Why do so many tours and cruises go to Croatia?

[raccoon]

Why do so many tours and cruises go to Croatia? Personally I’m not interested in going there. I don’t have anything against Croatia but on the other hand I don’t particularly want to go but it seems like a lot of tours include Croatia.

Anybody know why? Or is it just my perception?

[CincyDem]

1. Dubrovnik - Game of Thrones location for Westros ??? n/t

[SimpleC]

2. Croatia

It's actually a beautiful countryside with a great deal of history behind it. The conflicts in Bosnia/Herzegovina have hurt the tourism industry there. It's a short hop to Italy from there.

If the price is right and you've never been out of the country, it's not an altogether bad stop.

[GeorgeGist]

3. It's a beautiful country!

[FBaggins]

4. Combination of factors

First of all... Dubrovnik is lovely and definitely worth the stop... but we’ll skip that.

If you want to stop in Venice (and almost everyone wants to stop in Venice), Then you’re going to have to have at least one other stop somewhere in the Adriatic. That stop needs to be a certain distance from Venice, have a port that can handle deeper drafted vessels, and have port taxes that the cruise line finds attractive.

If it makes you feel any better, the mayor of Dubrovnik recently decided to limit the number of cruise passengers each day to 5000. That works out to two ships per day and only one of them can be one of the giants.

[Laura PourMeADrink]

8. Interesting,! So there are no other deep water ports on the east side of Italy?

[FBaggins]

9. There are a handful

Most of them are too close to Venice to be useful for most mass-market cruises. They want to get out of the Adriatic and add stops in other countries (Greece/Turkey) and/or more attractive Italian ports on the other side of the boot (Sicily/Naples/Rome/Pisa(Florence).

Bari, Italy is probably the closest thing to a substitute port. But I'd take Dubrovnik over Bari any day.

[Laura PourMeADrink]

10. That is so interesting. I was looking for a cruise around (only) Italy. Only

found one and it was priced sky high. Actually, kind of averse to a cruise - but considering. Like the freedom of just driving wherever.

[FBaggins]

11. Then don't worry about the cruise

It's just too easy to get around by train (particularly if you plan travel dates in advance). In a few cases (e.g., Venice down to the heel of the boot) there are overnight trains with sleeper cabins for about the price you would spend on a hotel). For the primary destinations, there are high-speed trains that are remarkably comfortable... then rent a car for excursions away from the beaten path.

Cruises targeted at just Italian ports can get pricey. But if you decide on that, try looking for a new mass-market ship constructed in Fincantieri. They usually take a couple 2-week shakedown cruises around the boot before crossing the Atlantic for Caribbean duty. We did that with the Carnival Dream several years back and saved a bundle.

[Laura PourMeADrink]

12. Thanks ! Ya, we've driven and taken trains and

flights to get around. It's just that it's tempting to let a cruise line do the work . But, I guess I favor finding cool local inns to stay in and mapping our own way.

You sound like you know your way around. Been to Paris, Lake Logano (on Swiss/Italian border), Venice, Capri, and Rome and drove through Switzerland. We also just googled "cleanest lake in Europe". So stayed in absolutely picture perfect gorgeous Lake Annecy...not far from Switzerland.

The only thing I know for certain is that I want to go to Krakow and definitely back to Venice.

Any advice?

[voteearlyvoteoften]

5. Go to Dubrovnik

It was a highlight on my trip.

[Laura PourMeADrink]

13. Wow..where else did you go and wasn't crazy about?

[snowybirdie]

6. A friend went there

Loved the beauty of it. Plus it hasn't been changed by tourism as has much of Europe. Nary a Starbucks or McDonald's in sight!

[sinkingfeeling]

7. It's a gorgeous country.

[whathehell]

15. Because it's extremely beautiful with 2,000 years of history, Roman ruins

Ruins, Walled Medieval cities, and six UNESCO World Heritage sites.