I may travel to Croatia in the near future. Anyone travelled there lately? Lived there? Know much about life in the cities? ( Not sure which city I’d be in ).
Is it relatively dangerous or not, etc. I’ve been poking around the US State Dept. website and other sites, trying to get a sense. Bosnia and Herzogovenia are right next door and it’s sounding hairy there, but I’ve no sense yet of what Croatia would be like.
Cartooniverse
Our PBS channel has a show on traveling along Croatia’s coast that I’ve watched the last couple of nights. I’d no idea previously that it was so beautiful. The showed the town of Ston and the surrounding areas and it looked heavenly, much like what we’d encountered in Greece. I’m guessin’ you’re in for a real treat.
Nothing to worry about - it’s regained its status as a tourism magnet over the past few years (in the 1970s Yugoslavia was a big holiday destination). The British Foreign Office travel advice is a good place to get straightforward information. The three things they warn of are unexploded mines (i.e. keep to roads & footpaths when out in the country), robberies targeted at motorists, and generally dangerous roads. So like Italy, with landmines 
I’m also going there soon. I was planning to hit zagreb and maybe one of the rural towns during my trip this winter. Yes, It is quite beautiful from what I’ve heard and read about it.
Also, it is probably no more dangerous than New York or Los Angeles these days (maybe safer?).
Oh, and the Lonely Planet message board is a handy place to find specific advice
I spent two weeks in Croatia and Bosnia in May 2004. It’s gorgeous. Go before all the other Americans find out about it 
Unless you’re planning on wandering around in the countryside off of established trails (not a good idea because there are still some mines), it’s no more dangerous than anywhere else in Europe. Take the usual travel-safety precautions, and you’ll be fine.
Specific places: Zagreb is interesting for a day or two, but if you’re pressed for time, head out for the coast. (The Plitvice Lakes National Park also looked really pretty when I was coming through it on the bus, but I didn’t get a chance to check it out.) Split is rather big and industrial, but it’s got Diocletian’s Palace, which is not to be missed. Dubrovnik is just plain stunning. Most of the little towns along the coast are very pretty – lots of white marble and red-roofed houses – and the water is gorgeous, very blue and clear.
As a side note, I’d recommend trying to get out to Bosnia while you’re there, regardless of what the State Department says, because it’s an experience you don’t forget – the war damage is still very much in your face, but people are busy restoring and rebuilding. (I was there a couple of months before the Mostar Bridge officially re-opened; walking through downtown Mostar was like picking your way through a construction site.) And Sarajevo is just a neat city by any standards, and people are actually happy to see tourists instead of being heartily sick of them.
Oh yeah, and the food is awesome. Like Italy, only cheaper and with decent beer. My favorite was the black risotto, which is flavored with cuttlefish ink. And the ice cream is excellent (and comes in green apple, cola, and Jaffa cake, among other flavors).
OK, I’ve probably talked your ear off, so I’ll stop now. Hope you enjoy your trip
I’ve been to Croatia three times in the last five years, and will probably go back next year. Americans have not really discovered it yet, but europeans have so prices are starting to go up a bit. Even so, it’s still a great place to visit and cheaper than places like Italy and France.
The busy tourist season is in July and August. October is a bit quiter and cooler. Any idea of where and when you will be over there? Zagreb is a nice city but two or three days there is enough aas a tourist. Plitvice Lakes is a wonderful place, spend at least a day there (Sorry that **Fretful Porpentine ** missed it).
We’ve been mostly along the coastline and some of the islands. Istria is nice with more of an Italian flavor and there were many roadside cafes with outside grilles with a pig or lamb on a spit. Worthwhile to stop and eat at these places. Krka national park (near Sibenik, not far from Split) is also worth a look, especially if you miss Plitvice Lakes. Split itself is ok for a day or so, but it’s best as a place to drop off the car and catch ferries the islands of Brac and Hvar, and then onto Korcula and Dubrovnik (no real need for a car in these places).
It’s not dangerous at all. You’ll be safe walking in Zagreb in the middle of the night. While not part of the EU, Croatia really seems to see itself as a western european country. Along the coast and in Zagreb you’ll find plenty of English speakers, less so in the interior though most young people speak it. Credit cards are accepted at most places and ATM’s are easy to find and use.
Great coffee and plenty of it. Tons of cafes and sidewalk cafes.
Also, there is plenty of good info at the Croatia tourism web site.
In the past, we’ve made hotel and apartment reservations before we left. I think next year we’ll go without any, at least along the coast. There are plenty of apartments and rooms available. Look for the signs that say ‘Sobe’ or ‘Zimmer’, or look for the people trying to fill their rooms at the bus stations and ferry terminals.
If I get to go, it’d be a few months from now. And dang, I do hate the wintertime. It’d be on someone else’s nickel to teach adults a particular skill. I’d fly, land, have a day to adjust the body clock and teach for three days. Have an extra day on the other end just in case ( because for all of the international travelling I’ve done, that is one of the best things I ever learned. Book an extra day. Just in case all hell breaks loose and you lose a day. ) Then fly home.
Not a lotta time to be a tourist on someone else’s nickel. I was mostly worried about overall safety of Americans in the country- probably in a large city.
It sounds lovely. I’ve looked at the national tourism site. ( cite. Site? SIGHT? 
) Hope it comes to pass, if it does I’ll post into the Dope. If I’m lucky, I’ll post into the Dope FROM Croatia.
If you’re going to be there in winter, there’s plenty of opportunities for skiing & stuff.
my cousin, originally from Chicago and/or NYC lives in Sarajevo and says Croatia is her favorite spot. She goes to Dubrovnik among other spots. They’re people, just like us.
And as far as Bosnia is, it’s just fine as long as you use you head. And Sarajevo is even moreso than the rest of the country. Yea, watch for landmines though.