Time is money. Accordingly, let's get to the point! If you only have a few days to spare in Croatia: Dubrovnik and the surrounding Elaphite islands lend themselves to a great weekend. Many one-day or overnight visitors to Croatia do just that coming from one of the major cruise lines that have recently made the city a regular port of call on the Mediterranean cruises.A great weekend - less the cruise part -can also be had in Zagreb and the environs, especially in the region of Hrvatsko Zagorje with its many castles and hot spring. For a week in Croatia: start in Zagreb and make your way to Dubrovnik along the coast with stops at the Plitvice lakes, Split and possibly Zadar. For two weeks, include a boat trip to one if the islands, preferably Hvar or Brač. If travelling onwards into Italy, Istria, the "Croatian Tuscany", will surprise with its culinary delights and picturesque medieval towns perched on picture postcard hill tops.

Popular routes

A view of the Adriatic coast and the islands from Jadranska magistrala.

Most tourists come to Croatia ON WHEELS.

Zagreb, Hrvatska

Coming from Austria and Germany, they will typically enter the country via the border crossing at Macelj, some 50km north of Zagreb, and make their way south down the main highway to Split. A modified version will include a more easterly route leaving the higway at Karlovac, following the trunk road for Plitvice lakes National Park and rejoining the highway just before the Sveti Rok tunnel.

A similar route is taken by tourists coming from countries such as Hungary and Poland except their most likely point of entry will be the Goričan border crossing coming from Hungary. Following the main A1 highway to Split drivers will probably experience the most scenic point of their journey just past the Sveti Rok Tunnel. As they enter the tunnel, they leave behind the dark evergren conifer forest andthe mountains and several minutes later are treated to a wide open vista of the coast and the islands, immersed in the scent of Mediterranean herbs and the sea and surrounded by the red earth of the karst. A similar effect can be experienced on the A6 to Rijeka upon exiting the Tuhobić Tunnel. Italian visitors usually drive due east through Slovenia coming from Trieste and Venice and enter Croatia at Rupa near Rijeka or one of the border crossings in Istria. The crossing at Rupa is used by some coming from Germany and Austria as well. They then follow the main trunk road which hugs the coast , the so-called Jadranska magistrala. This route does not offer as dramatic a change of scenery as the northern approaches because it never leaves the Mediterranean vegetation belt, i.e. the transition between the northern and southern landscape types is gradual and happens before entering Croatia in Slovenia. However, it compensates with stunning views of the coast and the islands. For those coming BY SEA, ferry routes to Zadar from Ancona, Italy and to Split from Pescara, Italy are the most popular. Bari, near the heel of the Italian boot is connected by ferry to Dubrovnik . The fastest hydrofoil services take a couple of hours,even less between Venice and the West coast of Istria.

Don't miss

Time is money. Accordingly, let's get to the point! If you only have a few days to spare in Croatia: Dubrovnik and the surrounding Elaphite islands lend themselves to a great weekend. Many one-day or overnight visitors to Croatia do just that coming from one of the major cruise lines that have recently made the city a regular port of call on the Mediterranean cruises.A great weekend - less the cruise part -can also be had in Zagreb and the environs, especially in the region of Hrvatsko Zagorje with its many castles and hot spring. For a week in Croatia: start in Zagreb and make your way to Dubrovnik along the coast with stops at the Plitvice lakes, Split and possibly Zadar. For two weeks, include a boat trip to one if the islands, preferably Hvar or Brač. If travelling onwards into Italy, Istria, the "Croatian Tuscany", will surprise with its culinary delights and picturesque medieval towns perched on picture postcard hill tops.