Amsterdam, Croatia & Mostar
Our first trip overseas since 2019 & the start of the pandemic… Finally!!! We chose Croatia as we are big Game of Thrones fans & ever since watching the show it drew our attention to the beautiful country. I knew that Greece & Croatia were a few of the first countries in Europe to open back up without restrictions as well, so I knew it would be a good place to travel to.
Covid Requirements & Restrictions
(Skip this whole section if there are no current requirements!)
Covid testing is ever changing with requirements for each country. We ended up taking a Covid test before we flew, but the requirements at the time were within 72 hours of travel. We took a rapid one that Saturday morning at an Urgent Care in Chicago with the intent to travel internationally & they were super helpful. They had specific paperwork for us which helped give us peace of mind.
Coming back we took a test in Dubrovnik the day before we flew to Munich, which is where we would be flying back to the states. It was super easy as it was on site at the Dubrovnik airport. There was no one waiting in line & we got our results in 20 minutes. You can also take your own one with you. The Abbott Rapid Tests are a good for traveling & you can upload your own results directly to the airline.
Amsterdam
As far as actual travel goes with Covid honestly it was fairly the same as a big city in the US for Amsterdam. We had to show our vaccination card when we landed through customs. Some restaurants will require you to show it to dine in. The only place that had us show ours was our hotel bar out of all places. You had to wear a mask indoors everywhere. Everything else was pretty much the same as far as traveling goes.
Croatia
Once again Croatia was very relaxed about things. We rarely had to wear masks, except when going into the minimarts & drugstores. We would have to wear them in restaurants until we got to the table if it was inside. With the ever changing conditions we just always took our Covid vaccination cards with us to be safe. Nowadays you can upload it through your health care app on your phone with most insurance companies or from where you got the vaccine from.
Our week & a half breakdown - 11 days (Including travel)
October 16th, 2021- October 27th 2021
2 nights Amsterdam, 3 nights Split, 5 nights Dubrovnik (including day trip to Mostar) & 1 night Munich
AMSTERDAM
Day 1 - Sunday
Waking up in Amsterdam… Happy birthday Sam!!! We flew to Amsterdam on Saturday night to start our trip overseas as there was direct flights out of Chicago & we have always wanted to see Amsterdam! We took the train from the airport into the city centre. It was super easy & only took about 20 minutes.
We were able to check into early to our hotel, so we decided to nap a little bit. This first day always messes us up as far as jet lag goes! We like to stay in Radisson Blu hotels when we go overseas & I was able to find us one in a great location. It was walking distance from the train station & in the heart of the city. Also, it was close to the famous “Red Light District”.
That night we went out to a nice dinner for Sam’s birthday. I had read about a small hole in the wall, Cafe de Kerk with a constantly changing menu where they recite to you what they have available for the day, no handheld menus! We ordered some wine, mussels with bread & filet for our entree. Everything was really good! The atmosphere was very quaint & romantic!
We walked to the Red Light District after that to see what it was all about. Let me just say you have to see it to believe it, why I won’t be posting any pictures. Haha they still do have women in the windows as you walk by & live sex shows. They have marijuana & mushroom shops everywhere. It was literally its own world… We have never seen anything like it.
Day 2 - Monday
We like to do brewery tours, so we knew we wanted to go to the Heineken Experience. It’s a self-guided tour, so you can take your time looking around. It was a fun tour! You can personalize your own bottles with your name on it to take home if you wanted. They also had a bar area at the end of the tour where you can just hang out. Proost!
After that we just walked around the city. The Anne Frank House was booked, but we were still able to walk the neighborhood & see the house from the outside. If you know that you are planning on going to Amsterdam, be sure to book that first & far in advance! That was biggest regret of the whole trip.
The Oude Church is the oldest church in Amsterdam. Crazy enough it is located right outside of the Red Light District. It was very beautiful, there was so much stained glass & the floors are literally made of graves.
Don’t forget to try the famous Bitterballen! It’s fried dutch meatballs with sauce. They have it everywhere. It was really good!
Our time in Amsterdam was short & sweet, but we were happy we got to visit! I have heard springtime is a great time to visit because of the Tulips!
SPLIT
Day 3 - Tuesday
Off to Croatia! We flew from Amsterdam to Split. It was our first time flying on KLM! We took an Uber from the airport & were able to check in early to the hotel. I found us another Radisson Blu. It was a little bit outside of the city square, but it still was only like a 10 minute Uber ride from the Old Town. It was worth it to get that true vacation feel staying by the Adriatic Sea.
We booked 3 nights there. We were excited to stay there as the weather turned out great for this time of year, 70 degrees & sunny! We had just the missed high season, so it was nice to be able to still hang out by the pool & enjoy the Adriatic Sea. We went down & hung out by the beach that afternoon.
Day 4 - Wednesday
First things first! Relax & soak up the sun!
After we hung out by the pool for a bit, we went into town for the first time. I was so excited to see the “Riva”. It’s a beautiful boardwalk with lots of restaurants & vendors right along the Adriatic Sea! It is really dreamy & it reminded me of something out of a James Bond movie!
We visited the Palace of Diocletian. We decided to walk up to the top of the St. Domnius Bell Tower that day. It is around 200 steps to the top. It worked out perfectly for getting up to the top during sunset & seeing some amazing views of the city!
Diocletian’s Palace basements
First Game of Thrones shoutout! These are the basements where Daenerys kept her dragons in the show.
Picture below for reference
Day 5 - Thursday
Day trip to see the Fortress of Klis. This is the city of Meereen in Game of Thrones. I highly recommend even if your not a GOT fan, as it has some beautiful views overlooking the entire city!
It is most notable for the scene where Daenerys executed slave owners. Here are some actual shots from the show below!
DUBROVNIK
Day 6 - Friday
Ferry to Dubrovnik! This was a 4 1/2 hour ride, which luckily we got our own row the entire way by a window (3 seats) & we were able to sleep. We got this because we started at the first stop out of 4 total stops total. Throughout the trip people got on & off at different ports. In the summer time & high season this is a super trendy place to visit, Hvar in particular! Hvar was somewhere we wanted to visit, but the week we got there everything had already started closing down for the season.
We found an amazing hotel in Dubrovnik at the Hilton Emperial Dubrovnik. It was a beautiful hotel & all I have to say is LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION! But seriously, less than 500 meters from Pile Gate, which is the main entrance to “Old Town” Dubrovnik. It is right outside of Old Town. You are still walking distance but is easily accessible by car, which is the main convenience.
If you stay directly in Old Town you will have to get dropped off outside of the walls & could be carrying your luggage literally up hundreds of stairs potentially, so be prepared! The Hilton includes a full breakfast buffet with champagne & made to order entrees. It has a full bar with outdoor terrace that overlooks the Lovrijenac Fort. Highly recommend!
When we got in the sun had started going down, so we just walked around to get a feel for the area from where we were staying!
We had dinner by the water at Nautika. We ordered grilled squid & sea bass with chocolate cake for dessert!
MOSTAR
Day 7 - Saturday
Rainy day = Day trip to Mostar!
We booked our tour, Mostar and Kravice Waterfalls Tour through Viator.
Mostar was cool to see & there is a lot of history within Bosnia, but the day itself was a really long day & honestly wasn’t worth it to us. It ended up being around a 12 hour day with about 6 of the hours riding in a car. I like to be as honest & real about my own personal experiences. This is one I would not recommend unfortunately. But for those of you interested I will still give you the details & recommendations to make your experience better than ours!!
We got the short end of the stick with the drive, which didn’t help. It was a semi-private tour & we were last to get picked up out of all the other people in the car, so we had to sit up front. I was right beside the driver (driving stick shift) in the middle seat & Sam was crammed against the window. If it would have been a normal tour bus or if we would have even had seats in the back of the car, I think our experience could have been different.
First stop - Kravice Waterfalls
We had a bit of a miscommunication as well when we went to the waterfalls. We thought we were only walking down for about 30 minutes or so but the tour guy left us for like an hour & a half. We were waiting around with the rest of the people in our group & honestly started getting worried that we had been left. The driver had drove off without telling us & we had no way of getting in touch with him while being in the middle of nowhere. So once again, not ideal. Haha
He finally came back, phew! After making phone calls to the booking company to get ahold of him, he apologized profusely & was determined to make it up to us. This lead him taking us on a few more stops along the way that weren’t originally included with the tour. So I will say they do want you to be satisfied & feel like you have got your worth.
Next we stopped in the Medieval Village, Unesco town of Pocitelj. This wasn’t supposed to be apart of the original tour, but the driver took us out of the way to stop here to make up for our time left at the waterfalls.
The best part of the day… Mostar!!!
Once we were in Mostar we had a few hours to ourselves to have lunch & look around. The driver recommended we get the “meat platter” for lunch, which was a variety of meats, pita bread & hummus . We ate at Labirint Restaurant overlooking the famous Old Bridge, which was very pretty. We did get to see a guy jump off the bridge while dining! They have a bunch of venders throughout the city with great local gifts for good prices. I was able to get a few Cashmere scarfs for a great deal!
The town is separated into two cultures literally with the river Niretva as the dividing line & with the Old Bridge uniting the two. Mostar is evenly divided between Muslims on the east side of the river & Catholics (Croatian’s) on the west side of the river. It is a such a beautiful city, like something out of a fairy tale. I would recommend other ways of visiting than just a day tour from Croatia.
On the way back to Dubrovnik we had another random stop that wasn’t supposed to be included - a winery, Stanica Ravno. We were able to sample some prosciutto & house wines!
After all the mishaps we only ended up being an hour behind & arrived back at our hotel around 7pm (instead of 6pm).
DUBROVNIK
Day 8 - Sunday
Time to explore Old Town!!!
Rector’s Palace
Game of Thones references ahead!
This is the residence of the Spice King in Qarth. This is the scene where Daenerys asks the Spice King for ships to take her army across the Narrow sea.
Picture below for reference
The Jesuit Staircase
The steps of the Great Sept of Baelor in King’s Landing. This is where Cersei made her infamous “Walk of Shame!”
Pictures below for reference
Hidden Gem 💎
We discovered Beach Bar Dodo! This is a fun spot to grab a drink & look out at the beautiful Adriatic Sea! There is a small beach area you can go & hang out below.
Pictures of & around Fort Lovrijenac & outside the Dubrovnik Walls.
This is known as the “Red Keep” in King’s Landing in Game of Thrones.
Pictures below for reference
We knew we wanted to take a cable car ride up to see the city at sunset! It was so incredible & definitely recommend!
We ended the night with dinner at a cute little restaurant, Renaissance Art Restaurant tucked in the city streets with live music.
Day 9 - Monday
Started off the day again going to our favorite beachside bar, DoDo’s! (As mentioned previously) We loved this place so much we went back 2 days in a row. When we asked about closing hours for the night that next day, the owner literally said he would be closing at 4pm & not opening again until April! So we felt grateful that we got to go before he shut down for the season. Definitely check it out!!!
Off to explore the Dubrovnik Walls! This is a MUST for Dubrovnik! Give yourself at least day to just to roam around the Old Town.
Dubrovnik Wall (Fort Minceta)
Game of Thrones reference… House of the Undying. This where they filmed Daenerys searching for her stolen dragons outside the entrance of the House of Undying.
Pictures below for reference
There are a few places you can stop along the walls to get an ice cream, wine or beer. There are also restaurants you can walk down to, but they were all pretty crowded by sunset when we were finishing up. But we did stop in a little hole in the wall for a beer & then this wine bar to soak up the views!
Dubrovnik is such an incredible city!!! It was literally like nothing we have seen before the way everything is so preserved. Literally like a blast from the past.
Day 10 - Tuesday
Goodbye Croatia :(
We flew to Munich on Lufthansa. Our flight didn’t leave until late that day, so luckily we were able to just lounge around the hotel & have late checkout. Once in Munich, we just stayed in a hotel by the airport. Side note - It ended up being hard to Uber the next morning, it couldn’t find our location. You will need to get a taxi from the hotel if you stay within airport limits.
Day 11 - Wednesday
Fly home on United from Munich! First class home to end the trip!
For fellow Game of Thrones fans that want to take it even further there are a few more filming locations close by & in Croatia that you can visit.
- Hotel Belvedere was the location for the fight scene between Prince Oberyn & The Mountain in the Season 4 Finale ‘The Mountain and the Viper”.
- Lokrum Island is where Daenerys socializes in the city “Ghost of Harrenal”.
- Trsteno Arboretum is the King’s Landing gardens
- Sibenik & The Cathedral of St. James - the city of Braavos & The Iron Bank. This would have been north of Split. This is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site!
Of course I had to end this post with a picture of me on THE Iron Throne! Haha
I hope you enjoyed my post & find it inspiring to live out your nerdiest dreams! Now more than ever get out there & start traveling :)
Life is short, book the flight!!
xoxo, Tarah
