The first time we were in Croatia was for our honeymoon. Then, we went straight to Dubrovnik and spent a few days in an apartment there before going to Mljet island. This time we decided to fly into Split, before taking a car down the coast, through Bosnia, and back to our honeymoon apartment in Dubrovnik.
Split
R wasn’t too bothered about going to Split but I wanted to see more of the country and had heard amazing things about Split old town from a colleague who’d been previously. So I arranged for us to fly into Split and stay in an apartment right next to Diocletian’s Palace in the heart of the old city. We only had a couple of nights there before we were due to drive down to Dubrovnik, so I wanted to be right next to everything we wanted to see.
Klis fortress
After spending a couple of days in Split it was time to go to Dubrovnik. I hired a private car to take us down the coast – a comfortable journey that took about 3 1/2 hours. On the way we elected to stop at Klis fortress for an hour. If you watch Game of Thrones you’d probably recognise it better as the city of Mereen. It was a hot day and R struggled a bit with his leg, but we had a great time looking around and the views from the top of the fortress were spectacular. Something was burning way off in the distance but we couldn’t figure out what it was.
Dubrovnik
Arriving in Dubrovnik meant settling into some serious relaxation time. Our honeymoon apartment is in an area of Dubrovnik called Ploce. It’s about a 10 minute walk south of the old town, so perfect for peace and quiet but still really convenient for shopping, restaurants, beaches etc. The apartment itself has an unobstructed view out over the Adriatic, and a balcony with a hot tub from which to enjoy the views. So when we weren’t spending our evenings wandering around the old town eating supper and listening to music, we were relaxing on the terrace with prosecco watching the sun go down over the water. It’s honestly the most perfect place I think I’ve ever been to, and so much more special because of the first time we stayed there as newlyweds.
Last time we were in Dubrovnik all we did was lounge around. This time I actually wanted to do some things. So on a couple of different days we hired a boat and went parasailing over the bay. The boat was awesome but I was more proud of myself for the parasailing. I have a fear of heights, so the whole time were boarding the boat and getting into the harness I felt almost literally sick with fear. But once we were up in the air it was amazing. I wish I’d taken photos but I was afraid of dropping my camera into the sea. So we just swooshed about for 15 minutes instead, enjoying the amazing views over the city and the bay, before landing back on the boat with a surprisingly gentle whump. And then went for celebratory cocktails at the beach bar.