World travelers across the globe have been attracted to Croatia’s natural beauty and charming characteristics, but what many may not know is the rich abundance of history and culture that the country possesses. From iconic historical relics to gorgeous UNESCO World Heritage Sites and various other landmarks in between, this luxurious, 12-day adventure will lead you on a delightful journey of discovery. Whether it is delving into the ancient secrets of Dubrovnik’s Old City, uncovering the origins...
Customizable Itinerary
Day 1
Dubrovnik – Arrive in Dubrovnik and Embark on a Sunset Sail
Upon your arrival in Dubrovnik, your private driver will be waiting to pick you up and take you to get settled in at your luxurious accommodation. Your first excursion, which is a sunset dinner sail on an authentic, 16th-century karaka vessel, will provide you with the perfect pairing of peaceful relaxation and a local feast of delicious Dalmatian fare. As you feel your worries melt away with each nautical mile, you will already be sensing that your choice in coming to Croatia the best choice.
After enjoying your mouthwatering meal and witnessing your first of many Croatian sunsets, you will sail back to the Dubrovnik docks, where your driver will be waiting to return you to your hotel.
What's Included:
Day 2
Dubrovnik – Unlock the Secrets of the Old City and Lokrum Island
Day 3
Dubrovnik – Reminisce about the Wondrous Past of Konavle Valley
Day 4
Dubrovnik – Sail Away on a Full-Day Adventure to the Elaphiti Islands
Day 5
Split – Uncover the Historical Secrets of Split and Trogir
Day 6
Zadar – Witness the Highlights of Zadar before Enjoying an Evening Sail
Day 7
Plitvice – Be Romanced by Plitvice National Park and Rastoke Village
Day 8
Zagreb – Roam Zagreb’s Iconic Upper Town and Take a Cooking Class
Day 9
Zagreb – Feel Like Royalty on a Day Trip Filled with Croatian Castles
Day 10
Zagreb – Marvel at the History and Beauty of the Magical Istria Region
Day 11
Zagreb – Fly High over Zagreb and Join a Socialism-Themed Bike Tour
Day 12
Zagreb – Enjoy a Lovely Brunch and Say Goodbye to Croatia
Trip Highlights
- Fly over Zagreb on a privately chartered plane ride while being regaled with fascinating facts about Croatia’s capital
- Delve into the rich roots of the Istrian Region as you are enthralled with fascinating facts and historical backstories
- Peruse every nook and cranny of pristine Plitvice National Park, including its numerous cascading waterfalls and pristine lakes
- Traverse the working watermills and rustic charm of Rastoke Village as you wander among its quaint streets
- Immerse yourself in nature as you island-hop to Lokrum Island and are introduced to the local wildlife, including peacocks and wild bunnies
- Bask in luxury for an evening away during a dinner cruise on a 16th-century karaka
- Trace the origins of the Konavle Valley on an intriguing storytelling tour that will be complete with ancient folklore and fascinating facts
- Marvel at ancient secrets as you explore Dubrovnik’s Old City and peruse every inch of this fortress
- Satisfy your appetite and curiosity with a historically themed cooking class
- Uncover sensational secrets of the past as you stroll through Split and Trogir while hearing amazing stories of the area from your expert guide
- Wander among the picturesque streets and landmarks of Zagreb’s Upper Town, snapping photos of the Zagreb Cathedral, Dolac Market, and more
Detailed Description
The Croatia of today is characterized by an endearing charm and an old-world charm that harkens back to a simpler time. Its magical villages that are filled with cobblestone streets and countless historical landmarks offer a lovely aesthetic to appreciate as we appreciate in passing and snap photographs of as keepsakes. However, far few travelers get to delve deeper, going beyond Croatia’s physical beauty and charm to uncover the amazing and intriguing backstory of this beautiful Easter European jewel. This 12-day handcrafted luxury tour, specifically curated with a historical focus, will change all of that by offering you a unique, inside peek at the fascinating Croatia of the past.
The journey begins on the sparkling shores of Croatia amid the wonders of Dubrovnik. Your first adventure is a sunset sail aboard an authentic 16th-century karaka replica vessel. The Old City beckons next as you stroll its ancient streets, flanked by towering fortress walls and nearly endless historical landmarks. Ending the day with an island escape to Lokrum Island will be the perfect complement to the Old City, while you will follow that up with an enthralling day tour to the Konavle Valley. Here, you will uncover the mysterious truths behind the region’s origins. A full-day private sailing excursion to the Elaphiti Islands in an actual Galleon Ghost Ship provides a unique spin on your regular island getaway.
Your next stop is Split, where you will explore the city’s historical highlights on a private tour, as well as take a side trip over to Trogir, which boasts its own treasure trove of wondrous relics from the past. Zadar then welcomes you to peruse its past as you take a private walking of its most popular historical sites, particularly those related to its communist-era ties. Ending the evening with a sunset sail provides the proverbial cherry on top of your short time in this special city.
Exploring the waterfall-filled world of Plitvice National Park and its romantic neighbor, Rastoke Village, is next on the agenda, followed by several days in the country’s capital. Upon arriving in Zagreb, you will dive right into exploring its most wondrous area, the iconic Upper Town. After visiting famed sites, including Dolac Market, Zagreb Cathedral, St. Mark’s Church and more, you will be treated to a historically themed cooking class. Your remaining days will be spent marveling at wonders of the magical Istrian Peninsula, flying over and biking through Zagreb’s most historical sections, and being inspired by a pair of Croatian castles.
Every destination has luxury accommodations as well as a private driver ready and waiting to receive you, so the only thing you will need to focus on is having fun and being enlightened, entertained, and inspired.
Croatia is a region unlike any other; learn more by seeing how our partner Croatia travel companies can personalize the experience for you.
Starting Price
$3,900 per person (excluding international flights)
Your Zicasso trip is fully customizable, and this sample itinerary is a starting place for your travel plans. Actual costs are dynamic, and your selection of accommodations and activities, your season of travel, and other such variables will bring this budget guideline up or down. Throughout your planning experience with your Zicasso specialist, your itinerary is designed around your budget. You can book your trip when you are satisfied with every detail. Planning your trip with a Zicasso travel specialist is a free service.
What's Included
- Accommodations
- In-country transportation
- Some or all activities and tours
- Expert trip planning
- 24x7 support during your trip
Your final trip cost will vary based on your selected accommodations, activities, meals, and other trip elements that you opt to include.
Reviews of Zicasso's Referral Service
4.91 stars based on 1339 reviews.
Our travel guide was excellent. Our hotels were perfect and, from the beginning, he accommodated all of my requests, including my need for gluten-free foods. And during the trip, when my daughter got sick, he arranged for a doctor to come to the hotel.
Reviewed By Julie Q.
Croatia is a beautiful country to visit. The people we met and the guides we had were all fantastic, professional, knowledgeable and incredibly friendly. Every place we visited, even the more crowded tourist areas, felt very safe.
Our Zicasso travel agent worked really closely with us right from the beginning to make sure the trip gave our family the balance of exploration, relaxation, learning, and adventure that we look for on our vacations. Every aspect of our trip – every tour, every driver, every dinner, everything – flowed exactly as we had planned it.
Reviewed By Julia S.
Our Zicasso travel agent's communication was incredible! She was fast, professional, and always thorough. Everything she planned for us was of such high quality! It was perfect!
Reviewed By Karen W.
Zicasso's travel consultant was so helpful in designing a near-perfect trip for our group of eight travelers. We visited Croatia and Greece. In the planning stages, she was patient yet persistent in moving us toward finalizing the trip. The hotel recommendations and sightseeing choices were, for the most part, outstanding. The ground transfer arrangements were perfect. Most of all, her recommendation for the right Greek island for our group's needs was spot on.
Reviewed By Ann M.
Before our trip, Zicasso's travel specialist assured us we would have an amazing, worry-free trip through Slovenia and Croatia. We most certainly did!!
She had us in beautiful, centrally located hotels, on exciting daily excursions with knowledgeable tour guides, and even on a private speedboat ride!! Our journey included historic sites, wonderful museums, and hikes through caverns, waterfalls, and fortresses!!
Any questions we had were answered in the moment, completely and respectfully! Thank you so much to our travel specialist for her caring attention to detail and for making our trip truly memorable!!
Reviewed By Darlene Z.
The entire nine days of travel from Slovenia to Montenegro were seamless as far as being picked up at the arrival airport and departure as planned. Transportaion was on schedule, which was important to me in a foreign country and eliminated any stress. Each private guide and/or driver throughout our trip was courteous and spoke English, which avoided any misunderstanding about all the wonderful sites we saw.
Lake Bled was absolutely wonderful. The guide parked the van at this family home four blocks from the lake and introduced us to his mother and sister, who welcomed us, and we saw how they lived in this beautiful village. The walk of four blocks to the lake also gave us the opportunity to see more of this quaint place to live. Since the lake does not allow power boats, we and about 20 other people were rowed to the island, where an ancient church was located. We found out that this family, in the past, were the caretakers of the island and our tour guide had to row himself to the shore to go to school and, in the winter, skate to school every day.
Next, we were driven to the castle on top of a small mountain, which had a perfect, 360-degree view of the area. Beautiful!
The next day we went to Plitvice Lakes National Park, with too many waterfalls to count and water that looked as crystal clear as any natural water I have ever seen. The four-kilometer walk upstream was nothing like I've ever seen in the USA.
We spent the night in a wonderful mountain lodge, with individual lodges and an upper-end-style bed and breakfast theme.
Split was a city with parts dating back to the third century, with many Roman influences in its many buildings.
Mostar in Bosnia was very interesting and had a central arch-style bridge which seemed to be a central point for all to see. There was so much we saw that it is too much to describe here.
We also stopped at a wine tasting at the most modern winery I've ever been to. It even had 12 guest rooms, with a pool.
On our way to Dubrovnik, we stopped at Ston to have an unbelievable lunch. At the restaurant, we had an oyster tasting of fresh oysters being farmed several hundred yards from the restaurant. We were served oysters three ways, from raw to fried and baked, and they were the best I will ever eat in my life.
We next went to Dubrovnik, which was particularly interesting to me because it is where Game of Thrones was filmed. Our guide was excellent, as he worked as a "roadie" for the film company, helping set the scenes by taking down modern signs or anything modern, and putting them back after filming. He had large screen shots in a spiral binder and would take us to a cove and hold up the screen shot of the actual scene from the movie to show us the similarity. His behind-the-scenes knowledge of the actors and the reaction from the town and church was beyond expectations. My wife and I were fans of GOT and so excited that we are going to watch if all again one day.
Our last day was in Montenegro, which again was beautiful, and we spent the day next to the water there. We were ferried to a man-made island with an old church on it.
Overall, the Adriatic Sea along the coast of these countries was one of the most beautiful stretches of water you could imagine.
Our expectations of this tour were met and exceeded.
Reviewed By Sandra H.
