Croatia itinerary, day by day

From the lakes of Plitvice to the walls of Dubrovnik by way of Split and Hvar: the map, what is worth booking, everything that costs nothing, and where to sleep at three budgets.

🗓️ 4, 7 or 10 days📍 4 stops☀️ Best time: May to June and September to October

Dubrovnik · Photo Vitalii Dobrianskyi / Pexels

Route map (numbers = order of the stops).

Croatia in 4 days

2 stops · 12 things to do · ≈ 250 km

1Dubrovnik

Days 1-2

The pearl of the Adriatic, a merchant city-state that ran its own affairs for four centuries behind two kilometres of wall. Game of Thrones filmed its capital here.

🎟️ Worth booking

The city walls walk1h30 · from €35
Ninety minutes around the top of Dubrovnik, above the roofs and the water. Start early or go late: there is no shade up there.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Sunset kayak2h · from €40
Two hours paddling under the walls and around Lokrum, with the light going down behind the island.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

The old town and the Stradun · Banje beach · Lokrum island · The view from Mount Srđ

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Old Town Hostel (€48 a night) · Mid-range: Hotel Lero (€90 a night) · Luxury: Villa Dubrovnik (€520 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Dinner In The Sky Dubrovnik ↗ ★ 5 · 1216 reviews
La Bocca Dubrovnik ↗ ★ 4.9 · 338 reviews
Gradska kavana Arsenal Restaurant ↗ ★ 4.8 · 7518 reviews · €€
Soul Kitchen Dubrovnik ↗ ★ 4.8 · 2370 reviews
Trattoria Carmen ↗ ★ 4.8 · 2123 reviews · €€

Photo Vitalii Dobrianskyi / Pexels

⛴️ Catamaran · 3h · Adriatic

2Hvar Island

Days 3-4

Lavender fields and Venetian villages on the sunniest island in the country. Life here is measured in boat trips and long lunches.

🎟️ Worth booking

The Pakleni islands by boatHalf day · from €45
Half a day among the islets off Hvar town, stopping to swim where the boat can anchor.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Hvar wine tasting2h · from €35
Two hours with the island growers, mostly plavac mali off terraces that fall straight into the sea.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

The Španjola fortress · St Stephen's Square · The quiet coves · The lavender fields

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: White Rabbit Hostel (€30 a night) · Mid-range: Villa Nora Hvar (€130 a night) · Luxury: Maslina Resort (€350 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Val Marina Restaurant ↗ ★ 4.9 · 830 reviews
Hvar Brewing Co. ↗ ★ 4.9 · 775 reviews
Leporini Restaurant ↗ ★ 4.9 · 731 reviews
Dalmatino ↗ ★ 4.8 · 2950 reviews · €€
Mediterraneo Dine & Wine ↗ ★ 4.8 · 1203 reviews

Photo Butch Aleksich / Pexels

Croatia in 7 days

4 stops · 22 things to do · ≈ 600 km

1Split

Days 1-2

A city that grew inside the palace Diocletian built for his retirement in the fourth century, and has been lived in ever since. The Riva waterfront runs along its sea wall.

🎟️ Worth booking

Diocletian's palace, guided2h · from €25
Two hours inside a Roman palace that turned into a town: cellars, cathedral, and the flats people still live in.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Day trip to the Krka waterfallsFull day · from €55
The second national park of the coast, an hour inland, where the river drops over seventeen steps at Skradinski Buk.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

Diocletian's palace · The Riva waterfront · Marjan hill · Bačvice beach

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Tchaikovsky Hostel Split (€25 a night) · Mid-range: Hotel Luxe (€110 a night) · Luxury: Cornaro Hotel (€300 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Pizzeria Sette Sorelle ↗ ★ 4.9 · 10794 reviews · €€
Cicibela food and wine bar (SPLIT) ↗ ★ 4.9 · 4765 reviews
Bome Boutique Restoran Split ↗ ★ 4.9 · 450 reviews
LAGANINI seafood • pasta • steak ↗ ★ 4.8 · 3071 reviews · €€
Ćiri Biri Bela ↗ ★ 4.8 · 2438 reviews · €€€

Photo Spencer Davis / Pexels

🚗 Car · 2h30 · 250 km

2The Plitvice Lakes

Day 3

Sixteen terraced lakes falling into one another by waterfall, UNESCO-listed since 1979. Boardwalks run over water clear enough to count the fish in.

🎟️ Worth booking

Park entry, with the boat and the shuttle trainFull day · from €40
A full day on the boardwalks, with the electric boat across the lower lake and the shuttle back up. Entry is timed, so book the slot.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

The stepped waterfalls · The boardwalk trails · The turquoise lakes

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Falling Lakes Hostel (€25 a night) · Mid-range: Hotel Jezero (€165 a night) · Luxury: Plitvice Holiday Resort (€230 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Cascada Restaurant ↗ ★ 4.8 · 319 reviews
Degenija Restaurant ↗ ★ 4.7 · 7556 reviews · €€
Fast Food BBQ ↗ ★ 4.7 · 2206 reviews · €€
Restoran Grand Lakes ↗ ★ 4.6 · 1087 reviews
Plum bistro & more ↗ ★ 4.6 · 782 reviews · €€

Photo Branimir Klaric / Pexels

⛴️ Ferry · 1h · from Split

3Hvar Island

Days 4-5

Lavender fields and Venetian villages on the sunniest island in the country. Life here is measured in boat trips and long lunches.

🎟️ Worth booking

The Pakleni islands by boatHalf day · from €45
Half a day among the islets off Hvar town, stopping to swim where the boat can anchor.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Hvar wine tasting2h · from €35
Two hours with the island growers, mostly plavac mali off terraces that fall straight into the sea.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

The Španjola fortress · St Stephen's Square · The quiet coves · The lavender fields

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: White Rabbit Hostel (€30 a night) · Mid-range: Villa Nora Hvar (€130 a night) · Luxury: Maslina Resort (€350 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Photo Butch Aleksich / Pexels

⛴️ Catamaran · 3h · or 🚗 3h

4Dubrovnik

Days 6-7

The pearl of the Adriatic, a merchant city-state that ran its own affairs for four centuries behind two kilometres of wall. Game of Thrones filmed its capital here.

🎟️ Worth booking

The city walls walk1h30 · from €35
Ninety minutes around the top of Dubrovnik, above the roofs and the water. Start early or go late: there is no shade up there.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Sunset kayak2h · from €40
Two hours paddling under the walls and around Lokrum, with the light going down behind the island.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

The old town and the Stradun · Banje beach · Lokrum island · The view from Mount Srđ

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Old Town Hostel (€48 a night) · Mid-range: Hotel Lero (€90 a night) · Luxury: Villa Dubrovnik (€520 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Photo Vitalii Dobrianskyi / Pexels

Croatia in 10 days

4 stops · 22 things to do · ≈ 800 km

1The Plitvice Lakes

Day 1

Sixteen terraced lakes falling into one another by waterfall, UNESCO-listed since 1979. Boardwalks run over water clear enough to count the fish in.

🎟️ Worth booking

Park entry, with the boat and the shuttle trainFull day · from €40
A full day on the boardwalks, with the electric boat across the lower lake and the shuttle back up. Entry is timed, so book the slot.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

The stepped waterfalls · The boardwalk trails · The turquoise lakes

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Falling Lakes Hostel (€25 a night) · Mid-range: Hotel Jezero (€165 a night) · Luxury: Plitvice Holiday Resort (€230 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Photo Branimir Klaric / Pexels

🚗 Car · 2h30 · 250 km

2Split

Days 2-4

A city that grew inside the palace Diocletian built for his retirement in the fourth century, and has been lived in ever since. The Riva waterfront runs along its sea wall.

🎟️ Worth booking

Diocletian's palace, guided2h · from €25
Two hours inside a Roman palace that turned into a town: cellars, cathedral, and the flats people still live in.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Day trip to the Krka waterfallsFull day · from €55
The second national park of the coast, an hour inland, where the river drops over seventeen steps at Skradinski Buk.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

Diocletian's palace · The Riva waterfront · Marjan hill · Bačvice beach

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Tchaikovsky Hostel Split (€25 a night) · Mid-range: Hotel Luxe (€110 a night) · Luxury: Cornaro Hotel (€300 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Photo Spencer Davis / Pexels

⛴️ Ferry · 1h · from Split

3Hvar Island

Days 5-6

Lavender fields and Venetian villages on the sunniest island in the country. Life here is measured in boat trips and long lunches.

🎟️ Worth booking

The Pakleni islands by boatHalf day · from €45
Half a day among the islets off Hvar town, stopping to swim where the boat can anchor.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Hvar wine tasting2h · from €35
Two hours with the island growers, mostly plavac mali off terraces that fall straight into the sea.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

The Španjola fortress · St Stephen's Square · The quiet coves · The lavender fields

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: White Rabbit Hostel (€30 a night) · Mid-range: Villa Nora Hvar (€130 a night) · Luxury: Maslina Resort (€350 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Photo Butch Aleksich / Pexels

⛴️ Catamaran · 3h · Adriatic

4Dubrovnik

Days 7-10

The pearl of the Adriatic, a merchant city-state that ran its own affairs for four centuries behind two kilometres of wall. Game of Thrones filmed its capital here.

🎟️ Worth booking

The city walls walk1h30 · from €35
Ninety minutes around the top of Dubrovnik, above the roofs and the water. Start early or go late: there is no shade up there.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Sunset kayak2h · from €40
Two hours paddling under the walls and around Lokrum, with the light going down behind the island.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

The old town and the Stradun · Banje beach · Lokrum island · The view from Mount Srđ

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Old Town Hostel (€48 a night) · Mid-range: Hotel Lero (€90 a night) · Luxury: Villa Dubrovnik (€520 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Photo Vitalii Dobrianskyi / Pexels

Hotel prices are per room per night, activity prices per person, checked when written. Some links are affiliate links (Booking, GetYourGuide): we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.

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Good to know before you go

🍽️ What to eat

Grilled fish and shellfish, straight off the Adriatic.
Peka: meat or octopus cooked slowly under a bell covered in embers.
Cevapi: small grilled sausages, the Balkan staple.
Istrian truffles, shaved over pasta and eggs.
Local wine: plavac mali in red, malvazija in white.

⚠️ What to avoid

Book early for July and August: the coast fills up and the prices climb with it.
Fish is sold by weight, so ask the price per kilo before you order.
Check the bill in Dubrovnik for padded extras, bread and cover charges included.
Do not drive into the old towns: they are pedestrian, and the fines are real.

Plan this trip

📒 The free printable Croatia guide→ 🗓️ Best time to visit Croatia, month by month→ 🎟️ What to book before you go→

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