Trogir, Croatia | September, 2017

We headed back to Croatia from Sarajevo, a 6 or so hour drive on mostly brand new multi-lane highways with few other cars on the road. We stayed just north of Split in the city of Trogir. It was a cute town, walled in the same way that most medieval Croatian towns are, and littered with tourist. Croatia felt very different to me this time around. It is still beautiful and worthily of visiting, but I was surprised by the amount of people everywhere and how many of the towns all felt the same, with their winding walled streets full of shops selling the same expensive nic-nacs, made in china resort wear and overpriced mediocre restaurants - all creativity titled “cafe/bar/pizza/steakhouse”. Perhaps it was the time of year, but the quaint coastal towns along mainland Croatia I remembered from 5 years ago felt more like what I imagine Florida to be this time around.

Trogir was a fine stop on our way to Dugi Otok, but I can’t say I’d return or recommend to go out of your way to get there. We spent our mornings running along the coast and our afternoons and evenings cooking in and relaxing. The weather was overcast and rainy, which was honestly a welcome reprieve from the heat. We stayed a vacation rental and realized how marked up Airbnb’s are in the area. The apartment we stayed in was 50 EUR/night and it was 75 or 80 EUR if booked on Airbnb. This surprised me, and was helpful to see. I would have assumed booking through a local tourist agency would cost more, but I was wrong - this will help with our bookings moving forward for sure. And if you’re looking for accomodation on a budget in Croatia and have a way of calling local companies, it seems like an easy way to save a few dollars. I came across the apartment when looking for local boat tours, and although the weather prevented us from getting on a boat, we ended up in a nice apartment for a few nights.