I'd like to holiday in Croatia but don't know where is good to go

[AnyFucker]

For context, I like sandy beaches and small buzzy villages with a cafe, not clubby, culture

Where do you fly into and how far away from the airport are the nice resorts ? And this islands thing...how does one do that ? I haven't had a package holiday for 15 years. We tend to book separate flights and accomodation and hire a car.

Thanks

Am sitting in Split airport at the moment.

Croatia doesn't really have sandy beaches.

Islands Jadrolinja (have probably spelt tgat wrong) are the ferry company- book direct or at port. Loads of villas etc etc

Ferry www.jadrolinija.hr/en/schedule/LineSearchResults/Index/2331792/2331807/05082017

Have a look at this link and then use booking.com or trivago.
www.travelandleisure.com/articles/best-beaches-in-croatia.

I loved the Dalmatian coast- few days in each of split and Dubrovnik and some time on the islands- Hvar and Mljet were lovely but Korcula was my favourite. No sandy beaches though. I think the only sandy beaches in Croatia are on the island of Rab in Istria.

We're just on way back from Korcula- also spent time in Split and Mljet- v lovely.

A few years ago we flew to Split, hired a car at the airport, drove the short distance to the ferry port and then went to Hvar, which is absolutely lovely. Accommodation through ownersdirect. No sandy beaches - but flat rocks you can sit on and the water is crystal clear, so great for snorkelling. Nice people, nice food. Ferry was fine - they're all a bit casual and if you miss your booking that's not an issue.

Watching with interest. We are thinking about Zadar for next summer holiday.

we also hired car at Split- one thing worth knowing is you cannot book space on an individual ferry- for Split to Korcula this meant having car in line 6 hours in advance (you can then go away and leave the car).

Ok, scrub sandy beaches. I can do pebbles if the surroundings are beautiful.

Just back from Brac. Like PP we hired a car in split and got the next ferry to the island. ( which were very regular )
Was lovely but... I think I would prefer to go back and stay in the main land. From friends who have been, it seems inland is even more fantastic. Sea was fab. And didn't actually miss the lack of sand. Everyone has water shoes.
I would love to see the lakes and waterfalls.

The ferry took 50 mins. Our car journey took around 30 mins to the little town called Milna. Was really pretty. No clubs. Just a handful of restaurants. Supetar which is the town that the ferry docks in is quite big. Lots of restaurants. Pubs and BIG hotels. Not my sort of thing but nice to visit. Also has the big supermarkets. Lidl & Konzomo

Love Croatia - tip is to get beach shoes that you can swim/snorkel in. Very few sandy beaches and tbh we preferred the pebbly/rocky beaches as you don't get sand everywhere.

I got married in Dubrovnik so have visited it a few times. It is fab, and definitely somewhere to visit at least once.

However, now I prefer Istria. We spent a week in each of Rovinj and Opatija last year and it was fab. Quieter and cheaper than Dubrovnik, beautiful scenery, lovely food and it was cheap too. Dubrovnik is expensive. If I had to choose one, I'd choose Rovinj. Opatija has a lovely coastal walk that is very pleasant though, think it's about 12 miles (or maybe 12km? Can't rememember) between two different villages.

Can you fly into Istria ?

Yes, you can. Pula is closer to Rovinj and Rijeka closer to Opatija, but they're only about an hour apart.

Also watching with interest. Croatia is top of the list for our next touring destination.

Pula is an airport ?

Yes, I am starting from basics

I wanted to go to the Pula area but couldn't find anything suitable. ( we did leave it stupidly late to book tho)

Yes, Pula is an airport. Also a small city. There are other small towns in that area too, Porec was one, can't remember any others now but you'll find them easily enough once you start looking into stuff :)

Flew into Split then island hopped. You don't really need a car IMO. Korcula is lovely, but so was Brac. Hated Dubrovnik, it's been ruined by the cruise trade. Loved Zagreb as well.