Croatia travel advice

Local culture tips

Croatia travel advice from Ivana Grzetic, from our experts Adria Adventure: "Don't talk too much about the past, as people are still sensitive regarding the 1990s. So, remember that a lot of these people have been through the war, and so it is nice to be a little bit humble when talking about. Because you never know what happened to somebody's family. This applies mostly to the Dubrovnik region that was affected the most. And if you do want to talk about it, inform yourself about it before you go."

Xania Wear of WearActive says: "It gets really hot in summer, so we try to encourage our guests to go with what is natural for your body in this climate. To do what local people do. So we get up early in the mornings, and then have a siesta because that is what everybody is doing. Some families resist this a little because they want to do as much as possible during their holiday time. Or they might want to have their evening meal at seven, yet it is still pretty hot here at that time and it is the best time to go swimming. And local people would eat later here. So, we encourage people to break out of their normal routines a little."

Local people tips

Ivana Grzetic from our Croatia specialists Adria Adventure says: “A lot of people who work in tourism come from the north – which is what we call the hinterland, such as Slavonia. They don't have tourism in their blood, like we do in Dubrovnik, and so sometimes they might come across as rude, but they don't mean to. Often they have come from a completely different profession, and so they are still getting used to how tourism works. And don’t forget to buy an ice cream from a local slasticarna, the Croatian equivalent of the Italian gelateria.”

Expect adequate hotels rather than luxury. Take a travel kettle if you want an early morning cuppa – there was no tea or coffee making facilities in any of the rooms. – Nick Ward

Take time to explore the parts of Dubrovnik that the tourist masses miss – we loved the sudden quiet down at Pile bay, just metres from the noise and congestion of Pile Gate. – Sue McDonald

The only tip I would give is that the restaurants in the bay of Rukavac do not take credit cards, so we were unable to pay our restaurant bill the first night. Many places on Vis didn't take cards so you'll need to keep getting cash out. You also definitely need water shoes, as the beaches are mostly pebble. We used very high factor 50 'once' sunscreen on our upper bodies and none of us burnt. – Fiona Brenninkmeijer

Beware Hvar town is nightclub land. Seeing the town is a must but I think a stay at Starigrad town would have been better. – Sue Howles

My jaw dropped at the first view of Dubrovnik, but better was to come. The islands were absolutely beautiful, i.e. Korcula, Sipan and Mljet. But most of all I loved my experiences with the people of Croatia... they were honest, friendly, approachable and yet not in your face. I could not say enough about how much we enjoyed our experience. – Anne McCarthy