I've just returned from this brilliant tour - it's up there as one of the best I've been on (apart from getting home afterwards - mentioned in another thread). We had the excellent 'V' who, with my birthday being on the 21st, got the whole group to sing Happy Birthday to me and another gentleman who shared my birthday, the rest of the group were lovely, the driver Branco was superb and very funny, and all the hotel staff were lovely and kept the rooms spotlessly clean every day.

Opatija - this is a short drive from our hotel and some travelled independently on other days if they were not doing any tours. We had a guided tour with V before going for chocolate tasting and having free time. It is a nice place with walks/views of the sea.

Plitvice Lakes - this was a wow day for most of us. The views in the lakes are stunning, from the unbelievable colour of the water in the lakes, to the actual waterfalls - and we were blessed with beautiful weather all week. We walked for miles, though most of us coped very well, some went 1/2 way through and got a little boat back to the café to wait for the rest of us. The first walk lasted about 45 minutes, before getting a boat across the lake for about 15-20 minutes, followed by another walk of about 1 hour and 15 minutes - the whole trip involves walking on stones or boardwalk in parts, and is up and down hill. Some were affected by the heat as you are outside for the whole walk, so a sunhat/suncream/sunglasses, plus plenty of water and suitable footwear are advisable, but this is a great trip and was the highlight of the holiday for most of us.

Rovinj/Pula/Olive Oil Tasting - In Rovinj with had a short walking tour with V, we could stay in the town itself, or go up to the church of St Euphemia (this is quite slippy so trainers or shoes with good grips are required). We then had some free time for coffee/shopping/pastries. The olive oil tasting was ok, it involved a short demo, followed by sniffing and tasting the olive oil, with the opportunity the purchase some of the products, but I could have lived without it. V gave us another guided tour in Pula, we went inside the amphitheatre and around squares before having a short coffee break.

Ljubljana (optional) - This is a beautiful place. We had a guided tour with a local guide for about 2 hours, including going up and down in a funicular to the castle at the top. There was loads to see and do here, and I really enjoyed going. The cathedral is beautiful. We then went for a Slovenian meal, before having free time. On the way back, Branco took us to see a castle which was built into a cave - it was beautiful - we loved the fact V and Branco wanted us to see so much whilst we were there that they often did a detour to show us extra bits of the country.

Boat Trip (optional) - We were on a boat with a couple of other groups (one being Travelsphere) but it wasn't too crowded and there was plenty of seating for everyone. The sea was calm so it wasn't bad unless you are a really bad sea traveller. The islands were lovely, especially the first stop - this was lovely for a nice stroll, the second island either for sunbathing/swimming (though you could do so at the first as well), or walking up the very steep hill to the village at the top - which I just about managed! Again we had a short guided tour with V before stopping for coffee. The staff on the boat were lovely too and the food very good. The captain stopped on the way back so we could see the dolphins, which amazed us all.

Motovun/Truffle Tasting - We drove to Motuvun and got the shuttle bus about 2/3 of the way up, before walking the rest of the way to the village (about 10 minutes ascending). V gave us a short guided tour and we walked around the city walls (takes about 10 minutes) before getting free time for a coffee and shopping. The truffle tasting was interesting - we had a platter of various truffles (black/white, etc) on small pieces of bread, truffle cheese, and truffle salami and olive oil, along with a truffle alcoholic drink (I thought it was a bit like lager), this was followed by a platter of chocolate and plain truffle cookies, to be tried with truffle honey, truffle chocolate - which we tried with and without truffle salt. We also had truffle grappa and a demo. This was a relaxing day and we got back to the hotel around 3.30.

All in all this was a fantastic trip and highly recommended to anyone, Croatia is a beautiful country and the people are lovely too. We had a great team with V and Branco.

Regards

Caroline

Many thanks for this great review and I'm delighted you had such a brilliant time - this tour is on my very long wish list after briefly visiting Croatia last year.

All the best,

Bob

Hi,

I've just returned from this brilliant tour - it's up there as one of the best I've been on (apart from getting home afterwards - mentioned in another thread). We had the excellent 'V' who, with my birthday being on the 21st, got the whole group to sing Happy Birthday to me and another gentleman who shared my birthday, the rest of the group were lovely, the driver Branco was superb and very funny, and all the hotel staff were lovely and kept the rooms spotlessly clean every day.

Opatija - this is a short drive from our hotel and some travelled independently on other days if they were not doing any tours. We had a guided tour with V before going for chocolate tasting and having free time. It is a nice place with walks/views of the sea.

Plitvice Lakes - this was a wow day for most of us. The views in the lakes are stunning, from the unbelievable colour of the water in the lakes, to the actual waterfalls - and we were blessed with beautiful weather all week. We walked for miles, though most of us coped very well, some went 1/2 way through and got a little boat back to the café to wait for the rest of us. The first walk lasted about 45 minutes, before getting a boat across the lake for about 15-20 minutes, followed by another walk of about 1 hour and 15 minutes - the whole trip involves walking on stones or boardwalk in parts, and is up and down hill. Some were affected by the heat as you are outside for the whole walk, so a sunhat/suncream/sunglasses, plus plenty of water and suitable footwear are advisable, but this is a great trip and was the highlight of the holiday for most of us.

Rovinj/Pula/Olive Oil Tasting - In Rovinj with had a short walking tour with V, we could stay in the town itself, or go up to the church of St Euphemia (this is quite slippy so trainers or shoes with good grips are required). We then had some free time for coffee/shopping/pastries. The olive oil tasting was ok, it involved a short demo, followed by sniffing and tasting the olive oil, with the opportunity the purchase some of the products, but I could have lived without it. V gave us another guided tour in Pula, we went inside the amphitheatre and around squares before having a short coffee break.

Ljubljana (optional) - This is a beautiful place. We had a guided tour with a local guide for about 2 hours, including going up and down in a funicular to the castle at the top. There was loads to see and do here, and I really enjoyed going. The cathedral is beautiful. We then went for a Slovenian meal, before having free time. On the way back, Branco took us to see a castle which was built into a cave - it was beautiful - we loved the fact V and Branco wanted us to see so much whilst we were there that they often did a detour to show us extra bits of the country.

Boat Trip (optional) - We were on a boat with a couple of other groups (one being Travelsphere) but it wasn't too crowded and there was plenty of seating for everyone. The sea was calm so it wasn't bad unless you are a really bad sea traveller. The islands were lovely, especially the first stop - this was lovely for a nice stroll, the second island either for sunbathing/swimming (though you could do so at the first as well), or walking up the very steep hill to the village at the top - which I just about managed! Again we had a short guided tour with V before stopping for coffee. The staff on the boat were lovely too and the food very good. The captain stopped on the way back so we could see the dolphins, which amazed us all.

Motovun/Truffle Tasting - We drove to Motuvun and got the shuttle bus about 2/3 of the way up, before walking the rest of the way to the village (about 10 minutes ascending). V gave us a short guided tour and we walked around the city walls (takes about 10 minutes) before getting free time for a coffee and shopping. The truffle tasting was interesting - we had a platter of various truffles (black/white, etc) on small pieces of bread, truffle cheese, and truffle salami and olive oil, along with a truffle alcoholic drink (I thought it was a bit like lager), this was followed by a platter of chocolate and plain truffle cookies, to be tried with truffle honey, truffle chocolate - which we tried with and without truffle salt. We also had truffle grappa and a demo. This was a relaxing day and we got back to the hotel around 3.30.

All in all this was a fantastic trip and highly recommended to anyone, Croatia is a beautiful country and the people are lovely too. We had a great team with V and Branco.

Regards

Caroline

SO very sorry to read about the cancelled flight.  😠   I am glad though that you enjoyed the trip.  It sounds as though there have been a few tweaks, but it remains as good as ever.  I hope that my thoughts on the walking were useful! "V" is a superstar.  Did you not go on the boat trip?

Yes, I did do the boat trip, I did all of the optional tours, although there were only small numbers for Ljubljana and Motovun, V did a fantastic job in getting us a minibus so the trips could go ahead. Nearly everyone did the boat trip and had a lovely time, especially the Travelsphere group with the free drink!

The cancelled flight was an inconvenience, though fortunately I was off work the next day, unlike some who were working. Hopefully my compensation comes through soon though.

V was asking after you ?.

Regards

Caroline

Hi Bosuncat,

Yes, I did do the boat trip, I did all of the optional tours, although there were only small numbers for Ljubljana and Motovun, V did a fantastic job in getting us a minibus so the trips could go ahead. Nearly everyone did the boat trip and had a lovely time, especially the Travelsphere group with the free drink!

The cancelled flight was an inconvenience, though fortunately I was off work the next day, unlike some who were working. Hopefully my compensation comes through soon though.

V was asking after you ?.

Regards

Caroline

Was she?  Oh bless her.  🙂   I had discussed the Dubrovnik trip with her whilst I was there.  Did you have a chance to talk to her about it?    Makes me want to go back reading your review! 😃

Did you like the hotel by the way?  It shows mainly that not all Remisens hotels are bad!

Thanks for your great review. This is a trip I will keep in mind. Sorry you had all the problems with your journey home. Hope your trip to Kerala runs more smoothly

Regards

Lesley

Yes, I think V is hoping to do the Lake Bled tour at Christmas, as is one of the ladies off my tour, it looks like a magical tour but I couldn't pull the money together in time and I dare not ask for any more time off work. I loved the hotel, though with not upgrading my room it was a bit noisy at times with traffic going past the hotel, so I'd definitely recommend paying the extra for a sea view room. Overall the staff were all lovely and friendly and the rooms cleaned properly daily, I couldn't fault it.

Thanks Lesley, it's the Spirit of India tour I'm doing next February, but yes, I hope everything runs smoothly on that tour, though I've got overnight hotel stays both going out and coming back so hopefully I won't miss my connecting flights this time - fingers crossed.

Regards

Caroline

Hope you enjoy Spirit of India as much as I did.

Lesley