Croatia with Kids

If you are looking for one of the best places for a family trip in Europe, you should consider traveling to Croatia with kids. With a fascinating history, beautiful landscape and incredible beaches along the Dalmatian coastline, there are few destinations in Europe better for a family vacation than Croatia.

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Where to go in Croatia with Kids

The hardest part about planning a Croatia family holiday is deciding where to go. The incredibly beautiful Croatia beach destinations are some of the best places for family holiday in Croatia. Your family will love visiting Split, Hvar, Korcula and of course, you must visit Dubrovnik with your kids.

Don’t think you have to limit your Croatia family holiday to the Dalmatian Coast, as the Plitvice Lakes National Park is incredibly beautiful and is worth adding to your itinerary. With fun walkways around endless lakes and waterfalls, Plitvice Lakes is one of the best places to visit in Croatia with kids.

We share some details on each of these amazing family-friendly destinations in Croatia below, along with links to posts for more details on each.

Below we share the details of our 17-day Croatia family vacation itinerary. The possibilities for an amazing family holiday to Croatia are nearly endless. We hope you find inspiration within our 17-day Croatia itinerary and use it as a launching pad for your family trip to Croatia with kids.

Wherever you decide to go in Croatia, have fun and savor these special moments with your kids – a Croatia family holiday will create memories which will last a lifetime!

When to Visit Croatia with Kids

High Season in Croatia

High season for travel to Croatia with kids tends to be the summer months of July and August. A Croatia family vacation in high season offers near endless sunshine, making it an ideal beach destination.

Despite occasional afternoon thunderstorms, the months of July and August are the two sunniest months of the year along the Dalmatian coastline. Average daily temperatures in Croatia are at their highest during this period, while average monthly rainfall is at its lowest.

In exchange for the best weather of the year, a visit to Croatia with your kids in high season also means expensive accommodations and big crowds at the top tourist destinations along the Dalmatian coast. Book your accommodations early if you are planning a Croatia family vacation during the peak summer season.

Shoulder Season in Croatia

Shoulder season for family holidays to Croatia tends to be in May, June or September. During shoulder season in Croatia, your chances for good weather are still quite good, but the odds of inclement weather also increase a little.

If you can schedule your Croatia family vacation during shoulder season, you will be treated to fewer crowds and more affordable accommodations. If you visit Croatia with your kids in shoulder season, you’ll also enjoy wildflowers and find that the Adriatic Sea is warm enough for swimming.

The 17-day trip to Croatia with kids we describe below was in shoulder season from late-April to mid-May. We had amazing luck with our Croatia weather in early May as most days were pleasantly warm and sunny. It rained just twice during our 17 days in Croatia with kids, and both events were short lived.

Given we spent nearly our entire family vacation to Croatia near the water, the pleasantly warm spring weather made our visit perfect. It seemed like every day was a beach day, which is such a gift when you are in a place as beautiful as the Dalmatian Coast with your kids.

How Long to Travel in Croatia with Kids

The question of how long your Croatia family vacation should be entirely depends on what you wish to do with your kids.

If you live in Europe and have a short flight to Croatia, it’d be possible to pick a single destination and spend a highly enjoyable 2-3 days in Croatia with your kids. A short visit to the Plitvice Lakes, Split, Hvar or Dubrovnik would make a great family getaway.

For those of us with long haul flights to Croatia, we’d recommend spending at least a week in Croatia with your kids, but two weeks would be even better. We spent 17 days in Croatia with our kids and we were still sad to say goodbye when it was time to leave for our family trip to Iceland.

Our Croatia family trip was pretty comprehensive, starting inland at the nation’s capital Zagreb, the incredible Plitvice Lakes National Park, then a jaunt down the Dalmatian coast through Split, Hvar, Korcula and Dubrovnik. Even though we saw many of Croatia’s top family-friendly destinations, we were left longing to see more of this beautiful country.

If you only have a week for a Croatia family vacation, we’d recommend picking 1-2 destinations to visit with your kids. This will limit the amount of time wasted traveling from place-to-place within Croatia.

Split would be a great location to base your family for a week in Croatia with kids. You’ll have no trouble finding things to do in Split with kids, and you can also easily make side trips to Plitvice Lakes and Hvar.  

Where to Stay on your Croatia Family Vacation

When traveling with kids, we have a strong preference for staying in a vacation home rental (like Airbnb or VRBO) as the kids sleep better when they have their own bedrooms. Another big perk of a vacation rental is having laundry facilities to wash our clothes, enabling us to pack lighter.

Another big benefit of getting a vacation rental is having a kitchen to cook meals. Eating at restaurants three meals a day with kids can get expensive and time consuming, so having your own kitchen helps have a family vacation to Croatia on a budget.

On a typical day traveling with kids, we start with a healthy family breakfast at our vacation rental, pack a good lunch, then reward ourselves to a great meal at a restaurant in the evening. Not only is this healthier and less expensive, but it gives you much more time to see Croatia with your kids vs. being stuck in a restaurant.

For our Croatia family vacation, we rented vacation homes for all 17 nights. We didn’t spend a single night in a hotel in Croatia with our kids. See our best tips to find a kid-friendly Airbnb.

We traveled Croatia with our kids by bus and ferry, so we didn’t have a rental car. This decision limited us to getting vacation rentals near the town centre everywhere we went in Croatia. If you choose to rent a car in Croatia, your freedom opens a wide choice of locations for your Croatia vacation rental.

If you prefer to stay at hotels in Croatia with kids, you’ll find an excellent selection of kid-friendly hotels everywhere you go. When we stay in hotels, we use and recommend Booking.com as we really like their Top Picks for Families search filter.

Summary: 17 Day Croatia Family Vacation Trip Itinerary

Based on our actual early-May family vacation, here is our 17-day itinerary for Croatia with kids:

• Days 1-2: Zagreb, Croatia
• Days 3-4: Plitvice Lakes National Park
• Day 5-8: Split, Croatia
• Days 9-11: Hvar, Croatia
• Days 12-14: Korcula, Croatia
• Days 15-17: Dubrovnik, Croatia

Detailed 17 Days Croatia with Kids Itinerary

We loved our incredible time in Croatia with kids and couldn’t be happier with spending over 2 weeks on our family trip. Our Croatia trip itinerary gave us enough time to explore the best of Croatia.

We started in the capital of Zagreb, then knocked a destination off our bucket list at Plitvice Lakes National Park. We finished up our Croatia family vacation soaking up the sun on the Dalmatian Coast with stops in Split, Hvar, Korcula and Dubrovnik.

We wish we could have seen even more of this beautiful Balkan Peninsula country, but along our family trip we discovered some of the best things to do in Croatia with kids.

Days 1-2: Zagreb, Croatia

Day 1: Arrival Day in Zagreb

We arrived in Croatia with kids on a bus from Budapest to Zagreb. After checking into our Zagreb vacation rental, late afternoon we grabbed some groceries and some takeout hamburgers and fries. After a long travel day, we often treat our kids to a meal we know they will enjoy. We save the relatively more exotic Croatian food for when they have more energy.

Day 2: Self-Guided Tour of Zagreb

To be honest, we didn’t know much about Zagreb before our Croatia family vacation. We planned our visit to Zagreb with kids as it was a convenient layover stop to break up the bus trip from Budapest to Plitvice Lakes National Park. We’re happy to report that we really enjoyed our one day in Zagreb with kids.

When visiting a big city in Europe with kids, we like to seek out some good parks. The kids love running around and talking to locals, while we enjoy the beauty of the historic parks. Zagreb, Croatia is blessed with many beautiful squares and parks, and we enjoyed visiting many of them with our kids.

Our self-guided walking tour of Zagreb with our kids was a lot of fun. Zagreb has many interesting sights including a cathedral with real defensive walls, a vibrant market and some colorful pedestrian-only streets to explore.

Our kid’s favorite thing to do in Zagreb was to look at the colorful patterns on the roof of St. Mark’s Church. It’s surprising as our kids rarely pay any attention to architecture, but they loved the unique rooftop of this Zagreb church.

This may sound strange at first, but we finished up our day in Zagreb with kids with a visit to the Mirogoj Cemetery. We were attracted to the Mirogoj Cemetery as it is widely considered one of the most beautiful cemeteries in Europe, but we were equally interested in finding some shade beneath its massive trees. It was scorching hot during our visit to Zagreb and finding a fun activity with some shade for kids in Zagreb on a hot day was a real bonus.

Days 3-4: Plitvice Lakes National Park

Day 3: Bus from Zagreb to Plitvice Lakes National Park

The bus ride from Zagreb to Plitvice Lakes was excellent as our bus driver went out of his way to make the only set of 4 seats around a table available for us. We let the kids watch shows and read books on their iPads the whole way on this short 3 hour bus trip.

Our Plitvice Lakes vacation rental host picked us up in his car at the bus stop and let us check in early. These two acts of kindness enabled us to give our son a short nap before heading to Plitvice Lake with our kids.

We loved the 15-minute walk through a deep, old forest from our apartment rental in Mukinje to Plitvice Lakes Entrance 2. We bought a 2-day Plitvice Lakes admission ticket, which was cheaper than buying two 1-day tickets.

After entering Plitvice Lakes National Park, we had to wait approximately 20 minutes to board a boat for a very quick trip across the lake. With approximately 100 people getting off per boat, and a boat every few minutes, the areas around the Plitvice Lakes dock get extremely congested.

It seemed like everyone in this section of Plitvice Lakes was in such a rush – like they had to get back to their tour bus or something. It put a damper on the relaxing nature vibe for sure. Seeing their anxiety made us feel good about our decision to stay two nights at Plitvice Lakes with kids to enjoy the beauty of the national park without rushing.

Despite the crowds and craziness, the section of trail around Gradinsko Lake was amazing! Most of the walking path is along wooden boardwalks, which take you through an amazing network of waterfalls and streams. Plitvice Lakes is busy for a reason, without exaggeration, it’s one of the most beautiful places in the world.

Once we got past the first set of Plitvice Lakes waterfalls near Entrance 2, the crowds thinned out considerably. We put the kids in their carriers as the first section took way longer than thought.

There is a nice, long lakeside walk along Galovac Lake before coming to another set of waterfalls. This set of Plitvice Lakes waterfalls were beautiful, but not as showy as the first cluster in the super busy section.

All told, for our first afternoon in Plitvice Lakes with kids, we were on the walking paths for 3.5 hours and hiked 10 km (6 miles).

Day 4 – Plitvice Lakes with Kids

On our second day at Plitvice Lakes with kids we arrived at Entrance 2 before opening, to give ourselves a chance to beat the crowds. It worked, and we had an outstanding day at Plitvice Lakes with our kids.

We began our day at Plitvice Lakes with a peaceful walk along Kozjak Lake. The water on Kozjak was glasslike and the reflection of the mountains and trees in the water was so pretty.

It started getting crowded as we neared Veliki Slap, the biggest Plitvice Lakes waterfall, especially around the great photo spots. The kids got cold from the spray from Veliki Slap, so we didn’t stay long.

We turned around at Plitvice Lakes Entrance 1 and headed back on one of the upper walking paths. This is where you can get that iconic aerial picture of the Plitvice Lakes waterfall walkways that you see so often, yet the walking paths up here were nearly deserted.

We were loving the walks around Plitvice Lakes with our kids so much, that we decided to get more ambitious and hiked around the west side of Kozjak Lake. We loved this Plitvice Lakes hike; the water color was so brilliant in spots.

The upper Plitvice Lakes waterfalls and boardwalks were our favorite parts of the national park, but to be honest, the whole national park is amazing. Some of our favorite moments at Plitvice Lakes with our kids were in spots were there wasn’t a single waterfall or person to be seen anywhere.

We walked nearly 18 km (11 miles) today on our second day at Plitvice Lakes with kids, for a two day total of 28 km (17 miles).

Visiting Plitvice Lakes with our kids was one of our bucket list items. We’re so glad we came, Plitvice Lakes National Park is a very special and beautiful place.

Days 5 – 8: Split with Kids

Day 5 – Bus from Plitvice Lakes to Split

Our awesome vacation rental host gave us a ride to Plitvice Lakes Entrance 1 to give us a better chance of getting seats together on the bus ride to Split. His kindness paid off as we got the front 4 seats on the upper deck for the whole bus ride. Having the front seats on the second level of a bus is so much fun for the kids.

We paid a little extra to get the direct bus from Plitvice Lakes to Split. Our 2-year old was a bit cranky towards the end of the bus ride, so the extra money to save 2 hours on the bus was worth it!

We settled into our Split apartment rental and then went for a walk along the beautiful Split waterfront. After 2 exhausting days of walking around Plitvice Lakes National Park, our kids were exhausted. So, we grabbed some takeaway pizza for our kids and some cevapi for us.

Cevapi is a pita sandwich filled with minced meat kebabs, which have been cooked over a charcoal grill. Served with either a cream sauce or red pepper sauce & onions. It was so good – be sure to try cevapi on your Croatia family holiday!

Day 6 – Diocletian’s Palace

It was spitting rain on our first morning in Split with kids, so we walked directly to the Diocletian’s Palace. Given the rain we wanted to see the most important things to in Split first in case the rain worsened.

We started our self-guided walking tour of Diocletian’s Palace by the towering statue of Gregorius of Nin. They say to rub Gregorious’ big toe for good luck. One of our kids rubbed his toe and the other refused, so I guess we’ll eventually see if it’s true or not…

Diocletian’s Palace is such a fun thing to do in Split with kids, especially if you arrive early in the day before it gets crowded. The endless alleys, stairs, etc. make Diocletian’s Palace a super fun place for kids to run around and explore.

When it wasn’t raining, we steered the kids towards Peristil, a courtyard nestled between the Temple of Jupiter and the Cathedral of Domnius. We loved the black sphinx imported from Egypt.

Thankfully, Diocletian’s Palace has lots of things to do on a rainy day in Split. The kids loved when we stopped at the Vestibule for shelter from the rain. The Vestibule is a large room with a domed ceiling with a large hole in it. The adults stayed dry, but the kids thought it was hilarious to run back and forth under the open dome, getting wetter and wetter as they went.

Still raining, we visited the Temple of Jupiter, the Cathedral of Domnius and the Palace Substructures. Game of Thrones fans will recognize the Palace Substructures as the location where Daenerys Targaryen keeps her dragons while she’s in Meereen.

Zapadna Obala Promenade

After short naps, we wanted to have some fun at Jezinac Beach, reputedly one of Split’s most beautiful beaches. We began our walk to Jezinac Beach along Zapadna Obala, a wonderful promenade that runs along the waterfront on the west side of the harbour. The kids loved running along, looking at the boats, chasing pigeons etc.

Sustipan Park

After the enjoyable walk along Zapadna Obala, we entered Sustipan Park. This oceanfront park sits high on cliffs, providing wonderful water views.

Zvoncac Park

Sustipan Park was beautiful, but didn’t have much for the kids, so we kept walking towards Jezinac Beach. We soon arrived at Zvoncac Park, where the kids quickly spotted a large dinosaur themed playground. They were so excited, we stopped and let them play. The dinosaur playground was one of our kids favorite things to do in Split.

Between our enjoyable oceanfront walk through Split and playing at the dinosaur playground, we never did make it to Jezinac Beach. We didn’t care as we thoroughly enjoyed our afternoon walk in Split with kids.

Day 7 – Klis Fortress

Another major Game of Thrones attraction in Split is the Klis Fortress. This beautiful fortress just outside of Split was the Game of Thrones filming location for Meereen.

It was a little hard to figure out how to get to the Klis Fortress, but it was worth the effort. Upon your arrival at the Klis Fortress, you’ll be treated to incredible sweeping views of Split and the Adriatic Sea beyond.

The Klis Fortress is one of the best things to do in Split with kids. Let your kids take the lead and enjoy watching their imagination runs wild as they explore the pathways, tunnels, guard lookouts, tunnels, etc.

For the adults, the Klis Fortress has a small museum with armor, swords, cannonballs, etc. from hundreds of years ago.

There’s also a room dedicated to the Klis Fortress as a Game of Thrones filming location. It’s a modest display, but it has many photographs showing the Klis Fortress in its natural state, and then the same shot as Meereen.

Bacvice Beach

After the prior day’s failure to go to the beach, we put our kids in carriers so we could walk much faster. We begin our afternoon outing in Split with a very enjoyable walk through the famous waterfront Riva promenade on our way to Bacvice Beach.

One of the most popular beaches in Split, Bacvice Beach has real sand – a rarity as most Mediterranean beaches have pebbles, not sand. Bacvice Beach is also nicely protected by a cove, resulting in reasonably small waves on most days. These factors make Bacvice Beach a really good beach in Split for kids.

Ovcice Beach

We were expecting Bacvice Beach to have pebbles, so we talked up how much fun throwing pebbles would be. We thought the kids would be excited that Bacvice Beach had a real sand beach, but funny enough, our kids were disappointed they couldn’t throw rocks into the water.

So, we kept walking along a nice oceanfront promenade to Ovcice Beach. A much smaller beach, Ovcice Beach was a traditional Mediterranean pebble beach, which made the kids happy. Our 2-year old loves to stand in the shallow water and endlessly huck rocks into the water, giggling all the way, while our 4 year old daughter likes finding interesting shaped rocks and sea shells.

Day 8 – Park Marjen

Split is an incredibly beautiful city, but sometimes we just crave a little nature, so we decided to spend our third day in Split with kids at Park Marjen. This large Split park is located just a few minutes west of Split Old Town.

A day in Park Marjen is a great activity in Split for kids. Much of Park Marjen is forested, providing kids with endless opportunities for exploring and adventure. In addition, they’ll be delighted when they discover the Park Marjen playground surrounded by trees.

Adults will love Park Marjen for its endless beautiful, forested walking trails and incredible views of Split and the Adriatic Sea. The 360-degree views at the summit, standing underneath a massive Croatian flag, are especially beautiful.

Split Hermitage Caves

After a fun morning of exploring Park Marjen, we started to make our way to Kasjuni Beach, another of the best beaches in Split. Along the way, we our walking trail led us past Karepića kula, an old hermits house built into the side of a cliff. These fascinating hermitage caves date back to the 15^th century.

Kasjuni Beach

Kasjuni Beach is the most beautiful beach in Split. Nestled in a protected cove, the water at Kasjuni Beach is very clear and tranquil and is great for kids to play in. There is a small, palm tree lined peninsula on one end of the beach which adds a tropical flare to this Split beach.

We didn’t have the kids bathing suits, but when you travel with kids, you want to create lasting memories, so we let the kids get their clothes wet and play in the water. They loved it and had tons of fun getting wet in their clothes, throwing rocks, chasing each other, etc.

Without question, Kasjuni Beach is one of the most fun things to do in Split with kids.

Days 9-11: Hvar with Kids

Day 9: Ferry from Split to Hvar

We enjoyed one last walk along the Riva waterfront before catching our 9:30 ferry to Hvar from Split. The 50-minute catamaran ferry ride to Hvar was very smooth.

After a quick lunch near the waterfront in Hvar, we settled into our Hvar vacation rental. The kids had a quick nap, while I grabbed some groceries for self-catering during our stay in Hvar with kids.

After naps, we made the uphill climb to the Hvar Fortress (otherwise known as Fortica or Spanjola). It’s hard to miss the formidable Hvar Fortress, sitting dominantly on a hill behind the Old Town.

The walk to the Hvar Fortress requires a bit of effort, but it’s a fun & beautiful walk through Hvar. The walk to the Hvar Fortress begins with a series of steps from Old Town, transitioning to a paved walkway through a lovely park. Along the way, you’ll enjoy excellent views of Hvar Old Town, its harbour and many beautiful plants and flowers.

The Hvar Fortress is one of the most fun things to do in Hvar with kids. There’s just something about castles and fortresses which make kids go crazy. Their little imaginations must run wild in a cool place like the Hvar Fortress.

Kids visiting the Hvar Fortress will love running around, climbing on stuff, playing with cannons, etc. Slow your kids down long enough to enjoy the incredible views of Hvar and the Adriatic Sea with some ice cream from the café.

Day 10 – Oceanfront Hike from Hvar Town to Milna Beach

One of the main reasons we visited Hvar with our kids was to enjoy some family fun on the beautiful Hvar beaches. We also love hiking with our kids when we travel, so when we discovered we could hike along the Adriatic coast from Hvar to Milna Beach we were all over it.

The hike from Hvar to Milna is one of the most beautiful hikes we have ever done. It hugs the rugged coastline nearly the whole way, offering amazing views of the Adriatic Sea and the surrounding Croatian islands.

The hike to Milna Beach begins on a paved seafront promenade through Hvar Old Town, before transitioning to actual hiking trail. Along the hike to Milna Beach you’ll pass many very beautiful Hvar beaches, many of which were deserted on the day we hiked this trail. It’s hard to describe the tranquil beauty of these beaches, with their otherworldly crystal-clear water.

Unfortunately, we thought Milna Beach was vastly inferior to some of the lovely Hvar beaches we passed on our hike. Kids don’t care though, and they ran off to go play on the fine pebbles on Milna Beach.

After a short while, we treated the kids to some ice cream at a nearby hotel and then backtracked to the other beach in Milna, which was significantly nicer – it even had a section of the beach which had real sand.

Exploring Hvar Old Town

After a quick cab ride back to Hvar our toddler had his afternoon nap. Refreshed, we went for a slow family walk through Old Town Hvar. After a high energy morning, we didn’t push the kids too hard and let them set the pace.

Aimlessly wandering through Old Town is such a fun thing to do in Hvar with kids. The kids ran ahead, picking which of the charming Old Town side streets to explore next. Our toddler loved finding stairs to climb, while our preschooler loved finding and smelling all the pretty flowers.

Day 11 – Hike from Hvar to Mekićevica Beach

For a variety of reasons, we elected not to visit the very popular Pakleni Islands with our kids. For our last day in Hvar with kids, we decided to hike back to the nicest Hvar beach we saw on our hike to Milna Beach the day before.

Mekićevica Beach is the second beach you encounter while hiking from Hvar Town to Milna Beach. It took an hour to hike to Mekićevica Beach, and we had this little piece of Croatian paradise all to ourselves.

Mekićevica Beach is a small, postcard-worthy beach on Hvar; it’s exactly what you picture when you imagine a Croatian beach. There are many benefits to visiting Mekićevica Beach with kids. Besides the incredible beauty of Mekićevica Beach, the beach is in a well protected cove, so the waves tend to be quite small, making it safer for kids to play in the water.

Being so remote, Mekićevica Beach will be less crowded than the beaches closer to Hvar – we had the place to ourselves for almost 2 hours. Our kids played in the Adriatic Sea, climbed on the large outer cove rocks, playing with the beach rocks, looking for shells, etc.

Days 12-14: Korcula with Kids

Day 12 – Ferry from Hvar Town to Korcula

After three super fun days on Hvar with kids, we caught a direct ferry in the morning from Hvar Town to Korcula. The convenient ferry service from Split to Hvar to Korcula to Dubrovnik offered by Krilo was one of the main reasons we decided to spend three days in Korcula with kids.

We got an early check-in at our Korcula vacation rental, so our toddler had an early nap.

Exploring Korcula Old Town

The entrance to the Korcula Old Town is through a large, elegant stone staircase. The Korcula Old Town has a fascinating fishbone design, which helps keep Korcula residents warm in the winter and cool in the summer. The unique layout of Korcula Old Town makes it a fun place to explore with kids.

We walked the full length of the main street of Korcula Old Town, stopping along the way to admire the Cathedral of Saint Mark, the charming side streets and do some souvenir window shopping.

Om our way back to our vacation rental, we let the kids lead the way and decide which side streets we were going to explore. The kids loved the excitement of exploring the many discoveries along the narrow passageways; there was some new adventure or surprise around every corner in Korcula Old Town.

Day 13 – Korcula Hiking to Kocje Protected Area

We enjoyed some excellent hiking in Korcula with our kids on our only full day here. In fact, the hiking trail from Korcula to the Kocje Protected Area was one of our favorite Croatia hikes on our family trip so far.

The Korcula hiking trail to Kocje has many highlights. While hiking to Kocje, you’ll enjoy vineyards, old ruins, rock walls, church towers in the distance, etc. The beauty of the Korcula countryside in on full display!

In addition to the scenery, on this Korcula hike you’ll pass many interesting towns and monuments. The first attraction on this Korcula hiking trail is a stop at Fortica, a small fort built by the British in the early 1800’s.

Your visit to Fortica is followed by a stop in Zrnovo, one of the oldest settlements on Korcula. Zrnovo is a really beautiful, historic Croatian town and it’s worth slowing down your Korcula hike to soak it in. Zrnovo offers a lot of beautiful buildings, churches, ruins of old houses, flower gardens, a WWI memorial, etc.

The hiking trail from Zrnovo to Kocje follows a tall hill, home to many interesting rock formations. These rock formations are only foreshadowing what is still to come on this excellent Korcula hiking trail.

The Kocje Protected Area is a very special place and our kids absolutely loved running around and exploring. You enter Kocje via a small valley with large, interesting rocks on both sides. The trail descends into the valley below and suddenly the Kocje Protected Area becomes a magical emerald forest.

Moss and ivy cover every inch of the Kocje Protected Area and every inch of it glows green, even in the shade. You really need to see the magic of Kocje with your own eyes – words (and even pictures) can’t really do it justice.

Beach Ispod Duvana

One of favorite things to do in Croatia with kids is play on the beautiful beaches. After the kids put in a great effort on an amazing Korcula hiking trail, we treated them to some play time at a tiny little beach just west of Old Town Korcula.

Beach Ispod Duvana is tiny, but it had gentle waves and small rocks for the kids to throw into the Adriatic Sea. While the kids just enjoyed playing on the beach, we enjoyed some pretty amazing views of the Korcula Peninsula.

As is often the case with beaches close to town, the beach was a little dirty, but the kids didn’t care at all. Kids love time at the beaches in Croatia, regardless of the quality.

Day 14 – Hiking to Peninsula Raznjic

After such a fun day hiking from Korcula to Kocje, we decided to try some more incredibly scenic Korcula hiking. Our final day on Korcula with kids began with a local bus to a cute little Catholic Church just east of Lumbarda.

We began our day of Korcula hiking heading east towards Peninsula Raznjic on a quiet road lined with vineyards and olive groves. It was a very enjoyable walk through the Korcula countryside and we even got to see two large, colorful pheasants.

Peninsula Raznjic is at the extreme eastern edge of Korcula Island. It’s small, but it packs a lot of scenery into it. Circular in shape, Peninsula Raznjic is lined with interesting, uneven rocks along the coastline, with a tight little forest in the middle. The views from Peninsula Raznjic are spectacular in all directions and our kids had a ton of fun running around exploring this unique setting.

Przina Beach

Exploring Peninsula Raznjic was a really fun thing to do on Korcula with kids, but we also promised them some beach time so we walked back past to the Catholic Church on our way to Przina Beach.

Prizina Beach was recommended to us by our Korcula vacation rental host, who said it was one of the best kid friendly Korcula beaches. Long stretches of real sand is one of the primary reasons Prizina Beach is a kid-friendly Korcula beach – a rarity on any beach in Croatia. The water stays shallow for a long time, which is also a nice feature of this beautiful Korcula beach.

But, you know kids…  they didn’t seem to care that Prizina Beach had some stretches of soft, smooth sand – they wanted to play in the rocky tide pools. Once they saw some tiny fish and a crab in the Prizina Beach tide pools, they were hooked. There was no getting them to move.

But that’s ok – our only objective visiting Prizina Beach with our kids was to give them time to just play and be kids. Having genuine play time is hugely important when traveling with kids.

Days 15-17: Dubrovnik with Kids

Day 15 – Ferry from Korcula to Dubrovnik

We spent some time at a Korcula playground ahead of our 10am ferry to Dubrovnik. As usual, the 2-hour catamaran ferry ride was smooth and uneventful.

We met our Dubrovnik vacation rental host at the Pile Gate and she gave us a quick walking tour of Dubrovnik on our way to our apartment rental, giving us a lot of insider tips and suggestions along the way.

Mt. Srd Cable Car

We were excited to be in Dubrovnik with our kids, so we skipped our toddler’s nap and headed to Mount Srd. We usually love hiking up mountains instead of taking the cable car, but given our late start to the day we treated ourselves to a ride up the Mt. Srd cable car.

The Mt. Srd cable cars have floor to ceiling windows, which were great for our little kids who could see without being picked up. The views of Dubrovnik from the Mt. Srd cable car were pretty amazing, but they didn’t last long as the smooth trip to the top was pretty short.

At the top of Mt. Srd, we stopped at many of the viewpoint platforms within the upper terminal. The views of Old Town, the Adriatic Sea, and the many islands beyond were spectacular.

Hiking Mt. Srd

There are some excellent, kid-friendly hikes on Mt. Srd. Our family hike on Mt. Srd began just past the Homeland War Museum, where we entered a large plateau.

Before long, the hiking path started winding around trenches and bunkers, which are remnants of the Homeland War. There are many decent vantage points of Old Town Dubrovnik from this plateau and even if you hike no further, it’s worth a visit.

We continued our Mt. Srd hike with kids along a dirt road, enjoying the outstanding views of the mountainous Croatian countryside. We encountered a few more Homeland War remnants including a few touching memorials to fallen soldiers, along the way to Utvrda Strinčjera – the ruins of a military complex from the war.

Utvrda Strinčjera was strategically built on high ground and as such, has excellent views in all directions. Watch your kids carefully within Utvrda Strinčjera as a local guide came over an warned us about poisonous snakes lurking in the weeds within the fort.

Day 16 – Self-Guided Game of Thrones Tour

We left our vacation rental too early to visit the Walls of Dubrovnik, so we started our first full day in Dubrovnik with kids with a self-guided Game of Thrones tour.

We started our self-guided Game of Thrones tour at the St. Ignatius Church, where Cersei Lannister began her infamous walk of atonement (Shame! Shame! Shame!). Next we visited Rector’s Palace (the atrium for the Spice King of Qarth) on our way to Ul. Svetog Dominika (a Kings Landing market).

Walls of Dubrovnik

Walking the Walls of Dubrovnik was such a fun thing to do in Dubrovnik with kids. There are plenty of walls for kids to climb, windows to look through, corners to hide around, etc. As for the adults, the views of Old Town Dubrovnik and the Adriatic Sea beyond are spectacular.

The Walls of Dubrovnik are a must-do on your family trip to Croatia. If possible, walk the Walls of Dubrovnik with your kids as early as possible on a day without a cruise ship in port.

Gradac Park

We love visiting city parks while traveling with kids, so after a crazy morning of visiting the Walls of Dubrovnik with our kids, we left Old Town and walked to Gradac Park.

A short walk west of Fort Lawrence, Gradac Park is a small, green Dubrovnik park which is a good spot to escape the madness of Old Town. This Dubrovnik park features a modest fountain with turtles swimming in it (a hit with the kids!) and a nice walk through some trees with nice views of the Adriatic Sea all along the way.

For Game of Thrones fans, Gradac Park is an important Dubrovnik Game of Thrones filming location. It was within Gradac Park that King Joffrey was poisoned, in the now infamous Purple Wedding scene.

Beach Solic

On the way back to Old Town from Gradac Park, we stopped off at Beach Solic – a tiny beach tucked away in the cove west of Fort Lawrence. Beach Solic is not the finest family beach in Croatia by any stretch, but was a fun thing for the kids to do in Dubrovnik. They never care about how nice a beach is – they just want to get their feet wet on a hot spring day.

It was a fun experience for the adults too, as you get a good view of Fort Lawrence from Beach Solic. Game of Thrones fans will instantly recognise Fort Lawrence at the Red Keep, the castle at Kings Landing.

Day 17 – Lokrum Island

We spent our final day in Dubrovnik with kids on an excellent day trip to Lokrum Island. The ferry ride from Dubrovnik to Lokrum Island is only 15 minutes, yet it feels about a million miles away.

Lokrum Island is a nature preserve with kid-friendly walking paths running along the coastline and through its forested interior. There are many things to see on Lokrum Island including a small salt lake (the “Dead Sea”), the ruins of a 12th century monastery (yet another GOT filming location), a fort atop a hill, a playground and the Iron Throne.

Yes… that Iron Throne. The producers of the Game of Thrones sold one of the authentic Iron Thrones from the show to the city of Dubrovnik, and it is now on display on Lokrum Island.

As beautiful and peaceful as it is, what makes Lokrum Island one of the best things to do in Dubrovnik with kids are the wild peacocks and bunny rabbits, which freely roam the island. The peacocks roam freely everywhere, but the fluffy bunnies are mostly in the park near the center of Lokrum Island. Our kids couldn’t get enough of these exciting animal encounters.

What to Pack for a Trip to Croatia with Kids

We are minimalists when it comes to packing for family vacations, but here’s our must-have items for visiting Croatia with kids in shoulder season and high season:

Deciding what clothes to pack for your family trip to Croatia is pretty straightforward if you are visiting between May and September. The weather will typically be warm-to-hot and typically dry. For our family vacation to Croatia in May, we almost always wore shorts, t-shirts, sunglasses and sun hats. Our daughter wore a ton of cute little jumpers and sun dresses.

Although it doesn’t rain much in Croatia during tourist season, we were happy to have light rain jackets for the two days it rained. It was also nice to have a long sleeve shirt to wear under the rain jacket to stay warm on a rainy day.

If you are visiting the Dalmatian Coast on your Croatian family trip, you’ll need to bring swimsuits and plenty of sunscreen. Most of the beaches in Croatia have small pebbles instead of sand and sea urchins are a reasonably common pest in the water around Croatia. For these reasons, bringing water shoes for everyone in the family is a good idea.

We spent a ton of time walking in Croatia, either exploring the wondrous history of its cities or hiking through its beautiful countryside. As such, we brought a wide variety of footwear, ranging from flip-flops, sports sandals to hiking shoes.

If you also plan on hiking in Croatia with kids, check out our favorite hiking gear for kids. If you don’t plan on doing a ton of hiking, you could probably leave the hiking shoes at home.

Travelling with kids always means carrying more stuff than you’d like, so we recommend a large day pack for each parent (we prefer bags over 30L in size). We like tucking hydration packs into our day packs to ensure everyone has enough water.

Parents traveling to Croatia with a toddler should consider bringing a toddler carrier. We’ve used toddler carriers extensively when travelling with our kids as they are very useful for longer outings or hikes with our kids.

We hope you found some inspiration for a family trip to Croatia with kids! Have a great time!!

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