When I first decided to drive along the Croatian coast, I thought everything would be pretty simple: the sea on my right, the beautiful cities ahead, the car under me, and five days in which I would quietly watch all the most interesting things. In my head, it was almost a perfect road movie, where I drive beautifully along a serpentine, periodically stop for a photo and have dinner somewhere by the sea in the evening. The reality, of course, turned out to be a little more fun, because parking searches, attempts to understand local roads, and the classic "where am I going now?" were quickly added to the beautiful views. But this is exactly the journey I wanted to remember him on in Croatia. It's not easy to come to one resort town and spend a week on the same beach, but to move along the coast, stay where you really want to, and see a slightly different Croatia every day. In five days, I managed to drive through several beautiful cities, swim in the sea, taste local cuisine, get lost several times and finally make sure that a road trip is much more interesting when you don't try to control every minute. I started my first day in Dubrovnik, sharing photos from the cable car. To be honest, it was one of those times when I saw so many photos of the city that I was afraid to be disappointed when I met them. Usually, after the tenth photo of the same place, you get the feeling that you've already been there. But Dubrovnik turned out to be completely different. Old Town When I first saw the old town, surrounded by stone walls and lying right by the sea, I realized that the photos still did not convey the scale. The narrow streets, staircases, old houses, the splendor of the Adriatic and the huge number of people created a strange combination of a medieval city and a modern tourist resort. The first half of the day I just walked around the old town. I climbed the city walls, looked at the sea and the roofs of houses from above, stopped several times for photos, and at some point realized that my phone was almost empty. It was very prudent of me to start a car trip with my phone completely discharged, especially considering that I will still need navigation. After the walk, I decided to relax by the sea for a while. I hadn't planned to swim on the first day at all, but after staring at the incredibly clear water for a few minutes, I had to rethink the plan. After a while, I was already standing on the shore and wondering why I hadn't done it sooner. In the evening, I returned to the old town again. Dubrovnik seemed very lively to me during the day, and towards evening the atmosphere became calmer. The stone walls were gradually illuminated by warm light, the sea was darkening, and for the first time that day I stopped looking at the clock. I decided to spend the night in the Dubrovnik area, because in the morning I had to travel further along the coast. At that moment, I still did not know that the road would become one of the main parts of the entire journey.

In the morning I left Dubrovnik for Split. This is where the real road trip began. The road along the coast kept making me stop: either there was a beautiful view of the sea ahead, or a small bay appeared, or I just wanted to get out of the car and stand outside for a few minutes. Dubrovnik I realized one simple thing pretty quickly: if you drive through Croatia in order to get to the next city as quickly as possible, you can miss half the fun. So I stopped rushing and started making unplanned stops. The Adriatic At some point, I saw a small area with a view of the Adriatic and decided to park. It was only after I got out of the car that I realized that there was practically no one around. I stood and looked at the sea and thought that it was worth taking the car for such moments. On the way, I made several stops in small coastal places, had coffee and had lunch. And it turned out to be quite funny with lunch: I chose an institution almost at random, ordered a dish whose name I didn't quite understand, and then received a huge plate and spent some time trying to figure out how to eat it all. I love such moments when traveling, because for some reason they are the ones I remember best later. By evening, I reached Split. After quiet little stops along the way, the city seemed much more noisy and lively to me. Diocletian's Palace The main point of the walk was Diocletian's Palace. However, it is quite difficult to call it just a palace, because the historical complex is actually integrated into modern urban life. People live, work, go to cafes, and you walk through the streets and realize that there are buildings around you that are centuries old. Riva Embankment In the evening, I took a long walk along the Riva embankment. After the road, it turned out to be exactly what you needed: the sea nearby, cafes around, palm trees, evening light and the feeling that today you finally don't have to plan.

On the third day, I decided not to have another race in major cities and went to Trogir. And here one of the most pleasant discoveries of the trip was waiting for me. Trogir is much more compact than Split and feels completely different. Narrow stone streets, small squares, old houses and the sea from almost all sides create the impression that you are walking through the scenery of a historical film. Trogir I purposely left a few hours just for a walk without a specific route. Sometimes I went into small courtyards, sometimes I stopped by the embankment, sometimes I just sat in a cafe and watched people. It seems to me that it is in such cities that you get the best feeling of Croatia, because you are not trying to get a new attraction every minute. Sibenik After Trogir, I went to Sibenik. The journey didn't take long, so I decided that I would have time to walk around the city in peace until the evening. I liked Sibenik for its slightly more relaxed atmosphere. How beautiful it is here at dawn! I hope that the impressions I received from the trip will stay with me for a long time. Here I walked a lot again, went up to the fortress of St. Michael and looked at the city and the sea from above for a long time. At some point, I caught myself thinking that during these three days I had already stopped trying to photograph absolutely everything. Previously, I could stop near every beautiful building, take some photos, choose an angle, see the result and repeat the procedure. And here I just stood and watched. This is probably a sign of a good trip, when the phone gradually ceases to be the main way to remember what is happening. By the way, I was lucky enough to see the sunset in Sibenik. It's incredibly beautiful, just like the picture on your phone. In the evening, I realized that I was very tired and found a small place for dinner and decided to take a chance with the local cuisine again. Everything went much better this time, although after a hearty dinner I realized that what I needed next was not a new route, but a bed.

On the fourth day, I went to Zadar. This city turned out to be completely different from Dubrovnik, and that's why I was especially interested in seeing it. I started walking from the old town, and then gradually went out to the sea. Zadar is generally very well suited for a leisurely walk, when you don't need to run somewhere every half hour. "Greeting to the Sun" (left) and "Sea Organ" (right) One of the main goals of the day was the Marine Organ and the "Greeting to the Sun." I was particularly surprised by the fact that the music appears here due to the movement of the waves. I just sat by the water for a while and listened to these sounds. After a few days on the road, I especially enjoyed doing nothing. You could just sit by the sea, look at people and wait for the sunset. And I really wanted to see the sunset in Zadar. I specially came to the embankment in advance to get a good place, and once again I was convinced that travelers like to make a little joke about our plans. There were a lot of people, and it was almost impossible to find a quiet corner. But when the sun began to sink to the horizon, none of this mattered anymore. The people around me gradually quieted down, the sky changed, the sea began to reflect light, and I just looked ahead. That evening, it seemed to me that for the first time I felt that five days were coming to an end too quickly.

On the last day, I purposely didn't bother with the sights. After four days of constant movement, I just wanted to have a quiet breakfast, drink coffee and spend some more time by the sea. I drove along a small stretch of coast, made several stops and found a place where I could sit quietly by the water. At that moment, I almost stopped looking at the map. The funny thing is that at the beginning of the trip it seemed to me that a good route should be planned almost by the minute. By the fifth day, I realized the opposite: sometimes the best route is the one that leaves room for a "let's take a turn here." Zadar Before leaving, I took another walk through the streets of the nearest town, bought some small souvenirs and stood by the sea for a long time. I wanted to remember not any particular attraction, but the feeling of this trip: the warm air, the salty smell of the sea, the stone streets and the constant desire to stop for another five minutes. My 5-day itinerary in Croatia If you put the whole trip into one scheme, my route turned out like this: Day 1 – Dubrovnik: Old town, city walls, sea and evening walk. Day 2 – Dubrovnik → Split: road along the coast, small stops, coves and evening Split. Day 3 – Trogir → Sibenik: two beautiful historical towns and a quiet walk without haste. Day 4 – Zadar: Old town, Sea organ, embankment and sunset. Day 5 – Coast and free day:a little road, sea, coffee and time just to enjoy the last hours of the trip. Split 5 days for such a route is, of course, not much. I would love to add a few more days to take my time and stop by other places on the way. But it was five days that allowed me to get the most important thing – the feeling of a real journey, when every day is a little different from the previous one. Dubrovnik at sunset Summing up my short trip, I want to say that Croatia is remembered not only by the beautiful sea and ancient cities. Most of all, I remember the road between them, unexpected stops, small cafes, attempts to park where the free space disappears in just a second, and the constant desire to turn somewhere else. If I had repeated this route, I would most likely have left everything about the same, only I would have given more time for spontaneous stops. Because the most interesting thing about traveling along the coast of Croatia begins exactly when you stop thinking about how many kilometers are left to the next point, and just enjoy the road. And, of course, I would get behind the wheel again and drive along the Adriatic. Because when the sea is on the right, the road is ahead, and the navigator sometimes suggests turning off in a completely unclear direction, for some reason life becomes much more interesting.