Croatia Travel Blog

This week’s Telegraph has a wonderful article about Croatia’s Summer Festivals. Sure, everyone’s heard of the Dubrovnik Summer Festival. It’s great but how about something less, ahem, touristy? The article suggests a number of great festivals where you can enjoy the arts and avoid the mobs. For example, there’s the Rapska Fjera in Rab Town, a startlingly original medieval festival. A film buff? Try the Motovun Film Festival in beautiful Motovun. Foodies flock to the October Truffle Festivals in Istria. Music lovers are serenaded at Groznjan (contrary to the article, it’s not only jazz available) and the Lubenice musical nights in Cres Island.

See more about when to go to Croatia.

 

Croatian islands really are special and it’s easy to find the island of your dreams. In this week’s Mirror, journalist Karen Rockett visits the luscious Elaphiti Islands off the coast of Dubrovnik.

 

First up was Sipan with the romantic Hotel Bozica, perched on top a hill and a “perfect honeymoon destination, without the honeymoon price tag”.

Next on the tour was Lopud, noted for its magnificent, sandy Sunj beach.  Yes, it’s busier mainly because it’s an easy day trip from Dubrovnik.

The writer also stopped at sleepy Kolocep, noting that there were no restaurants open on the island and this was May!

Better pack a lunch if you want to visit the Elaphiti Islands off-season. Unless you’re a free-wheeling travel writer, you’ll need to book a tour to visit all three islands in one day. Or, you can just pick one or two and go under your steam by taking a local ferry.

Go to article.

It’s been a long wait but the Jadrolinija’s local ferry schedules are finally available. Today the Croatian Ministry of Transport confirmed that there have been cutbacks on some local routes this spring for budgetary reasons. Except for the coastal ferry, all lines are running although somewhat less frequently than last year. In the same statement, the government noted that there will be no cutbacks in the summer schedule. Well, that’s a big relief for travellers!

My popular downloadable ferry guide is now available and you’ll find most other schedules on the relevant ferry sections. You can search here but I think you’ll find that the ferry guide is much more convenient AND it includes FREE UPDATES throughout the year. See more.

“Holidaymakers could find car rentals harder to come by this summer, as the economic downturn forces car hire companies to cut their fleets during peak periods.” proclaimed an article in the Telegraph. Note that the article was published February 4 2009!

The prediction proved completely accurate at least as far as Croatia was concerned.  When I expressed concern at the number of dealer cancellations of cars booked through my partner, Economycarrentals.com, in the summer of 2009  I received this response:

Due to the current difficult economic situation, almost all car rental companies have decreased their fleet and that is why we get many cancellations. It’s been a tough summer and this is going to continue until the end of August, that is why we warned our clients to book as early as possible to avoid cancellations and inconvenience. (emphasis mine)

Unfortunately, we cannot guarantee that all last-minute bookings will get confirmed, but we push our partners to serve as many of our clients as possible.

Now, the Telegraph is again warning of car rental shortages in this article. I would urge you to take the warning seriously if you are planning a trip to Croatia this summer. The economic situation that led to shortages last summer is, if anything, worse this year. There is no expansion of car-hire fleets on the horizon this summer in Croatia so there is a strong possibility that last-minute bookers will be forced into a much higher category of vehicle, or will pay a premium price or will be shut out completely.

Takeaway: as soon as you get your flights booked, work on your car rental. I recommend economycarrentals.com for the best cars at the cheapest prices but you’ll find a list of Croatia car rental companies and more car rental advice here.

Jadrolinija may have its problems, but VeneziaLines is right on target in releasing its catamaran schedules from Venice to Piran, Porec, Pula, Rovinj and Rabac. Service starts in early April and runs to the beginning of October on some lines. See the schedules and book online here.