Trip Overview
We had been discussing doing a family trip with my dad, step-mom, sister, and brother-in-law. None of us had been to Croatia, and a friend of my sister had just gone and raved about it. While Teresa and I (as well as my sister and brother-in-law) don’t really do organized tour vacations, we thought having everything taken care of would be helpful in this case, since my dad is 87 and my step-mom is getting over an ankle injury. So, we looked into booking a private tour. This turned out to be the best decision ever!
My sister found Genuine Tours by Ella from a Facebook group. Someone had used them and had a glowing review. I filled out a form on their website, and after a couple follow-up emails, Ella put together a custom itinerary based on what we were looking for. I cannot stress this enough: it was perfect. Ella and her husband Dražen (who drove the large Merceded van) were fantastic. Door to door service from one city to the next, as well as some fantastic side trips – including a couple meals prepared in local homes.
The tour itself would begin in Rovinj, Croatia, with the closest major airport being Venice. It’s a 3 hour drive from Venice to Rovinj, so we decided to fly in the day before, in case there were any delays with the flights, and to give us a day to decompress. Another good decision! The official itinerary was: 3 nights in Rovinj, with a day trip to Motovun and Grožnjan for truffle hunting; a day trip to Brijuni National Park; then off to Rastoke and Plitvice Lakes (where we’d spend the night); two nights in Split (stopping at Šibenik on the way to Split); day trip to Omiš, including traditional soparnik tasting at someones home; 2 nights in Korčula town, with a stop in Hvar on the way; side trip for local honey tasting; 2 nights in Dubrovnik, including Mount Srđ, Trsteno Arboretum, and a local family homestead for a traditional peka meal.
Arrival in Venice
We arrived in Venice at 9am. After collecting our luggage, we took a water taxi to a spot close to our VRBO rental apartment. We met the host to get the keys and drop off our luggage (pro tip: get WhatsApp – every VRBO host, guide, etc. used WhatsApp to communicate, so you’re going to need it!). By now it was late morning, so we headed for Al’Arco for some cicchetti (small bites) and wine. We stopped at a second chicchetti bar for some coffee, then went to Piazza San Marco followed by Libreria Acqua Alta.
We found a spot near Acqua Alta for lunch: Alla Corte Spaghetteria Ristorante. Three of us had a pasta dish with 9-hour slow braised veal cheek, which was delicious. After our late lunch, we were all exhausted from traveling, so we all went to bed early after stopping for some supplies at a COOP (grocery store).
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