I had friends visiting from Canada and they were keen to go somewhere in Europe where they had not been before. They decided on Croatia, so, after spending a week with me in London, we headed off to Split. Our itinerary was 2 nights in Split, 11 nights on Havr Island and then 4 nights in Dubrovnik. I thought I would review these 3 places separately as to avoid an over-long review that might be found to be too tedious to read! We flew with Jet2.Com from Stansted. I have never used them before but I have to say it all went smoothly. Check in was quick and efficient, the staff were especially nice and we were already aware that we had to pay extra for hold luggage and food. (We took cheese sandwiches!) Arriving on time in Split, we took a taxi to our AIRBNB. In retrospect the City Bus would have taken us almost to our door but we had that “just arrived in a new city and don’t know where to go” moment! (The City Bus would have been much cheaper!) The nice thing about Split airport is that as soon as you come out from the terminal you can see the sea! It was sparkling in the 27 degree heat. Our AIRBNB was described as “Old Town Apartment, Calmo”. Unfortunately it didn’t describe the fact that it had 6 flights of stairs to our flat! However, the owner and his son met us to lug our suitcases up the stairs. We unpacked a few things and headed to the Harbour in the Old Town. There were lots of groups of girls and guys (hen and stag groups?) but it wasn’t particularly rowdy (at least up until our bed time of 10pm! I am sure a good time was had by all after that!). There was a huge choice of bars and restaurants to choose from and although Croatia isn’t very cheap anymore the food was good and plentiful everywhere. The people in Croatia are also very friendly (we decided that when you first meet a Croatian they seem a little severe but once you get talking they become very helpful and friendly). The next day we wanted to visit some local caves we had read about near Split but on further enquiry we found these had never reopened after the pandemic (even though there were lots of posters around advertising them!) Instead we joined a bus tour. It included the newer part of Split as well as the Old Town and we drove along the coast through a mountain tunnel. I hadn’t realised how big Split was. The bus tour was well worth it as we saw everything and it also included a free walking tour of the Old Town. The walking tour mainly concentrated on Diocletians Palace. It was interesting to see how they had kept the original walls but had incorporated shops and restaurants in the walls as well. There were lots of little streets and alleys and we were told lots of interesting facts by the very knowledgeable guide. (Very interesting at the time but unfortunately forgotten shortly after by my aging brain!) From the bus earlier we had seen a small sandy beach and we walked back there for a quick dip. Most of the beaches in Croatia are pebbles, if you are going don’t forget your water shoes as they can be hard to walk on (not to mention the farcical show we put on for the locals if we try and enter the water without shoes on!). Although the beaches aren’t the best, the Adriatic Sea is crystal clear and beautifully refreshing.
Our stay here was too short, the next day we were off to Hvar Island. Again our pleasant AIRBNB owner arrived to lug our suitcases down the stairs for us). (A separate review will follow about this part of the holiday). I liked Split and I would like to visit again. Our AIRBNB was very comfortable but there was no outside space which would have been nice.
So, summing up, I would definitely recommend Split as a place to visit.
