Published: 03.06.2025
Our second leg began promisingly with a hearty breakfast at the hotel. Despite the cloudy sky, we didn’t let it dampen our spirits and set off southward. Villach may be beautiful, but our sights were firmly set on Makarska. The drive through the tunnel and then along the highway to Ljubljana went quickly, but then things got exciting.
The country road to Croatia seemed endless, and I wondered if my GPS was playing a prank on me. But no, it just wanted to sweeten our day! We made a pit stop in the unassuming Dvor (Slovenia), a place hiding a true gem: an excellent local restaurant. Although we unfortunately weren’t hungry, the food looked so tempting that we resolutely planned to return next time with empty stomachs.
We also used this stop to visit the Krki waterfalls, located right next to a castle ruin. Completely unexpectedly, we were able to visit the accompanying museum as well. With the door open, we ventured inside and were fascinated by the exhibited items about the Krki River, which were very well explained – English skills are an advantage here. Suddenly, a lady appeared from a side building and attempted to communicate to us in Slovenian that we needed to pay an entrance fee. Oops! In this case, we were the 'foreigners', and all I could do was mumble 'Sorry, didn’t know.' After paying our entrance fee of 3 € each, we continued our journey to Makarska.
Along the way, we found a cheap accommodation for 89 € for two nights online. Upon our arrival, the landlord was already waiting for us and showed us to a parking space in the garage. She was incredibly nice and had immediately all the important information about the area at hand: affordable parking options, shops, and a warm invitation to call her anytime if we needed help. Just great! After we had stowed our suitcases in the room, we did what every responsible German does abroad: we visited Lidl. Of course, we also explored Makarska by car to get an overview and gather initial ideas for activities. Cheerfully, we ended the evening in our room with cool mixed drinks from Lidl.
The second day in Makarska began with bright sunshine and a cup of coffee in our room. After our wake-up routine, we set out for the center. Parking spots there, as we had to find out, are very rare and expensive – the hour starts at 3 €. Since we didn’t have the desire to search for a long time, we took the first available spot with an attendant. However, I was a bit disappointed with the town center. Perhaps my expectations were too high; I might have had something like the old town of Šibenik in mind. The old town of Makarska mainly consists of the promenade, which is really beautiful by the harbor and offers direct access to the beach. The water here is emerald green and clean. For my taste, however, even though it was still off-season, it was already too crowded.
For this reason, we decided to leave Makarska and preferably go into the mountains to enjoy a nice view from above. But, as often happens, things didn’t go as planned. I couldn’t find a trustworthy route into the mountains and instead decided to head for the water – a very good decision, as it turned out! We drove into the village of Drašnice. At first, we thought: 'Oops, everything is closed, no one’s here!' But there were two shops open in the village, just the ones we were looking for: a restaurant and a café. The beach was beautiful, with emerald water and hardly a soul in sight.
First, we enjoyed the delicious food: I had fish and Bianca had Cevapcici, along with homemade lemonade – absolutely recommendable! Afterwards, we enjoyed the beach and the water, which was a bit cold at first. It was just as I wish my vacation days to be. We then enjoyed our afternoon coffee at the beach café, which felt like it was open just for us. The highlight of the day was that I found a fan once again: a stray cat that desperately wanted to cuddle with me. The hours really flew by. After about four to five hours, we had to make our way back.
Upon arriving at the car, I discovered that I had picked up a screw in the front tire. Right after setting off, the message 'Tire pressure too low' appeared. 'Great,' I thought to myself. Fortunately, we passed by a small workshop that could help us quickly and easily. Within ten minutes and for just 15 €, the screw was removed and the hole patched. After this scare (perfect excuse!), we headed straight to Lidl to pick up some Mojito and Caipirinha and fulfill our 'duty as Germans.' Now we are sitting on our balcony, looking forward to the next leg to Mostar. I am particularly excited about our accommodation with a pool, which we just snagged for only 72 € for two nights.
If you want, we will take you along on our next trip – keep reading our blog! Until then, Bianca and Eddy. And as the Mandalorian beautifully says: 'This is the way.'
