Croatia

Thank you, Silvy, and the VBT reservation office for making this a true vacation and taking care of all the details. From the moment we hung up the phone I was certain my first trip with VBT would not be my last. Our local, native Croatian host, Andrej, was friendly, timely, helpful, informative, and an all-around nice guy. I also loved the Ride GPS app and the opportunities to explore Ston and other points of interest — I especially enjoyed roaming around the uninhabited town of Nakovana. With VBT arranged hotels all along the coast and beautiful September weather, I was able to swim in the Adriatic most days of our trip (bring water shoes to walk along the rocks and cobblestones!) So much more to explore…I will be back!

The VBT Croatia self-guided tour is outstanding. Excellent routes with climbing challenge to spectacular views of the picture perfect colors of the Aegean Sea. Excellent food and warm country people who love to share their history and culture.

Croatia is a stunningly beautiful country and this tour absolutely showcases it in the best possible way. The routes are well planned and the roads selected are very scenic, but uphill and downhill routes are to be expected in this mountainous country. Also, most roads are narrow with minimal shoulders. E-bikes are recommended unless you have been training for elevation changes and distance. Participating in this biking tour by boat allows you to fully engage and enjoy the biking without the hassle of packing and unpacking every day or two, a huge plus. Views from the boat are fabulous, especially the night views.

I had the misfortune of having my flight from Chicago to Munich cancelled 3days before I was due to leave I missed my connecting flight to Split Croatia. VBT rebooked me to Frankfurt the same day and I had a 6.5 hour layover to get to Split all my travel was booked through VBT so my transfers were covered. When I arrived in Split at 11:30pm I found a VBT representative but unfortunately he wasn’t there to pick me up. So he did not have my name or hotel name. He was with Lavonnda transport and was taking two guys from LasVagas to a different hotel. I was traveling by myself and was up for 28hours to get to my destination. Fortunately I took a picture of my hotel off the website itinerary so he was kind enough to transport me. Needless to say it put a sour taste in my mouth about my first experience with VBT. The rest of the trip was 5star! Bike guides were amazing and the yacht accommodations were wonderful as was Dubrovnik palace hotel.

This was a fantastic trip taken at the perfect time of the year in September. We were able to ride, swim and dine in gorgeous settings every day. The chance to meet the locals in their homes for dinners and to hear of their lives in Croatia was priceless. We were very fortunate to have two excellent guides in Nevenka and Natasha; they were both so knowledgeable and accommodating, we couldn't have asked for better leaders!

VBT Croatia was a fantastic experience. Our trip exceeded our expectations and my adult son said it was a “trip of a lifetime!” It was a perfect blend of guided and self guided. The guides had great personalities and created a great experience! I loved the variation of experiences, loved the food recommendations, loved the scenery and loved all the group interaction. I am ready for the next VBT trip! Amazing trip! Thank you.

The entire experience was terrific. This trip consisted of full days of beautiful walks and a variety of interesting and fun activities. The hotels were amazing; each room had beautiful views and were fully equipped. The group size was perfect and we all got along very well. The icing on the cake was, without a doubt, the exceptional leadership of Vida and Dani. They are incredibly warm, kind, knowledgeable, fun and attentive in all the right ways. I would follow them anywhere.

This was a fantastic trip! As usual CW found terrific local guides - Irena & Matej, were wonderful - very organized, knowledgeable with great senses of humor. The interesting thing about this trip is being able to experience the Julian Alps and Istrian peninsula and compare the very different landscapes. While the length of the trip was perfect, I wouldn't have minded an extra day in each place! And I did appreciate that we didn't move around too much - we stayed in the same hotel for several nights in each area which allows you to settle in and relax. Another wonderful CW excursion!

This walking tour was awesome. The different venues, hikes and lodging was all terrific . The single factor that made the trip so good, were the two Guides. Dani and Dani were so thoughtful, knowledgeable, and their trips to lunches and meals and wine tasting, at various venues were remarkable. Getting to know some of the locals at these venues, and visiting places off the beaten path, were one of the high points, in my view.

We had an amazing time on this trip and could not have been happier with our decision to take our first ever group tour with Country Walkers. Everything about our trip was seamless. Our tour guides, Dani 1 and Dani 2, were knowledgeable, mature, funny and amiable, each in his own way, and added greatly to the trip/experience. Their local knowledge of culture, food, people, history was unmatchable. We had deep trust in them, and we knew that although everything seemed to go smoothly, they were constantly working behind the scenes to adjust plans due to weather, changes in schedule, etc. They made it look easy, but we knew it was not. Of course the hiking was nice, the views and location fantastic. The food was sumptuous and always different, so we sampled many things and felt we got exposed to all kinds of traditional Croation fare. The wine and grappa were always flowing generously. The eating locations themselves were unique. We heard rumors that this tour was being regrouped or cancelled and were quite surprised as everyone in our group seemed quite happy indeed. It would be a shame to lose these fantastic guides/guys.