Island Hopping
Posted on Saturday, October 12, 2013
Here is a last post from Split, Croatia - we took paid probably a bit too much for a tour to bring us island hopping around the Adriatic Sea - whether it was worth it in the end, I'm still rather undecided, but at least it's another thing to tick off the checklist! Here we are bright and early at 8:00am in the morning all ready to go!
This is our speed boat for the day! It looks so nice and friendly, but once it picks up speed, the wind KILLS. Why oh why didn't the travel agency just tell us to bring jackets? Saddest and wettest 1.5 hour journey of my life out in sea :(
Once it becomes afternoon, the weather and wind becomes more bearable so we can actually enjoy the blinding blue sea and scenery!
First pit stop - the Blue Caves! It's supposed to be a must visit, but really, we were in and out of there in 3 minutes because the cave was so SMALL and crowded - plus it was smelly, which you don't think about till you're actually there. This was supposed to be the reason we took this tour but seriously underwhelming. Give this a miss!
We also visit the ugly stepsister cave, the Green Cave, which is even more underwhelming and not very green. Bleah!
Lunch pitstop! Mel and I eat our takeaway proscuitto sandwiches from the morning and have some of the BEST ice latte i've ever had at this random island town. We also share Croatia's own beer, which is nice and fruity. Photowhore around and then we're off to the next island!
Beach stop! We have an hour and a half to just chill, take more pictures and stare at topless strangers (hehe). I read, and Mel naps. The life of a tourist!
Last pitstop for the day - Hvar! At this point in time we've been out at sea for hours being bitten by the sea spray, blown cold by the temperamental winds, and bumped up and down on rough seas, so yes, we didn't look around much, and instead we chose to reward ourselves with a piping hot plate of fresh calamari and Prosecco!
This must be part of the reason why I have a sore throat now... But a really good buy and afternoon snack before the 1 hour ride back to Split!
Discussion
Hi Monica! Stumbled upon your post and the pictures are very beautiful!! :) was also planning to make a trip to Croatia in September (with another girl friend of mine) and was wondering if you had any recommendations/tips to share? :) was split the only city you visited? :) and is it safe for a girl to travel around alone?
thanks so much in advance! :)
Hi @αλήθεια!
Other than the tips I mentioned in my post, I would say stick to the touristy areas at all times! We rented an airbnb a bit further in from the main tourist area and every day we would walk past the locals to go to the tourist areas who would yell racial slurs at us (also because we were Asian and had no men with us...). At the tourist areas, the people spoke english very well and the food is honestly not expensive despite the whole "tourist trap" mentality - and less racism for sure.
We went to Plitvice, a 4 hour bus ride from Split, you can see my post here: http://luxmondi.blogspot.sg/2013/10/croatia-plitvice.html The lakes were really stunning and one of a kind! I think the photos don't do it justice. The bus rides were terrifying as they drive very fast, but they have a luggage drop at the lakes so you can go there on the way to Zagreb. Take note of last bus timings out of Plitvice too, they can be very early - like 5pm!
At Zagreb (another city), we went only because we had to take a train from there. A day was more than enough to see it. It is very city-like (no sea) and ugly. Lots of graffiti and even more people calling us names. Not recommended! We also stopped by a city of Zadar which was even worse and people would stare and laugh at us throughout our meals just because we were Asian, so stick to touristy spots and avoid city areas in Croatia!
One place I regret not going is Dubrovnik. It's a one hour bus ride from Split and their most famous Croatian town IMO. I can't say much about it but I definitely plan to go there one day. It's also a good distance for a day trip from Split :)
Hope that helps!
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