• Age: 30
• Year: 2019
• Time of year: July
• Length of trip: 11 days
• Travel style: adventure, beach destination, nightlife, food & wine

The recap:
Kayaks, waterfalls, and beaches
2 wineries & 1 Michelin star restaurant
Parties until sunrise

Day 1

Flew from Faro, Portugal to Dubrovnik.

Met up with my aunt & checked into Sun Gardens Dubrovnik. Lovely resort with pools, restaurants & activities including a clay tennis court, about a 20 min taxi ride to the old town.

Went for lunch in the old town at Proto Fish, a Michelin star restaurant with the best seafood in town:

Then back to the resort to enjoy dinner, live music, and a beautiful sunset.

Day 2

Must-do: Kayaking around the old town of Dubrovnik and to the Betina Cave:

Then stumbled upon a secret bar in the old town with gorgeous sunset views – Bard.

Day 3

Day trip to Montenegro – visited the old town of Kotor and the Lady of the Rocks church.

Day 4

Took the ferry to the island of Hvar. Checked into the penthouse (thx to my aunt’s Amex points) at Teranea Resort Apartments.

Lightning storm in the evening!

Day 5

Explored the island of Hvar throughout the day, and then experienced the ‘party island’ vibes all night long!

Went to Il Porto for dinner, then the Seven bar for drinks, but the real party began on the 2am ferry to Carpe Diem Beach on Pakleni island (ferries start at midnight). Honestly the craziest nightlife I’ve experienced in my life. Last ferry back to Hvar is at 5am (yes, I was on that ferry).

Day 6

Day trip to the island of Korčula – approx. 1.5 hrs on the ferry from Hvar. Explored the old town and went to the Roco wine bar.

Day 7

Rented a car to drive to Stari Grad & Jelsa (on the island of Hvar) – beautiful drive past fields and fields of lavender.

In Stari Grad, we visited the Stari Grad Plain and the Tvrdalj Castle before stopping for lunch at the amazing Antika restaurant.

Then we drove to Jesla and stopped at the Tomic winery for a tasting.

Day 8

More island hopping – took the ferry to Bol (approx. 1 hr).

Stopped at the Stina winery for a delicious tasting, then chilled at the famous Zlatni Rat (aka Golden Horn) beach.

Then went for dinner at Konoba Mlin.

Day 9

Took the ferry to Split, the capital of Dalmatia back on the mainland of Croatia. Visited the Palace of Diocletian, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Then my aunt left for the airport, while I took the sunset train to Šibenik. Checked into Hostel Scala.

Day 10

Explored Šibenik and went to Restoran No. 4 for lunch.

Day 11

Jumped in the famous waterfalls at Krka National Park.

Then took the night bus to Vienna, Austria (blog post here) with a short stop in Slovenia (not my favourite mode of travel – always take the train or fly if you can when in Europe).