I hear the expression Dalmatian Coast and it conjures images of water lapping against a land lost in time. Well, apparently the water hasn’t lapped enough.


A Croatian friend of mine takes me on a day trip to the island of Hvar, where we are literally crawling on jagged rocks to find our way into the water. “Welcome to the Dalmatian Coast,” he laughs, as I look at my hands to see if they’ve drawn blood on my rock-climb down into the water. The coast-line of Croatia is rocky, to say the least, and not sandy as I am accustomed to, and prefer. It doesn’t make for the most comfortable diving board into the Adriatic Sea, but that’s what makes this coast unique.

There is a sandy beach in the center of Split, at Balvice Beach. It sits beside a popular nightclub complex, considered one of the liveliest on the Adriatic.

In Split, be sure to visit Diocletian’s Palace. Dating from 305 AD, it is one of the best preserved Roman buildings in the world, only excavated in the past decades. You can tour the basement halls to get a feel for the grandiose design of Emperor Diocletian’s sea-side escape. And above ground, the original layout of the town as it developed through the early centuries has been preserved to form the modern core of Split, with restaurants, cafes, and bars.

I’ve seen many “corner-store” exchange offices in Budapest, but had always been reluctant to use them, not knowing how legitimate they may be. There are a number of such exchange offices on Andrassy utca. I enter one, to watch a couple purchasing the last of that day’s Croatian Kunas.

I cross the street to another exchange office, and luckily am able to exchange there. I actually found that the exchange rate at these corner-store offices in Budapest is better than what my bank offers. Not just on the Croatian Kuna, but also for the Euro. So now, I exchange on Andrassy utca. Specifically I have been using Exclusive Change, at 45 Andrassy utca.

I am ready to start my trip to Split. During the summer months, there is a direct overnight train from Budapest to Split. Otherwise, the train connection is in Zagreb, and there are 2 direct trains daily, one morning train and one afternoon train. I opt for the 6am morning train, as early as it is, so that I can still connect in daylight in Zagreb onto Split. Amusingly, the 6am train is full of young travelers who have spent the night staying awake at Budapest bars in order to catch the morning train to Croatia. They quickly fall asleep in their seats, but I choose a window seat to enjoy the view south along Hungary’s Lake Balaton.

In Zagreb, I learn that I must buy a seat reservation for the Zagreb to Split train. With the Eurail Pass, the seat reservation costs 37 Kunas (approximately 6 US Dollars). Note that this train is small with only 3 cars, and runs only 3 times per day. So be sure to book a seat reservation ahead of time if you are traveling in the popular summer months.

This new train is Croatia’s pride and joy – it’s Croatia’s version of a high-speed train. ‘Version’ being the key-word. It’s a 6 hour direct train ride to Split, which is 2 hours less than the older train. The 3 car train feels a bit more like an amusement park ride than a train as it chugs along the single track through the hilly terrain of Croatia. But the views are beautiful – full of cornfields, mountain villages and abandoned abodes haunting the hillsides.

Labin is not your typical destination. I am going to visit friends on the Istrian peninsula, and if they didn’t live there, I might not be here in winter. “You’ve got to come back in summer,” they keep saying. I always laugh when I hear this… I can’t see everyplace in the summer weeks; some places I will have to see when the days are shorter. But I see what they mean: the Istrian peninsula does seem like an idyllic summer getaway, with the Adriatic sea crashing alongside hilltop villages and market places full of fresh fish.

I like the octopus salads and fish dishes I eat here, and am reminded that though this is the Adriatic Sea, it’s merely an extension of the Mediterranean Diet.

My friends know something that does make winter here unique, though: Supa. It’s a Red-Bull like mix of hot red wine, black pepper, olive oil, and sugar. It’s one of the most potent concoctions I’ve ever tasted – warming the senses enough to make you forget it’s winter.