My partner and I are planning a trip to Croatia in late May. We are flying into Zagreb, and home from Dubrovnik. We will pick up a rental car after 2 nights in Zagreb and drive to Plitvice National Park for 2 nights. From there we were planning on Split for 2 nights, then Mostar for 1 night, then Dubrovnik for 3 nights before heading home. Looking for suggestions for improvement. We'd like a day to some island island exploring, perhaps snorkeling. Also, should we dump the rental car when we arrive in Dubrovnik, or keep it until we head to the airport for the flight home?
Hey, I would suggest you check out below guides by Croatian travel blogger which has info on everything, city guides, itineraries, things to do, expenses etc.
10 Day Itinerary (Croatia & Slovenia Road Trip Itinerary)
10 Day Croatia Itinerary ( If you want to see whole of Croatia: From Zagreb - Istria - Dubrovnik)
Also these driving guides from Zagreb will help out alot:
From Zagreb to Split drive (Best stops on the way) Guide - Road Trip from Split to Dubrovnik (Best stops along the way)
My personal suggestion would be if you do 2 nights in Zagreb to do a day trip to Ljubljana and Lake Bled, its doable as Ljubljana is a small city, but if you like slower pace you can just visit Ljubljana.
Lake Bled Day Trip from Ljubljana Guide - Ljubljana Slovenia, Top Things to do, Guide for day trip from Zagreb
After Zagreb I would spend 1 night in Plitvice Lakes as you need max 5-6 hours at the lakes, from personal experience with lots of photos taking around 4.5 hours is how long it usually took to sightsee upper and lower lakes fully with slow pace.
add the extra day to either Zadar or Split, around Split there is plenty of things to sightsee so you can use it as a hub for that:
8 BEST DAY Trips from Split (Guide) By Bus or Car - BEST Islands to visit by ferry from Split Croatia (Guide to Island Hopping)
When going to Mostar you can sightsee Medjugorje and or Kravice Waterfalls
Day Trip Dubrovnik to Mostar Guide (Car, Bus or Tour)Â -Â Kravica Waterfall day trip from Dubrovnik: A Complete Guide
You could cut one day from Dubrovnik or the 3rd day from Split to add and to stay on Korcula or Brac, both you can easily reach with short ferry ride for Brac - Makarska or Split and to Korcula from Peljesac (Orebic).
Brac Day Trip Guide (With a car or without) - Best Beaches on Brac Island - Korcula guide, an island not to miss in Croatia
When in Dubrovnik I would stay further from the old town so you can get parking with the apartment or hotel, or even stay in Cavtat and then visit Dubrovnik from there with a ferry or bus. Parking is expensive but there are large parking lots, not really close to the town and you are not allowed to drive around the old town itself, new regulation. I would keep the car so I can do additional day trips and usually the extra days are cheaper compared to a taxi to the airport.
I would strongly suggest browsing the KarlaTypes travel blog as there is plenty of information for each location.
Thanks for the tips, will give the articles a read!