Due to how things have turned out this year our travel plans for 2016 had to be put on hold. Whilst it means we are missing travelling dreadfully for a while, our plans have only been postponed for a few more months. This gives us more time to save up to do more things that will help create memories to last a lifetime.
As you may recall us writing before, it is our wish to teach our children that it isn’t what you own or how much you have but what you do and experience that makes you happy. Beyond having the basics covered, what else do you really need? Travel and all it brings is immeasurable and the memories it leaves you with really is incredible.
Obviously, the more you do and experience, the more you have to look back on. Opening yourself up to new experiences is vital and sometimes means stepping out of your comfort zone. This also teaches the children to gain confidence themselves.
One of our stops will be Croatia, which is somewhere we have been longing to visit for many years now. Where we had originally planned to stop only at Split, we are now considering another stop in Dubrovnik too due to the amount of activities there are available for families.
Whilst Dubrovnik city breaks are reasonable and convenient to do with the older kids (Cait is currently in Luxembourg as I write, lucky thing), I am not quite at the stage where I feel ready, willing or able to jump on a plane with so many very young children. As things are at the moment, packing up and piling onto the minibus is still the way to travel. It keeps everyone and everything in one place and simplifies travelling for us more than navigating airports and travelling by plane would with several young children. Therefore, given as we’ll already be travelling past Dubrovnik on our way to our next stop in Montenegro, I’m thinking we may as well stay there for a day or two too.
The problem is that the more I research places to visit and things to do, the more I want to fit in. The whole family loves history and old buildings, so I think it’s worth a stop by just to take a walk along the old walls, some of which go back as far as the 12th century. At 2 kilometres long we’ll have to make sure our walking shoes are comfy though.
Once we’ve tried out this historical trek I hope we can head over to chill out a while on the Copacabana beach. Oh yes, at the Copa… Copacabana. Do you have the song firmly nestled in your head now? Good, then I’ll share my final reason I want to add Dubrovnik into our travel plans.
When we visited Cannes in France during our two-month road trip around France and Italy we took a boat trip over to St Marguerite island. The place was stunning. A quiet, peaceful island just a 15 minute boat ride away from the hustle and bustle of Cannes, that was filled with the scent of eucalyptus and pine trees that grew on the island. The water was crystal clear and we also had the opportunity to visit the fortress that the man in the iron mask was imprisoned in. The children still talk about it now.
From Dubrovnik we can take another boat ride to Lokrum Island. To be fair, Croatia’s coastline is dotted with many, many islands all the way along it, but this one particularly appeals for some reason. Perhaps it’s that the boat ride is only ten minutes long so the cries of, ‘Are we there yet?’ might be few enough to endure. Perhaps it’s that the cost to get there is quite reasonable even for so many of us. However, I think it’s more likely that it’s something to do with the scenery…
What do you think?
Have you ever visited Croatia? Where would you recommend? We’d love to hear your recommendations.
I’ve not been to Croatia, but you really should consider both Split and Dubrovnik. Dubrovnik seems to be the place that everyone who visits Croatia goes, and from the photos and vlogs that I have seen on this town, it looks rather lovely. Besides, who knows what people you might meet there and what International connections you can make for future trips, right?
I suppose if you have a choice between either or both, why not go for both?!
Krka national park waterfalls are amazing, I visited them as a child and the memory is still strong and beautiful.