My Upcoming Travel Plans

Where I Am Headed Next

Lately, I have been fascinated with the Balkans. I haven’t quite figured out what the pull is yet, but I am trusting the universe and going with it. Three years ago, we spent several weeks in Greece including five gorgeous islands in the crystal-clear, blue Adriatic and a stop in Ephesus, Turkey. It was an amazing trip; so many brilliant and enduring memories. To date, that is the extent of our Balkan exploration.

“It’s time to change that!

This fall we are headed back to the Balkans to continue what we started. This time we are hitting:

  • Slovenia
  • Croatia
  • Italy
  • Bosnia and Herzegovina
  • Montenegro
  • Denmark

It will be our first time in all of these countries. Croatia and Slovenia will make up the bulk of the agenda with day trips into Italy, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro. Copenhagen, Denmark will be a long stopover, but the excellent public transportation and the fact that the airport is conveniently close to downtown will allow us to dip into the city for a few fleeting hours.

“I could not be more excited!

I honestly tried not to pack our days too tightly,.. to leave breathing room for open exploration and spontaneity. Currently, trip highlights will include the following destinations:

  • Zagreb, the inland capital of Croatia
  • Ljubljana, winner of the European Green Capital Award for 2016
  • Lake Bled, a postcard-perfect castle tops a tiny island in the lake
  • Hisa Franko restaurant, voted one of the top 50 restaurants in the world; chef Ana Ros was voted world’s best female chef, 2017
  • Rovinj and exploring the beautiful Istrian peninsula
  • Plitvice Lakes, natural beauty and one of Croatia’s top tourist draws
  • Zadar, another seaside city with its Roman and Venetian ruins
  • Split, picturesque location of the 4th century Diocletian’s Palace
  • Dubrovnik, coined ‘the jewel of the Adriatic’ and a UNESCO world heritage site
  • Mostar, across the border in the mountains of Bosnia and Herzegovina
  • Kotor, the seaside resort in Montenegro

 “Lots of firsts on this trip!

With each trip, we try to learn from our prior experiences and parlay that into becoming more connected and conscientious travelers. We prefer to travel independently, but love to meet other travelers on our journeys. We snagged an excellent price on airfare, so we are excited to fly Norwegian Airlines for the first time. We will also be using AirBnB in an effort to travel more slowly, connect with locals and enjoy a more authentic experience and keep costs down.

Have you been to Slovenia or Croatia?

Is it on your bucket list?

What are your top tips?

Note: All images on my blog are my own and are protected, with the exception of the header image on this post. Special thanks to Moritz Bechert for his stunning CC0 public domain image on Pixabay.

16 Replies to “My Upcoming Travel Plans”

  1. That sounds like an amazing trip! I also found that airbnb was a much more affordable alternative to hotels in Croatia/Slovenia. You can definitely see a bit of Copenhagen in a few hours-we did a less than 24 hour stopover before taking a cruise from Copenhagen and managed to fit in quite a bit. Only got slightly screwed heading to the airport because US Sec of State John Kerry was in town and there were protests and road closures, so we almost missed the boat!

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    1. Almost missed the boat because of John Kerry… that’s funny now, but I bet it was very stressful at the time. What is not to be missed in Copenhagen? I haven’t done any research. Have you ever done long term apartment rentals? Which sites would you recommend? We want to try that next.

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      1. The old town is amazing, you can visit most parts on foot (the narrow streets offer shade and hidden family locals) the port offers lovely views. In the old town, you can visit the Franciscan Monastery, Sponza Palace and cool down next to Onofrio’s Fountain and just take time to admire everything there (the gate of the city is also lovely). If you have time and the sun is not a problem, the town walls are a great way to view the town from above. Not sure if you’ll have time, but you can also take the cable car that goes up to Mountain Srd (it’s a 4 minutes ride). The views there are amazing, and there’s also a nice terrace and a war exhibition.
        Banji Beach is the closest one to the city center if you want to take a dive – the water is amazing. And from the port, you can visit Lokrum island, if there’s enough time. It’s a beautiful natural landscape, and there’s also a monastery. And those are only a few possibilities.
        If you are a Game of Thrones fan, then you are in for a treat. They shot a lot of scenes in the old town, port and on Lokrum Island. There are guides that can take you to those exact places. I’ve spent a week here a few years ago and it’s one of my favorite vacations of all time.

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  4. Thanks Viezurele! Sounds amazing. We will be in Dubrovnik for four nights so I think we will have time to hit all the highlights, meet the locals, take plenty of amazing photos (assuming my skills are up to the task), eat some incredible food and still have time for wandering. Of course, maybe I’m being my own overly optimistic self! 😉 I am not a GoT fan but I am looking forward to beautiful beaches, some natural beauty and maybe just a tad of solitude on one of the islands. I do have to fit in that day trip to Kotor. Really looking forward to that!

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  5. Excellent plan! Balkans is a fascinating geopolitical area in Europe. I am glad that I could visit some of these countries last year on our road trip. Kotor and Montenegro in general was definitely my favorite country in the trip. Looking forward to reading about your experience! When are you leaving?

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    1. We just got back two weeks ago! I need to update that page on my blog. 😦 We had a fantastic time! Funny, I believe the only thing on my agenda that we didn’t make it to was Kotor. I guess we’ll have to go back! Our favorite city was Zadar… it just felt right for us… perfect size, fewer tourists, wonderful food, weather, culture, beaches. Just wished it had large green park spaces like Split, Dubrovnik and Rovinj.

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      1. Wow good to know that you enjoyed Zadar! We went from Zadar port to Dugi Otok island in Croatia last year but didn’t actually have the time to visit Zadar. I did feel like the coastal area of Croatia was very touristy, especially Dubrovnik.

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