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Croatia and Slovenia

If these Countries are on your bucket list - GO NOW!

In August of 2017, Josh and I had the privilege of spending two weeks traveling through Slovenia and Croatia, with an itinerary including one week on land, and another on a small boat floating around idyllic islands in the Adriatic.  Our adventure began with a two night stay in Venice; from there we traveled by bus through the dramatic Julian Alps arriving at Lake Bled in Slovenia.  Next we were on to Ljubljana, the Slovenian capital, where we spent an all-too-short day - the city is beautiful and vibrant.  The remainder of the land portion of our trip included two nights in Zagreb the capital of Croatia, and a visit to the spectacular Plitvice Lakes National Park while en route to Split, the town on Croatia's Dalmatian Coast where we boarded what can best be described as a yacht for lack of a better word befitting the size and style of the vessel.  Yes, Josh and I traveled like Jay-Z and Beyonce sailing around the Adriatic for a week - only we had to share our ship with 22 other passengers and the digs, although very nice, were not quite as swanky.   Our journey concluded in Dubrovnik, a city often referred to as the "Pearl of the Adriatic" and deservedly so.  The historic walled town where much of the of the Game of Thrones is filmed is truly one of the most impressive and spectacular sites in the world.  And that brings us to the reason why we say GO NOW!  Other than a few old buildings riddled with bullet holes, there are very few visible reminders that the Yugoslav Wars were in progress through 2001.  As a result, travelers didn't begin trickling into this part of Europe until approximately a decade ago, with tourism really beginning in earnest in in Croatia in 2013.  The crowds in Dubrovnik are as daunting as the great city walls, but many of the islands we visited are still peaceful and unspoiled with nary a McDonald's in sight.  This will not last long as word gets out that the Balkans, especially the towns and islands along the Adriatic, are dazzling.  Much of the country speaks English as a second language (ditto for Slovenia), and the ports are expanding to accommodate thousands of passengers arriving each day via cruise ships - so the crowds will only continue to grow.  I would like to mention that this was our first trip ever booked through Gate 1 Travel, and I must say Josh and I were impressed with the entire operation.  The accommodations for the most part were first class, guides super friendly and knowledgeable, and fellow travelers a congenial group overall.  The company offers many styles of travel from independent getaways to fully escorted tours.  Ours fell somewhere in between with local guides taking us on brief orientation tours in most cities and towns, and plenty of free time for independent exploration.  Each day began with a big breakfast, and the cruise portion of the trip included four-course lunches as well.  Although we were a little surprised to see when booking the trip that dinners for the most part were not included, we are eternally grateful in hindsight as this format allowed us to explore the various small towns where we docked at night and experience amazing local food and wine without feeling guilty about skipping the free dinners back on board!  The photo at the top of this post is a panoramic pic taken by Josh of the harbor of Vis, an island town that impressed neither of us initially, but wound up being one of our favorites (more on that to come)!  We selected this photo for our opening post as it represents the many beautiful, simple towns we fell in love with along our journey.  They were a welcome respite from the over-the-top, mind-boggling cities and UNESCO heritage sights of the Balkan Peninsula that are begging travelers like us and throngs of others to come over and explore.