Our summer roadtrip of the Balkans was off to a great start with visits to Zagreb, Lake Bled, Ljubljana, and Plitvice Lakes. As we transitioned into the middle stretch of our trip, we were excited to be leaving the cool and drizzly weather of the north for the warm and humid coastal climate of Split.
The history and culture of Split is rich with character, telling stories that date back to its founding as a Greek colony in the 3rd century BCE. In 305 BCE, Split became the site of emperor Diocletian’s palace, which is were we began our self guided walking tour on our first day.
Our self guided tour of Diocletians Palace began from the southern underground gate of the Riva. Unlike most persevered historical UNESCO sites, this palace has a very commercial feel with vendors and souvenir shops everywhere. Usually this would be a turn-off, but Owen was a huge fan of the discount soccer jersey’s, and we made sure to buy him his favorites. After passing through the underground cellars from the Riva, we popped into the vestibul and were treated to a quartet singing traditional Croatian music.
From the vestibul, we continued on to the main courtyard of the palace, called the Peristyle. It was nice to enjoy the shade and breeze here on a brutally hot day. Owen also got to take a picture with two college students dressed in lorica segmentata.
One of the more fascinating things to see at the palace is the collections of ancient Egyptian sphinxes. These 3500-year-old granite sphinxes originally came from the site of Egyptian Pharaoh Thutmose III. There were originally quite a few, but only three have survived. My favorite is the one is on the Peristyle.
After spending a few hours walking around Diocletians Palace and the surrounding area, we found a nice spot for lunch, and then made our way out to the Riva for some ice cream. Over the course of our four days in Split, we enjoyed more than our fair share of the abundant ice cream offerings in the city.
On our second day in Split, we took a drive into the Dalmatian countryside to explore the higher elevations on an ATV tour. We went with a fantastic tour provider called Asteria ATV that took care of everything, including pickup from Split. Upon arrival, we were greeted by our fantastic guide, and provided with brand new helmets and buff face protectors. The ATVs also looked like they were nearly brand new. We started off on a small test loop to make sure all group members were comfortable on the ATVs and then began a journey up to the Bosnian border.
Midway through our ascent we passed through fields of grazing sheep and cows. This is also the section were flatter land allowed mud pools to accumulate on the dirt paths. Owen demanded that we blast through them full speed. By the end of this ride, we were soaked through with mud and fully covered from head to toe.
After a nearly five hour tour on the ATVs we had worked up quite the appetite. The nice thing about this tour is that a traditional Croatian lunch is included. The food was fantastic, and made for the perfect end to an incredible tour.
After a few days exploring the city of Split and the surrounding area, we packed our bags and hopped on a ferry to the island of Hvar. There are many ferrys that go between Split and Hvar, but I booked weeks in advance just to be safe. Kapetan Luka and Jadrolinija are the two big companies, and the boats are very easy to find.
Hvar is mostly known as a party and resort town, but it is also a very family friendly destination. Right when our ferry landed, we were greeted by a staff member from our hotel and guided through the narrow stone alleyways to drop off our bags. We didn’t settle for long though, we wanted to get a quick hike in before enjoying the beaches. Our goal was to get up to the Spanish Fortress (Tvrdava Fortica) to take in the views and work up an appetite before lunch.
The journey to Tvrdava Fortica begins by climbing up a few hundred steps away from Hvar town towards the hillside. Looking back, we could instantly see the views of the Adriatic below.
After leaving the city behind, the trail becomes a series of switchbacks on a crushed gravel path. The heat and humidity made it more of a challenge, but we were glad to be walking fairly early in the morning. From the top of the fort, we had incredible views down to the Adriatic and chain of islands surrounding Hvar.
After our brief hike, we made our way back down into Hvar town to grab some groceries for lunch and then went back to our hotel near the cathedral. It was time to explore the beaches of Hvar!
Julia and I were content to relax on the beach and enjoy the scenery, but Owen really wanted to take up paddle boarding. We were able to get a two hour rental, and after showing him how to do it, he ventured off on his own. Julia and I were both surprised how quickly he learned to paddle around on his own, and he did so without ever falling off of the board.
As the sun began to set, we left the beaches behind and found a great spot for dinner right along the water. The weather, people, food, and atmosphere of Hvar were amazing. Like many places on our Croatian roadtrip, we only wish we had more time to spend. But alas, we had to continue with our journey the following day, and we had almost a full week scheduled to enjoy Dubrovnik and the surrounding area!
