Advice/recommendations on Split, Puglia, Crete please?!!

[littlevic]

Hullooo!
We'd like to try one of the above destinations for about 10 days either end of May ( I assume only Crete will be really warm then?) or middle July, we have a 9 yr old daughter, and would ideally love somewhere with a bit of culture etc, fairly quiet but close to the beach and town/village too... Has anyone been to Split? I hear Croatia's lovely?! What would the food be like for a fussy 9 year old?!! Any advice welcome thank you!

We have been to both Croatia and Crete at that time of year. Our first visit to Croatia coincided with a heatwave so it was about 30 degrees for the first few days. Normally it is low 20s at the end of May. We stayed further down the coast from Split on the Makarska riviera, about 1.5 hours from Split airport. We loved it. The second time we went we stayed on the Lapad peninsula in Dubrovnik. This time the weather was disappointingly cool at 18 - 20 degrees.

We stayed in Sissi in Crete a couple of years ago and enjoyed temperatures between 25 and 30 degrees. Previously we stayed nearer to Heraklion and it was about 22 degrees at the same time of year. The first holiday was quite windy, so that was just luck of the draw.

If you want beaches with culture I would suggest Crete. Croatia doesn't have many sandy beaches, but if you aren't bothered about sand, somewhere near Dubrovnik might tick the right boxes.

From Sissi we went to Knossos, the Lassithi plateau and Spinalonga and thoroughly enjoyed them all.

I forgot about food. Croatian food is heavily influenced by Italian food. I'm sure you would find something that your 9 year old would like. Obviously there is a lot of Greek food in Sissi, but, again there is plenty of choice for the more fussy eater.

We tend to avoid busy, Benidorm style destinations so Baska Voda and Sissi ticked the right boxes for us. Also, the main holiday season doesn't really start for Crete or Croatia until June. We were very (pleasantly) surprised at how few British people had rediscovered Croatia when we were there the first time.

Fab, thanks Bunbaker that's very useful! I've just discovered Lefkada on AirBnB which looks bloomin lovely, but flights are expensive :(
Will look more at Crete then I think, as it sounds like it'll probably be a bit warmer. We're not into big resorts either, just enough to keep us busy with a choice of a few tavernas etc... Thanks! x

Sissi is low key and quiet. It is only 4 miles from Malia, but you would never know. There are bars and tavernas, but no nighclubs, and I doubt that it would appeal to groups of young people. It is more for families or couples.

There are a couple of sandy beaches a short walk along the coast. The other plus is that it isn't a long transfer from Heraklion.

Thanks, think I found somewhere that ticks the boxes just outside Elounda in Crete, little villas on the hillside with a pool and good value for money! :) Will look at fights... thanks for your help! X