The Ultimate Croatia Solo Female Travel Guide
This gorgeous Balkan gem nestled on the Adriatic Sea is becoming more popular every year, and with good reason. From deep teal waterfalls tumbling over towering mountains, to the clearest turquoise ocean water you’ve seen outside of the tropics, Croatia abounds with natural beauty.
But wait – that’s not all! Croatia is jam-packed with culture, history, and delicious cuisine that will refresh your senses in between hikes and swims. Awaken your inner archaeologist with ancient Roman ruins that rival those found in Italy!
With all of this to offer, the best part is that Croatia is also incredibly safe for solo female travel.
From my time road-tripping from the northern Istrian peninsula to the south into Montenegro, I put together this ultimate guide to Croatia solo female travel. With this guide, you can find out about the best places to visit in Croatia, as well as how to get around, staying safe, and average costs of travel in the country.
So whether you’re looking for a nature adventure, a beach vacation, culture and food, or a good party, Croatia definitely will not disappoint. This hidden gem belongs on every solo female traveler’s bucket list! So what are you waiting for? Keep reading to discover the amazing country of Croatia!
The Ultimate Croatia Solo Female Travel Guide: Page Contents
- Best places to visit in Croatia
- Top things to do in Croatia
- What to expect in Croatia: climate, language, money, and more
- Is Croatia safe for solo female travel?
- How to stay safe in Croatia as a solo female traveler
- Average costs in Croatia
- How to get around Croatia
- Tours & activities in Croatia I recommend
- Essential gear for a trip to Croatia
- Favorite Croatia booking resources
- Latest & most recent Croatia posts
The Ultimate Croatia Solo Female Travel Guide:
Best Places to Visit in Croatia
Top Things to Do in Croatia
Related: Ready to book your flight to Croatia now?! Search now using the tool from one of my favorite flight-booking search engines, Skyscanner!
The Ultimate Croatia Solo Female Travel Guide:
What to Expect in Croatia
as a solo female traveler
Language in Croatia
The official language in Croatia is Croatian.
However, because of its proximity to other countries in the region and recent history, it’s not uncommon to hear Bosnian or Serbian also spoken in some areas of the country. Especially in more touristic areas, most people speak English well. As with any destination you visit, still try to learn basic phrases in the local dialect to be respectful!
Money in Croatia
💱 Currency
Although Croatia belongs to the European Union, Croatia uses the Croatian Kuna (HRK). 1 USD = 7.06 HRK at the time of writing.
💳 Cash or card?
In larger cities like Zagreb, Split, and Dubrovnik, credit cards like Visa and Mastercard are widely accepted. However, smaller establishments on the mainland and most establishments on the islands don’t accept credit cards. In these cases, be prepared to pay cash for your stays. I always carry around a small change purse in addition to my wallet to organize my cash.
Click here for my favorite 0% foreign transaction fee credit cards with travel rewards!
Plugs
Croatia uses the same Type C 230V plugs as the rest of Europe. Get my favorite universal plug adapter here!
Climate in Croatia
Croatia has a climate on par with other countries in the southern Mediterranean. The weather will depend somewhat on whether you’re in the mountains or on the coast, especially during the cooler months. Summers are generally very hot in the 80s-90s Fahrenheit and sunny with minimal rain. This makes Croatia a perfect beach destination. However, it can be nearly unbearable in the middle of the day if you’re in the city!
For more detailed information about the climate of your particular Croatia solo female travel destination, visit this website.
Related: Wondering what to pack for Croatia solo female travel so you’re prepared for the climate? Check out my Ultimate Backpacking Packing List for Summer in Europe!
Best Time to Visit Croatia
For a beach vacation, May-August are the best months to visit Croatia. It’s important to note that the northernmost part of the coast (Istria and Rijeka) might get thunderstorms and rainy days, even in the summer. However, this is a lot rarer along the Dalmatian coast farther south.
I would suggest visiting in May or June to get the best weather without it getting too hot. I found in mid-June it was already getting too hot for my liking. You may also be able to avoid some of the regular summer crowds by visiting in May.
Best SIM card for Croatia
I always recommend getting a local SIM card at your destination to save money on roaming fees. The best SIM card to get in Croatia is the T-Mobile prepaid SIM. For $14, you get unlimited data and a little bit of calling time. And bonus – you can use this in the rest of the EU for your Europe solo travels without extra fees! The T-Mobile 4G/5G network is the best in Croatia so you’ll always be connected. Get your SIM card at the airport when you land for the easiest experience.
Is Croatia safe for female solo traveling?
Yes! Croatia is very safe for female solo traveling. Croatia is actually one of the safest countries in Europe and the world. Landing 17th on the Global Peace Index, Croatia has a rating of 1.48 as of 2021. In comparison, the United States ranks 122 out of 163 countries, with a rating of 2.34. Violent crime is very rare in Croatia. Petty theft in cities is the most common type of crime.
The Ultimate Croatia Solo Female Travel Guide: How to Stay Safe
As stated above, Croatia solo female travel is generally very safe. However, there are still some basic precautions you should take. These apply for all solo female travel in general, not just in Croatia!
Avoid walking around alone at night
Make friends at your hostel and go out with them. Stay in a group when it’s dark to avoid any unwanted attention or trouble.
Keep your wits about you
When you’re unfamiliar with where you are, it’s just not a good idea to get too drunk. This is especially true when you’re solo traveling, and especially especially true when you’re a solo traveling woman. If you choose to drink on your Croatia solo female travel tour, always make sure you’re alert and aware. You want to be able to respond appropriately and remove yourself from a situation if something goes wrong.
Keep an eye on your drink
Keep an eye on your drink at all times. It’s uncommon, but just like anywhere, your drink could be “spiked” with drugs or other unknown substances by other partygoers. If you’re really concerned about this, watch the bartender pour/make your drink.
Use the buddy system
If you’re out at a bar or club, go to the bathroom with a buddy. This will make sure you both have an eye on each other and no one gets lost.
Keep your passport locked up
Don’t ever bring your physical passport with you unless you’re traveling to another country at that moment (like, you’re going to the airport). Your passport is much more likely to get stolen on you than it is to be stolen from or damaged in your accommodation. If you really need to have your passport photo page with you, carry a photocopy instead.
Don’t carry large amounts of cash
It’s just not smart to have a bunch of physical money on you. Split your stash and only bring what you need. Keep the rest in your hotel or hostel. Likewise, only bring the credit and debit cards you need when you go around town. I try not to carry around cards with direct access to my bank accounts unless I’m planning to withdraw cash on that particular excursion from my accommodation.
Carry a flashlight in rural areas
If you’ll be staying in smaller villages or more remote areas of Croatia, bring a headlamp or flashlight. If you’re walking home at night when it’s dark, you’ll be happy to have one. Not only will it make you more visible to oncoming drivers, but will also help you avoid stepping on anything you’d rather not – like snakes!
Don’t be afraid to ask for help
Coming from a girl who is naturally terrible at asking for help, do not be afraid to ask for help from a local, or anyone, especially if you’re in immediate danger. Be confident and assertive.
Ask accommodation staff for important notes
Sometimes where you’re staying is perfectly safe, but there might be a nearby attraction that is locally infamous for robberies. To make sure you’re properly informed, ask your accommodation staff if there’s anything important to know regarding the safety of the area you’re staying in.
Related: Protect yourself and your belongings with travel insurance from World Nomads. They cover over 150 activities while you’re abroad! Get a quote, make a claim, or buy or extend your policy while on the road. I’ve been using them for over 3 years and never travel without it!
The Ultimate Croatia Solo Female Travel Guide:
Average Costs
The Ultimate Croatia Solo Female Travel Guide:
How to Get Around
🚆 Train
If you’d like to cross something off the #bucketlist and explore Croatia solo female travel by train, consider getting a Eurail pass! This will allow you to connect your train travels in Croatia with other countries in Europe, including direct lines to Austria, Czechia, Germany, Hungary, and Slovenia. The all-in-one ticket allows you to travel 33 countries across Europe in an easy, convenient, budget-friendly way. Note that the national rail system in Croatia connects all major cities except Dubrovnik. If you want to get to Dubrovnik, you’ll have to take a train to Split and then a bus to Dubrovnik. Overall, I personally wouldn’t recommend the trains in Croatia as the best option unless you’re on an Interrailing trip already.
🚍️ Bus
Intercity buses, as well as buses between cities, are the most affordable option for getting around Croatia. If you’re staying outside the walkable city centers, you can get a local bus into town for as little as $1-2. For getting between cities, Flixbus is the best option. Their fares are extremely affordable and the buses are comfortable with AC, power outlets, and toilets. Most tickets on Flixbus between major cities in Croatia will cost less than $15. I especially like to use these buses to get between cities and their airports.
If you’re interested in day trips from Dubrovnik (or other cities) to the national parks, you can also use a bus to get there. This is best done through a tour operator like GetYourGuide or Viator.
🚘 Car
While not the cheapest option, a rental car is hands-down the most convenient way to see Croatia. Cars are especially useful for exploring more rural areas and taking as many photography stops as you want. If you’re an avid hiker and most of your time in Croatia will be spent seeing national parks, I highly suggest a rental car. It will make things a lot easier. Just consider that gas costs nearly $7/gallon in Croatia in 2022.
Other helpful tips for renting a car in Croatia:
- The majority of cars in Europe, including Croatia, are manual. If you can’t drive manual (like me), make sure to check that the car you book is an automatic. Unfortunately, this usually costs more.
- Only get as big a car as you need. Croatian city streets can be tiny and you want a car that can fit through those narrow roads easily. You also don’t want a bigger car to guzzle gas unnecessarily.
- Always book with a reputable rental company with good reviews. And make sure to actually read the fine print before you drive the car away. It’s just not worth doing a cheaper, shady deal to save a few bucks. I am embarrassed to admit I did this in Saint Martin, and it became a legal and logistical disaster when our bags, and then rental car, got stolen at the beach. I’m lucky I had travel insurance or else I would have been left to pay $1,000’s for the rental car damage in addition to replacing my stolen camera!
Rentalcars.com has a great interface for finding and booking the best deals on rental cars all over the world from reputable companies!
The Ultimate Croatia Solo Female Travel Guide:
Tours & Activities I Recommend
The Ultimate Croatia Solo Female Travel Guide:
Essential Gear
Related: Looking for a Croatia packing list this summer? Check out my Ultimate Backpacking Packing List for Summer in Europe!
Favorite Booking Resources
These are my favorite companies to use while traveling in Croatia. They consistently return the best deals and user experience. I’ve mentioned some of these already above, but have condensed them into a one-stop-shop list for your convenience here:
Flight booking tools
- Skyscanner – a great tool for finding the cheapest flights with lots of filter options.
- Kiwi.com – one of my favorite flight search engines, especially when you’re really flexible with the dates you travel. Kiwi allows you to choose specific dates, date ranges, or length of travel to multiple destinations at once so comparing prices is easy. Their Nomad tool is also handy if you’re planning multiple flights in a row and aren’t sure about the cheapest order in which to do things!
- Google Flights – I’ll often start with this tool to get a broad overview of flights available. Their discovery map tool is also helpful.
Accommodation booking tools
- Agoda – Agoda has got some fantastic deals lately. Using their booking system, I was able to stay in a presidential suite at a 4-star resort in Mauritius for practically half the price offered on most other sites!
- Booking.com – a gold standard in accommodation booking. If a hotel is anywhere, it’s probably on Booking.com. I also really love Booking’s loyalty program Genius, which has allowed me to score some pretty sweet deals in some of my favorite Croatia solo female travel destinations.
- Hostelworld – also a gold standard in accommodation booking, but for hostels. If you want to get the best, most comprehensive reviews of hostels from travelers just like you, check Hostelworld first. Then see whether Hostelworld or Booking.com gives you a better deal with loyalty rewards.
Transportation tools
- Rentalcars.com – the most comprehensive rental car search tool to price compare between the top reputable companies.
- FlixBus – my favorite way to travel by bus across Croatia and Europe. Coaches have heating and AC, toilets, and charging ports. You can often get between cities in Croatia for less than $15 with FlixBus.
- Eurail – if you’re looking to ride the rails through Europe before or after your Croatia solo female travel tour, the Eurail pass is an excellent option. It’s an all-in-one ticket that allows you to visit 33 countries across the continent in comfort. The Eurail pass is the non-EEA-citizen version of the Interrail pass.
Guide- and attraction-finding tools
- GetYourGuide – if you’re interested in finding guided tours at your destination, GetYourGuide is the way to go. From food tours to private walking tours, you’ll definitely find something you’re interested in. Seeing reviews from other travelers and booking is easy.
- Intrepid Travel – if you want to go on a group tour in Croatia, Intrepid Travel offers the best. Their tours are small, intimate groups led by local guides and with a small ecological footprint.
- Viator – Viator has tons of activities, experiences, and tours available for thousands of destinations around the world. They’re a great way to add a fun activity onto the itinerary.
- TripAdvisor – TripAdvisor has loads of travel booking tools, but my favorite use for them is looking up top-rated restaurants by other travelers. Their tour/activity recommendations can be decent. However, their lists of top attractions at certain destinations might not be more than “which attractions will be the most crammed with tourists?”
Favorite $0 foreign transaction fee travel rewards credit cards
- Chase Sapphire Preferred – my first travel rewards card, this $0 foreign transaction fee card has mighty rewards for the frequent traveler. At the time of writing, meet the $4,000 spending minimum within the first 3 months and get 80,000 bonus miles worth at least $800 to put towards flights, hotels, and more! In addition, this card has excellent insurance to cover expenses if your flight gets delayed or cancelled, or your baggage gets delayed or lost.
- CapitalOne Venture Rewards – my current favorite travel rewards card with $0 foreign transaction fees. Besides their price prediction and protection travel booking portal, I love their comprehensive car rental insurance. At the time of writing, earn 60,000 bonus miles worth over $600 when you meet the $3,000 spending minimum in the first 3 months.
Travel insurance tools
- World Nomads travel insurance – after getting covered for the thousands of dollars in rental car damage and my stolen camera after thieves stole my belongings on a beach in Saint Martin, I never travel without it. Sh*t happens sometimes when you travel. Don’t risk it.
