When most people think of Croatia, they think of the coast. And with good reason. The coastline is gorgeous and popular. Towns like Split and Brela and Omis are just as interesting and lovely as they sound.
But Croatia’s got plenty of inland areas and on this trip I made it a mission to see more of them. From Plitvice Lakes to Samobor and, now, into the very green hills where Vrbovsko boasts a little canyon with a lovely hike.
I spent two nights in Vrbosko and the very good news about inland Croatia is that even though it’s summer and coastal prices are through the roof, a trip to the inland hills was very affordable indeed.
Here’s what I spent:
| Category | Kuna | Dollars |
| Accommodations | 274 | $44.24 |
| Transportation (national/international) | 140 | $22.60 |
| Transportation (local) | 0 | $0 |
| Groceries | 30.96 | $5.00
|
| Eating/drinking out | 94 | $15.18 |
| Entertainment & activities | 0 | $0 |
| Totals | 538.96 | $87.01 |
Notes on my spending:
I spent two nights in Vrbovsko, arriving around dinnertime on a Thursday in June and departing in the morning on the following Saturday. Though there were three trains on Saturday, I opted for the early morning ride after discovering that I could do all the exploring that I wanted to in a single day (on Friday). So consider this budget one full day and two partial travel days.
For accommodation, I got a private room with a shared bathroom in the hall at Planinarski dom Kamačnik. The place was nothing fancy, but super budget-friendly, clean, and very quiet. Keep in mind that it is about 40 minutes on foot from the train station up to the lodge or maybe 20 – 30 minutes if you take the hiking trail from the canyon up the hill (someone will have to give you directions if this is your plan because it’s not well-marked).
The national transportation category is train tickets from and to Zagreb. The train takes 2.5 – 3 hours and there is a much faster bus option if you prefer (I get bus sick, so opted for the longer train ride). In town, I walked pretty much everywhere, so no taxis or local transportation.
I ate out for two meals (dinner Thursday, lunch Friday) and had a coffee Friday morning. And my grocery budget reflects the purchase of some cheese, ham, a drink, and crackers for snack and dinner on Friday. Breakfast Friday and Saturday was some granola bars and apple sauce I brought with me.
I spent my time exploring the little town and hiking in the canyon (the reason people come here), which was free. There is a little ticket booth at the canyon entrance, so maybe there is sometimes a fee (?), but when I was there no one was in the booth.
Looking for more European budgets? Here they all are.