Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia, Bulgaria, Romania
ZAGREB – PLITVICE – SPLIT – MOSTAR – DUBROVNIK – KOTOR – BUDVA – PODGORICA – SARAJEVO – BELGRADE – NIŠ – SOFIA – VELIKO TARNOVO – BRAN – SINAIA – BUCHAREST
11 days / 10 nights
Highlights:
Walk in the footsteps of Count Dracula
The best shopping and clubbing experience in this part of Europe
16 lakes & 92 waterfalls in Lake Plitvice
Romanian capital nicknamed “Little Paris”
Itinerary:
DAY 1 Zagreb
DAY 2 Zagreb, Plitvice, Split
DAY 3 Split, Mostar, Dubrovnik
DAY 4 Dubrovnik, Risan, Kotor, Cetinje, Sveti Stefan, Budva
DAY 5 Budva, Podgorica, Sarajevo
DAY 6 Sarajevo, Belgrade
DAY 7 Belgrade, Niš, Sofia
DAY 8 Sofia, Rila, Sofia
DAY 9 Sofia, Veliko Tarnovo, Bucharest
DAY 10 Bucharest, Bran, Sinaia, Bucharest
DAY 11 Departure from Bucharest
DAY 1: ZAGREB
/Zagreb airport – Zagreb 20km, 45min/
Arrival at Zagreb Airport, after immigration transfer to Zagreb.
Zagreb is a city of parks, palaces, museums and universities. The city lies on the south-western part of the Pannonian Basin and extends between the Sava River and Mount Medvednica. It represents an important link between Central Europe and Asia Minor and the shortest link between the Pannonian Plain and the Adriatic Sea.
Check-in at hotel in Zagreb.
Leisure time for the rest of the day.
Dinner.
Overnight in Zagreb.
DAY 2: ZAGREB, PLITVICE, SPLIT
/Zagreb – Plitvice 150km, 3h/
/Plitvice – Split 270km, 4h/
After breakfast, departure towards the Plitvice Lakes National Park and tour of the Park in the afternoon. It is composed of 16 blue and green lakes, connected with more than 90 waterfalls and rapids. For the beauty and the attraction of the Plitvice Lakes, travertine and the plants of travertine take the credit. With the formation of travertine and the partition of the river bed, lakes have formed. This is a magnificent architectonic phenomenon of nature, surrounded by thick woods in which bears, wolves, wild hares, martens, and partridges live. The park has belonged to the UNESCO Cultural Heritage since 1979. Lunch.
Departure towards Split with just enough time to experience the Split nightlife. One of the most popular things to do at night in Split is to head down to the city’s main promenade, Riva, after the sun sets. Lined with cafés, restaurants and bars, it’s located right beside the ocean and is popular meeting spot for locals and visitors alike. You’ll often find stalls set up along the promenade, even after dark, plus lots of the city’s festivals are centred on this area.
Overnight in Split.
DAY 3: SPLIT, MOSTAR, DUBROVNIK
/Split – Mostar 180km, 3h30min/
/Mostar – Dubrovnik 150km, 3h/
After breakfast, a drive through the marvellous gorge of the Neretva River towards Bosnia’s star city, Mostar. Mostar was named after the bridge keepers (mostari) who in the medieval times guarded the Stari Most (Old Bridge) over the Neretva. The Old Bridge, built by the Ottomans in the 16th century, is one of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s most recognizable landmarks, and is considered one of the most exemplary pieces of Islamic architecture in the Balkans.
After lunch, the tour will continue in the beautiful city of Dubrovnik. Dubrovnik has always been Croatia’s richest city, but today it is one of the best tourist cities in the Mediterranean, known as the “Pearl of the Adriatic.” The city is located in the extreme south of Croatia, at the foot of the hill Holy Wrath, just 35 km from the border with Montenegro. The Old Town is upheld by high city walls and joined UNESCO in 1979. Although it was heavily destroyed in the 1667 earthquake, Dubrovnik managed to preserve its Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque churches, monasteries, palaces and fountains. On the walking tour of Old Dubrovnik, you will walk by the Rector’s Palace, Bell Tower Clock, Orlando’s Column and the Sponza Palace. You will also see the Dominican Monastery and Franciscan Monastery with its Pharmacy, one of the oldest in the world.
Afternoon free for shopping and dinner. Take a stroll along the main street in Dubrovnik, called Stradun, and you might run into Tom Cruise, Angelina Jolie or Brad Pitt!
Overnight in Dubrovnik.
DAY 4: DUBROVNIK, RISAN, KOTOR, CETINJE, SVETI STEFAN, BUDVA
/Dubrovnik– Risan 90km, 3h/
/Risan – Kotor 30km, 1h/
/Kotor – Cetinje 60km, 2h/
/Cetinje – Sveti Stefan 50km, 1h40min/
/Sveti Stefan – Budva 15km, 30min/
After breakfast, travel to the Republic of Montenegro. Head towards the mouth of the beautiful Bay of Kotor, the longest and deepest fjord in Southern Europe. See the little towns of Risan and Kotor.
Butted up against a steep cliff, cradled by a calm sea, naturally sheltered by its deep-in-the-fjord position, and watched over by an imposing network of fortifications, Kotor has survived centuries of would-be invaders by its imposing town wall, which scrambles in a zigzag line up the mountain behind it. Though it’s enjoyed a long and illustrious history, today’s Kotor is a time-capsule retreat for travelers seeking a truly unspoiled Adriatic town.
Then proceed to Cetinje, once the seat of Montenegrin rulers. After lunch, travel to the coast for a short stop in the villages of Sveti Stefan and Budva.
Dinner.
Overnight in Budva.
DAY 5: BUDVA, PODGORICA, SARAJEVO
/Budva – Podgorica 70km, 2h/
/Podgorica – Sarajevo 240km, 5h/
After breakfast, departure towards Montenegro’s capital, Podgorica. The city sits at the confluence of two rivers. West of the broad Morača is what passes for the business district. The smaller Ribnica River divides the eastern side in two. To the south is Stara Varoš, the heart of the Ottoman town. North of the Ribnica is Nova Varoš, an attractive, mainly low-rise precinct of late-19th-/early-20th-century buildings housing a lively mixture of shops and bars. At its heart is Trg Republika, the main square.
Departure towards Sarajevo for lunch and a walking tour. Sarajevo, capital of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, has been influenced by a number of cultures and civilizations. In the 1990s Sarajevo was besieged and on the edge of annihilation. Today, its restored historic centre is full of welcoming cafes and good-value lodgings, the bullet holes largely plastered over on the city’s curious architectural mixture of Ottoman and Austro Hungarian buildings.
The antique stone-flagged alleys of Baščaršija give the delightful Old Town core a certain Turkish feel. Directly north and south, steep valley sides are fuzzed with red-roofed Bosnian houses and prickled with uncountable minarets, climbing towards green-topped mountain ridges.
Overnight in Sarajevo.
DAY 6: SARAJEVO, BELGRADE
/Sarajevo – Belgrade 310km, 6h/
After breakfast departure to Serbia’s capital city, Belgrade. Your morning sightseeing tour includes the city’s main attractions: the imposing Kalemegdan Fortress dramatically situated at the joining of the Sava and Danube Rivers; the Republic Square and Knez Mihailova Street; Saint Sava Temple, the largest Orthodox Church in the city, and Tito’s Memorial.
Afternoon free. There are many shopping opportunities in Belgrade from the luxurious upscale boutiques and department stores to the Bazaars. There is a plethora of shops selling just about anything you can imagine at the bazaar. Unlike many city bazaars, it is not open only one day a week but it is now a permanent set up and open all week.
Shopping downtown provides the benefit of many boutiques in one area as well as the architectural beauty of the city as your backdrop rather than a commercial centre. There is a pedestrian-only zone from Kalemegdan to Trg Republike that is full of shops and city action. This area is not only home to boutiques however; there are traditional malls here such as the City Passage and Millennium shopping centres.
Dinner.
In Belgrade, every night is Friday night. Everyone is ready to party at all the time, dance the night away, and go straight to work the next day. It’s really hard to resist the temptation when you know that on any given evening there are countless clubs out there full of young, gorgeous people having so much fun.
Overnight in Belgrade.
DAY 7: BELGRADE, NIŠ, SOFIA
/Belgrade – Niš 240km, 3h30min/
/Niš – Sofia 170km, 3h/
After breakfast, departure towards Niš, Serbia’s third largest city. It is one of the oldest cities in the Balkans and Europe, and has from ancient times been considered a gateway between the East and the West. It is a lively city of curious contrasts, where Roma in horse-drawn carriages trot alongside new cars, and posh cocktails are sipped in antiquated alleyways.
Niš was settled in pre-Roman times and flourished during the time of local-boy-made-good Emperor Constantine (AD 280–337). Turkish rule lasted from 1386 until 1877 despite several Serb revolts; the Tower of Skulls and Niš Fortress are reminders of Ottoman dominion. The Nazis built one of Serbia’s most notorious concentration camps here, ironically named ‘the Red Cross’.
After lunch, departure towards Sofia. Bulgaria’s pleasingly laid-back capital, Sofia is a largely modern, youthful city, while its old east-meets-west atmosphere is still very much evident, with a scattering of onion-domed churches, Ottoman mosques and stubborn Red Army monuments sharing the skyline with vast shopping malls and glassy five-star hotels. Sofia’s grey, blocky civic architecture lends a lingering Soviet tinge to the place, but it’s also a surprisingly green city. Vast parks and manicured gardens offer welcome respite from the busy city streets, and the ski slopes and hiking trails of mighty Mt Vitosha are just a short bus ride from the city centre. Home to many of Bulgaria‘s finest museums, galleries, restaurants and entertainment venues, Sofia may persuade you to stick around and explore further. Dinner.
Overnight in Sofia.
DAY 8: SOFIA, RILA, SOFIA
/Sofia – Rila Monastery 130km, 2h30min/
/Rila Monastery – Sofia 130km, 2h30min/
After breakfast, a day trip to the magnificent Rila Monastery. Bulgaria’s largest and most renowned monastery emerges abruptly out of a forested valley in the Rila Mountains. It’s a major attraction for both Bulgarian pilgrims and foreign tourists. On summer weekends the site is especially busy, though at other times it provides more solitude.
The monastery was founded in AD 927 by hermit monk Ivan Rilski. Originally built 3km to the northeast, it came to its current location in 1335. By the 14th century’s end, it had become a powerful feudal fiefdom. Though it was plundered early in the 15th century, the monastery was restored in 1469, when Rilski’s relics were returned from Veliko Târnovo. Rila Monastery was vital to the preservation of Bulgarian culture and religion under Ottoman rule, even though the Ottomans sacked it several times.
Rila’s greatest modern catastrophe was an 1833 fire that nearly engulfed all monastic buildings. An inundation of funds from Bulgarian and foreign donors allowed reconstruction to commence within a year. In 1961 the communust regime proclaimed Rila a national museum, and 22 years later it became a Unesco World Heritage Site.
Dinner back in Sofia. An atmosphere of liberation and abandon pervades the night life scene of Sofia. Because there are few licensing laws, bars can serve alcohol whenever they want; therefore, at any time of day one can find a party going on. Bars and cafes often stay open until midnight or later. After that, the city’s numerous night clubs take over until 5 or 6 am, and after that, the bars open again. The city’s 16 universities promise that there is a continuous glut of young people looking to have a good time.
Overnight in Sofia.
DAY 9: SOFIA, VELIKO TARNOVO, BUCHAREST
/Sofia – Veliko Tarnovo 230km, 3h30min/
/Veliko Tarnovo – Bucharest 190km, 3h/
After breakfast, check-out and departure towards Veliko Tarnovo. Often referred to as the “City of the Tsars”, Veliko Tarnovo is located on the Yantra River and is famously known as the historical capital of the Second Bulgarian Empire, attracting many tourists with its unique architecture. The old part of the city is situated on the three hills Tsarevets, Trapezitsa, and Sveta Gora, rising amidst the meanders of the Yantra. On Tsarevets are the palaces of the Bulgarian emperors and the Patriarchate, the Patriarchal Cathedral, and also a number of administrative and residential edifices surrounded by thick walls.
As the tour continues towards Bucharest, you will get acquainted with the Romanian capital, once nicknamed “Little Paris”. During the tour you will see the Parliament Palace, the second largest building in the world after the Pentagon and the National Treasure. Learn how the Romanian people succeeded to topple the last communist dictator in Eastern Europe in Revolution Square. Lunch. Your tour will bring you also to the Romanian Athenaeum, the Opera House, the National Military Club, the Military Academy, Triumphal Arch and The Village Museum. Dinner.
Overnight in Bucharest.
DAY 10: BUCHAREST, BRAN, SINAIA, BUCHAREST
/Bucharest – Bran 180km, 3h/
/Bran – Sinaia 60km, 1h30min/
/Sinaia – Bucharest 130km, 2h30min/
Following breakfast departure towards Bran. Visit of Bran Castle made famous by Bram Stoker’s novel as the residence of the vampire count Dracula. Lunch. Continue to Bucharest and stop in Peles Castle built as the summer residence of King Carol I. Afterwards continue to the 17th century Sinaia Monastery and to Bucharest. After arrival, accommodation at your hotel and dinner.
In Bucharest you can find many bars, pubs and clubs, cheap booze and nice party people. The nightlife in Bucharest cannot be surpassed by any other city in Romania. The diversity of clubs and music are a great tourist attraction. The “heart” of fun in Bucharest is the old city centre where every Friday and Saturday you can choose from tens of partying establishments, all crammed up on the narrow streets. Starting with 11 PM, as you pass by the bars, you can hear the music as all the parties are getting started. Here, people party until morning. Often, in weekends, at 4-5 AM, you can see people walking home after a hard partying session.
Overnight in Bucharest.
DAY 11: DEPARTURE FROM BUCHAREST
/Bucharest – Bucharest airport 15km, 45min/
Drop-off at Bucharest airport.