If I recall correctly (and my memory is not know for being great in the first place lol), Croatia was the first "Eastern European" country I visited. Despite the stampede of tourists, myself included, travelling to coastal regions during the summer months, we had a surprisingly great time exploring many beautiful locations in this amazing country. Interested in knowing more? Then scroll on down ;)
plitvice national park
The Plitvice Lakes National Park is a definite must-see when visiting Croatia. Despite the crazy queues and massive crowds, the forest reserve known for its chain of terraced lakes, joined by majestic waterfalls, is truly a sight to behold.
Fair warning though - make sure to arrive early, or even try and book accommodation nearby. If you love nature and hiking, you can easily spend a couple days exploring the park easy.
pula
You might be thinking, why Pula? Well, the real reason was mainly to avoid the crowds heading to popular beaches in the height of Summer! So we avoided the cities like Dubrovnik and Split in favour of another seafront city, Pula.
The city is gorgeous, with some amazing historical sites such as the Pula Arena, the Temple of Augustus, and the Zerostrasse, a historic underground tunnel network.
Pretty cool if you don't mind missing out on GoT film locations.
zagreb
Our final stop in our tour of Croatia was its capital, Zagreb.
To be completely honest, there aren't many sites or moments that really stood out for me here. Compared to Plitvice and Pula, this city was explored in a much more laid-back manner.
We enjoyed good food and walking around the city thoughout the day and night thanks to the beautiful sunny weather.
Now, one thing to keep in mind is that the locals do not seem to be very comfortable speaking English. At least not the ones we met! Our original plan had been to stay one night in a guesthouse within walking distance to the Plitvice National Park but when we got to the main station to take the coach, there were no seats left! I cannot say for sure if it was possible to book in advance but we definitely did NOT enjoy the experience of struggling to get someone to understand our predicament. In the end, we had to give up on our booking at Plitvice...
The silver lining? At least the accommodation we had booked for our last few nights in the country was able to give us a room for the night. We ended up familiarising ourselves with Zagreb one day in advance lol. Beyond that hiccup, we moved on with our journey with a day trip to the National Park. Obviously, we were then unable to get the better deal of buying a 2-day ticket but nevertheless, the adult tickets costing approx. 250-300 kuna (€35-€40) got us into the gorgeous UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Given that it was the height of Summer in Europe, safe to say that it's a good idea to bring some water, snacks and a packed lunch if you can. The Plitvice Lakes National Park does have a few places where you can buy food but it was packed with visitors and they are not located inside the park itself! They're just outside, normally by the parking lots. Save yourself the hassle of queueing over and over again, believe me, you'll thank me for it.
Pula was at times relaxing and upbeat during our stay. Being the peak of summer, the place is hopping with the buzz of tourists and locals walking through the city towards shops and restaurants. We chose Pula instead of Dubrovnik because we wanted to visit a place that was slightly less popular but still 'on the map' in terms of a coastal city with similar features to the more popular and tourist-heavy cities.
Our last stay was in Zagreb, capital of Croatia, and oddly enough a much more laid-back city. We spent our time chilling and strolling around the quiet streets and avenues, discovering little spice shops and ice cream parlours. If you are looking for a European country to visit, away from the popular western side, then Croatia is definitely one to keep an eye on.
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