Time for another budget breakdown bonanza! We’re going back in time to create a budget for a two week trip to Croatia. This country has been the booming tourist destination of Europe these past few years. Over a million more tourists enter the country each year and they must like it because each tourist has been staying more nights as well.

This tourism boom means that Croatia isn’t as cheap as it once was. It’s still an affordable country and its total budget should be similar to that of its neighbor, Slovenia, so it’s no issue for the budget-minded backpacker. However, all the newfound wealth and tourist infrastructure gives you many options to break the budget if you’re not careful. One particular area of note is Dubrovnik. This budget does not plan for a visit to the famous Game of Thrones city and if you decide to visit (especially for a prolonged period of time) I’d add another $3-4 a day to the budget due to its extremely high cost of living.

Category	Expected Cost per Day
Alcohol	$3.00
Entertainment	$10.00
Food	$10.00
Living	$1.00
Lodging	$25.00
Travel	$5.00
Grand Total	$54.00

Table 1. Expected Cost per day.

 

Alcohol

You can pick up beer at grocery stores for as little as 9 HRK ($1.44) and if you’re not beyond bottom of the shelf beer, you can dig up beer in 1-2 liter jugs for 13 HRK – 20 HRK ($2 – $3.13). Store bought liquor is also fairly affordable running as low as 60 HRK ($9.39) for a fifth (750 ml bottle).

In comparison, our soda is sold in two liter bottles. I know which country does their drinking right

 

The big catch is if (when) you go out drinking. Most coastal Croatian towns are renowned for their vibrant nightlife and if you continue south, expect to find an increasing number of ritzy and glamorous bars and clubs that will run your budget dry. Expect a simple beer to cost 22 HRK ($3.50) at a modest bar and to go up from there. And when I say go up, I’ve seen it go as high as 50 HRK ($7.85).

This budget assumes a high alcohol budget since most people visiting Croatia are here to have a few drinks on their famous beaches and partake in the party atmosphere.

You could cut down on costs by drinking less, but are you really not going to enjoy a cold one with that view?

 

Entertainment

I’m still fuming over the Croatian government’s blatant efforts to gouge as much money out of tourists as possible. Tourism to Croatia is very dependent on the season, and unless you’re one of the few people visiting the country during the off season, expect extremely high entrance fees to the national parks.

A visit during peak season to Plitvice and the Klis Waterfalls during peak season will cost you 180 HRK ($28.80) each. Other smaller attractions like museums offer a fair entrance fees and will never run more than 60 HRK ($9.40). Unfortunately, the combination of these smaller fees, transportation to national parks outside of town, and the respective entrance fees will all add up to be a sizable chunk of your budget.

 

Food

Inland Croatian cuisine shares a lot of similarities with their Slavic neighbors, but Croatia’s large coastline draws its influence from Mediterranean flavors, particularly Italian. Of course, this proximity to the waters means that there’s a large emphasis on seafood. However, I found that a decent seafood meal at a restaurant would run between 60 – 100 HRK ($9.39 – $15.66). While the meals were good, I didn’t find them to be great in value.

You can of course find cheap fast food from 15 – 22 HRK ($2.35 – $3.44) like burek and pizza but that’s probably not a practical option for long term meals. This budget requires you to cook the majority of your meals with the occasional meal eaten out to sample the local flavor. Self-catering your meals is turning out to be a necessity to travel most of Europe on a budget.

The food is good, but (don’t hate me Croatia) I found it better to save your dining out money to across the water to Italy

 

Living

Expect the usual, small costs like the occasional souvenir or perhaps some more toothpaste. Hand wash your clothes, as laundry in most accommodations is pretty expensive.

 

Lodging

And once again, due to the constant increase in tourism, cheap lodging like hostels isn’t so cheap. The northern half of Croatia was pretty consistent with their pricing around 140 – 170 HRK ($22 – $26.62) a night. Once you get to the lower half of Croatia and particularly the islands, the price range increases to 160 HRK – 210 HRK ($25 – $32.89).

While these prices can be pretty steep, you do get what you pay for. The constant rush to create new accommodations and the competition that spawns with it means that most hostels are fairly well run, clean, and in many cases, brand new.

This hostel had a bunny! So needless to say I extended my stay there

 

Travel

This budget is built around using buses as the primary mode of transportation. Trains are more comfortable and run primarily to the larger towns, but are more expensive. This makes a big difference as shorter bus rides (2-3 hours) cost between 45 – 55 HRK ($7 – $8.60). The cost goes up proportionally for longer rides. This low price makes taking the buses much more worth it from the budget perspective.

If you go down to the islands, the ferries are also pretty affordable. Ferry prices can vary between 22 – 35 HRK ($3.45 – $5.48) so island hopping won’t break the bank. If you do decide to island hop, remember to double check your port destination. Sometimes you’ll have to pay for a connecting bus once you get to the island.

 

My Costs

Another country that shot my budget above my desired $50 a day mark. This wasn’t too much of a surprise since Croatia is such a popular destination. But for the quality of the beaches, national parks and relaxed cities, it was a great stop to unwind.

Category	Cost per Day
Alcohol	$2.85
Entertainment	$9.38
Food	$10.47
Living	$1.13
Lodging	$23.92
Travel	$4.83
Grand Total	$52.58

Table 2. Actual cost per day over two weeks

 

If you pre-game before heading to the bars, limit your meals out and balance your time between the northern and southern half of Croatia, the country won’t hit the wallet too hard. If you want to go all out, well Croatia will also happily oblige your high spending habits too.

Anyways, here’s my new running total. Still going strong methinks.

Category	Total Running Cost per Day
Alcohol	$3.58
Entertainment	$4.09
Food	$12.29
Living	$1.33
Lodging	$21.49
Travel	$5.15
Grand Total	$47.93

Table 3. Running total after 67 days.

 

Worldy Observations

• I was trying to rent a motorbike and the proprietor questioned my biking abilities when I told her I was an American. I then told her I was also Vietnamese. “Vietnamese are great drivers” she replied, referring to Vietnam’s massive motorbiking culture. All her doubts vanished and she allowed me to rent the bike.
• Some areas in Southeast Asia use gravity toilets without the flushing mechanism. This requires you to scoop water (a bucket is often placed next to the toilet) into the bowl manually to flush. This method doesn’t work well when you have a really large poop.
• A German guy and an Irish girl are talking. She’s just cracking jokes and taking the piss out of the German. He gets none of the jokes and tries to answer seriously.
• Eating lunch with a white westerner. He likes his food spicy and asks the waitress for more chilies. The waitress didn’t actually believe a white man would want his food to be spicy.

 

Until next time.