Croatia traveller. Three days in croatia (report).

Croatia traveller report. Three days in croatia.

Hello and welcome dear friends! Let me introduce to your attention a little traveller report about three days journey in Croatia. May be I can’t write like real literati but actually it is not of my business. I don’t make money by Internet. This report is not an official guide. I just want to share with you my experience and impression about visit to Croatia.

Well! Let’s start our trip to Croatia. First of all we must admit there are not so many regular flights to Croatia, especially if we want to go there at spring, early summer or autumn. Therefore in case it will be difficult to find a direct flight to Croatia we can use a flight to Tivat (neighboring Montenegro). It will be not so difficult to reach a Croatia from Tivat by car or by bus and you will explore one more country at the same time. Montenegro is interesting too, not less than Croatia.

The flight from any part of Europe to Croatia will be not longer than three or four hours. Therefore you can’t hope to full dinner on board. Our air company proposed us a light meal with fresh juice without any superfluity. On approach to Tivat we had an opportunity to get a delight from illuminator view on mountains and sea. Our pilot had a good qualification and aircraft landed from the first attempt without any jolting or other troubles.

After arrival we got custom formalities. Montenegrins are fine fellows. They didn’t torture us because knew about Aviation Security Service which never allow to any passenger to take an illicit baggage. Procedure was gone in few seconds for everyone travellers. On airport exit as usually were a lot of taximen, but here at Montenegro they are not so importunate. If you do not show interest to their services nobody will seize you with both hands.

First opinion after arrival was… a warmth. The beginning of June at motherland didn’t gladden us by sunshine. It was a rain when our flight rushed out. The cold breeze saw off us. But here at Montenegro and Croatia was not even one cloudlet at the sky. Only sweet summerish sun and a lot of greens. Our group dispersed around airport surroundings and guides had a little bit difficulties with invitation of all travellers to bus which should bring us to Dubrovnik.

Roads in Montenegro and in Croatia are in good condition but too narrow-gauge. To overtake somebody without violation of traffic safety rules will be difficult. And such violation here is not only a big penalty but a real risk for health and even for life. There are serpentinous roads, closed crooks. At the bus we didn’t feel it but if we were at the modern powerful car it would be more sensitive. Be careful if you will go to Croatia on car. You have to remember that life greatly more expensive than couple of seconds which you will win by overtaking.

The bus Tivat - Dubrovnik. Peanut gallery.

Guides talked about some interesting things in Croatia and Montenegro but did it too decently and part of group on peanut gallery arranged a little discussion about whisky influence on human organism. The theory was strongly supported by practice and soon at the tail block of bus was very cheerily. Activists of tail group shared their good frame of mind with all team and road stopped to be boring. Who tells alcohol is destructive to health? We’ll object. Alcohol may be destructive, but whisky no!

On road to Dubrovnik we met a water barrier which had to be surmounted. Neighbourly Montenegrins organized a ferryboat for us and kind-hearted bus driver opened a door and debarked a group to the deck. Sure only completed lazybones didn’t open his camera and didn’t make a pictures. Somebody with great risk to soak clothes tried to corkscrew onto access trunk for getting the most interesting photos. Timid warnings from crew about riskiness of such actions were ignored (whisky continued its influence).

If seriously ferryboats through the gulf which we had to force a crossing do it every five minutes. All navigation occupies five-seven minutes of your time. The water very calm here and you’ll never get a problem with seasickness. Coastwise it is possible to find little grots. If our guides didn’t have a mistake these grots is a heritage of military. At every grot some time ago were based submarines. Even today at one of Montenegrin grot stays an old and rusty submarine.

It is difficult to find anybody who will stay in the bus instead of sundeck of a ferryboat after stuffy mainland. Really to feel a salt spoondrift and a breath of fresh sea breeze to the face is a great enjoyment. May be local residents don’t pay their attention for this because they feel it every day. But for us these five minutes on ferryboat became more than simple part of a road. It was a kind of a ticket to another world. To the miracle world of sun, mountains and a sea!

View from ferryboat

Pleasure yacht

Because Montenegro and Croatia play at independence we had to spend a little bit of a time on Montenegro-Croatian customhouse. We must admit that behavior of customs officers was civil and regardful. Nobody tried to behave in a very rude way. Nobody tried to nitpick and extract bribes. There are a minimum of customs documents and all procedure didn’t take a lot of time. Guides admonished us do not make any photos on customhouse. Why? We don’t know. Therefore we surely made some pictures and show it for you.

Nevertheless one bad nuance we have to indicate. Friends, you don’t have to travel to Croatia with new passports. Croatian customs officers (or may be it was a frontiersman, we didn’t grasp) put a customs stamp on the center of any clear page of your passport. Almost all our group got such gift. When we returned the same was repeated. As result we have two pages of passport which are useless for further usage.

In all other respects we didn’t have claims to Croats. When we arrived to Croatia it was evidently that this county is richer than neighboring Montenegro. Houses and roofs were renovated. Roads and roadsides looked fresher. On the way to the hotel we made a little stopping near small coffee-house where we got an opportunity to try local wines. By the way, Croatians wines are so-so. May be fans will be found but definitely their will be in the minority. Some later we were informed by guides that in Croatia only one sort of red grape. Therefore Croatian wine-growers can’t show what really they can do.

It was a really good (and expensive) hotel which we had. It named Dubrovnik Palace. This hotel has excellent rooms with sea view. Into and around the Dubrovnik Palace is very clean. All guests will be provided by pretty dressing-gown and cozy house shoes. At the hotel there are a child's pool and big pool, Jacuzzi, dive center, restaurants and all concomitant services. Dubrovnik Palace is a very good place. Only one disadvantage it has. It is an expensive accommodation price.

Our first excursion in Croatia was on island Lopud. Do not trust to Internet where they say it is a mega-touristic paradise. They hand out a line of bull. Island as an island. The most known item of interest is a Franciscan monastery which was built at the fifteenth century. It was kept in not bad condition and looks like on a sea bastille (may be some centuries ago it was correct). The permanent quantity of islanders is about 150 persons. They even can’t have a car because there are forbidden automobile roads for the ecology saving.

For the own interest we tried to google for more information about island Lopud. We laughed a lot when have read about perfect sandy beaches and aspeckless sand on Lopud. For your judgement we’ll give the picture of this pure sand. Let’s condemn ordered writers who tell to us a lie for attracting of travellers. In deed we think it will be useful to visit island Lopud one time for excursion. But it will be absolutely uninteresting to spend there a lot of time.

To the Lopud and back to continent we were brought by pseudo-sea-rover Tirena. The captain of this ship flabbily tried to personate a brave pirate but very well smiled to cameras. For most cogency he showed us a cocked hat and moulage of ancient pistol. Tirena gladden us by its ship's performance. The powerful engines gave to this floatable theatre an opportunity to move with speed more than ten nautical knots. Therefore we got a pleasant sea journey.

When we only entered on board of Tirena the crew offered us to try Croatian national tipple (you can see it on picture, it stands on the tables). They forgot to admonish us about contents of glasses and therefore some of us thoughtlessly made a big gulp… My God! This macabre mix of green tea, allheal and bad distilled industrial alcohol we will remember for ages. Croatians really are worthy of respect if they can drink it without problems for health.

To be continued…

Photo gallery

Croatia and tourists