island adventures.
Tip #3: Do a Game of Thrones tour…but not after spending all day on the water after 31 hours of travel the prior day.
Right after disembarking the Elafiti tour we immediately boarded a ship that was used in the filming of the show from the bay to the port in old town Dubrovnik. From there, the walking tour began where the tour guide pointed out where many scenes were filmed as well as a history lesson. By the end of the tour we were so tired and hungry, we snuck away before the last stop on the tour to find some dinner.
Tip #4: Eat the seafood and drink the wine! For our first official dinner after sneaking away from the tour, my sister ordered a salmon that she claimed was to die for, along with the seafood risotto. Heavenly! Additionally, since wine is produced locally, I definitely recommend drinking some with every meal.
If Game of Thrones isn’t your thing, then tip #5 would be for you: Admire the alleys and nooks and crannies of the old city. There are so many ways to get lost in old town. And they are all wonderful! Old town Dubrovnik is not flat, but composed of beautiful alleys that wind up and down hills.
Tip #6: Be prepared to walk…a LOT! Invest in a pair of comfortable shoes or sandals. My favorite that I wore were the Naot sandals. These sandals were soooo comfortable and although I’m sporting an awesome sandal tan, my feet never got tired.
Tip #7: Take the bus where you can. Luckily, our air bnb happened to be right by a bus stop that took us directly to the main entrance of Old Town. It was very inexpensive and air conditioned! We took this bus the next day into Old town.
Tip #8: Explore the city walls and stop for a drink on the wall to admire the views.
Admittedly, we were given advice to begin the city wall tour in the early morning because it gets extremely hot in old town. We did not heed this advice, but I would not take back that extra sleep for anything! After breakfast in old town we paid the 150 kuna to climb the many steps up the city wall. Although it was crowded and there were a lot of selfie sticks, it was so beautiful and an excellent way to see Dubrovnik.
Tip #9: Make friends with people on your tour!
On the Elafiti islands tour, we ended up chatting with two other American girls who were there on a girls trip. Many drinks were had, and there ended up being a mini photo session on the boat back to town. By making friends, we were able to get a recommendation for another tour, which leads to….
Tip #10: Do the Tuk Tuk tour!
Our new friends highly recommended this tour as an excellent way to see Dubrovnik from atop a mountain. I could not agree more! After emailing the company, I made arrangements to do this tour on our final night. We were picked up from our air bnb in a tuk tuk, which is essentially an electronically powered golf cart and driven to many spectacular viewpoints. It was a bit windy, so I suggest for females to wear something that won’t fly up and is comfortable. The best part was arriving at our final stop on the tour to watch the sunset and take pictures. Our tour guide surprised us with some wine as well! This was the perfect way to spend our last night in Dubrovnik!
Nice post Janae! I will remember these tips for sure!!
Great read Nay Nay…makes me want to go!