We finally made it to the last part of our Croatia trip! I’m combining the rest of Day 13, Day 14, and Day 15 into one post because it’s mostly festival stuff and then traveling home. We had an amazing time on this trip. The group we were traveling with got along so great. We had little kids & a baby and people in their 80s and everything in between. One of the best parts was that everyone was always willing to lend a hand with the little kids and older folks who needed help. We also had the best bus driver and guide- Mario and Nino – who made the trip easy for us. Our performances all went great, and the kids especially did amazing! Now I’m just hoping that in 5 years when it’s festival time again they keep doing a combined junior & adult festival so I can do this again!
Day 13 Continued
After the Nikola Tesla Technical Museum, we went back to Lisinski Hall to watch the kids in our group perform in the combined performance. This was all the kids, and a few of the adults, from the festival performing a few songs together. It was especially exciting this year, because Prime Minister Plenković attended. We ended up just a few rows behind him in the audience. Of course, he also gave a speech, as did other dignitaries and CFU representatives. After the combined performance and speeches, Josh and I decided to stay for a bit and watch some of the other groups since I hadn’t had a chance to watch anyone else after my own performance.
Day 14- The Picnic
On Day 14 the CFU hosted a “picnic” (really more of a banquet) at Bunčić estate. We ate, hit up the open bar, and hung out. There was kolo dancing too, but it was too hot in the there! Our group didn’t stay the whole time, the heat got to enough people that most of us voted to leave early. After the picnic we just hung out at the hotel and did some packing for the next day.
Day 15- Time to Go Home
Day 15 meant it was time to go home. Our first flight was from Zagreb to Vienna and was very short. As one of the flight attendants said, “there’s just enough time to be like water water water water, ok we’re landing.” Then when we got to Vienna we had a short window until our next flight. We ended up parking on the tarmac and they brought out a shuttle to meet us. This was my second time using stairs on the tarmac and I think it’s so fun. Our shuttle actually took us to where we needed to get onto another shuttle, and then we had to get through passport control, and find our gate. People were already lining up when we got to the gate, but it hadn’t actually started boarding yet. We made it, though, and then had ~9 hours on the plane. It was an uncomfortable flight, but then we were back in Chicago.
Our Croatia Trip Overview
Flights: OHR > VIE > DBV going out, ZAG > VIE > OHR on the return- both on Austrian Airlines
Hotels Stayed In: Hotel Dubrovnik Palace, Falkensteiner Family Hotel Diadora, Hotel Ambasador Opatija, Sheraton Zagreb Hotel
Cities Visited: Dubrovnik, Cavtat, Split, Zadar, Nin, Opatija, Pula, Rovinj, Zagreb
If you missed any of the previous posts in this series:
- Croatia Trip Days 1 & 2: Planes, Busses, and Sleep Deprivation
- Croatia Trip Day 3: Old Town Dubrovnik, Cavtat, Wine Tasting, Mills, and More!
- Croatia Trip Day 4: Lokrum Island
- Croatia Trip Day 5: A Long Bus Ride, a Visit to Split, and History was Made
- Croatia Trip Day 6: Krka Falls, Zadar, and our First Concert
- Croatia Trip Days 7 & 8: Pools, Wine, Salt, and Football
- Croatia Trip Days 9 & 10: Pula, Rovinj, and Zagreb
- Croatia Trip Day 11: Zagreb Botanical Garden
- Croatia Trip Days 12 & 13: Tamburica Festival & Nikola Tesla Technical Museum
Croatia Travel FAQs
I thought I’d use this post to also answer just a few common questions about visiting Croatia. This was my second trip there and I would recommend it to anyone!
What was the weather like in Croatia?
It was very hot! We had a few days with heat advisories even. However, those days weren’t actually any hotter than our hot days back in the Midwest. We were there in June/July, because of a festival, so didn’t have a choice in when we visited.
Do Americans need a visa to visit Croatia?
As of August 2024, you do not need a visa to visit Croatia. Croatia is part of the EU and there has been talk about starting to require Americans to have a visa to visit, but it hasn’t happened yet.
What currency does Croatia use?
As of 2023, Croatia is part of the Schengen Area and uses the Euro.
Do I need to carry cash in Croatia?
Some places still use cash only- like smaller cafes and museums. We went with €100 between the two of us, and ended up withdrawing cash twice from ATMs. Mostly we were able to use our credit and debit cards. For both of my visits to Croatia I found that using ATMs and credit/debit cards got me better exchange rates than doing an actual currency exchange.
What languages do they speak in Croatia?
The main language in Croatia is Croatian, however, most people speak English very well too. Also, in Dalmatia we found that a lot of people spoke German since there are a lot of German and Austrian tourists.
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