Croatia Family Adventure: Split, Brac & Dubrovnik

Today the family explores a real Roman palace and swims near thundering waterfalls. In the morning, with your guide, you wander Diocletian's Palace, the vast 1,700-year-old seafront palace that is now a living maze of lanes, squares and cellars, standing in the great Peristyle courtyard, exploring the shadowy underground halls, spotting a real Egyptian sphinx and letting the children imagine emperors and gladiators. Then you journey to nearby Krka National Park, a beautiful landscape of turquoise river pools and thundering travertine waterfalls, following wooden boardwalks that wind across the clear water and past the mighty Skradinski Buk cascade, spotting fish and, in permitted areas and season, cooling off with a swim near the falls. As the day ends, you return to Split, thrilled by the day. This evening, enjoy a relaxed family dinner and gelato on the Riva. Rest well, ready to sail to the island of Brac tomorrow.

Today the family crosses to the beautiful island of Brac for beach fun in the sun. You take the short, exciting ferry ride across the sparkling channel to Brac, arriving at the pretty town of Bol, and settle into your family-friendly island hotel. Then it is straight to the beach: Zlatni Rat, the 'Golden Horn', perhaps the most famous beach in Croatia, a dazzling white pebble spit that curves into the turquoise sea from the pines. The whole family swims and snorkels in the warm, clear, shallow water, spotting little fish, plays on the beach, and relaxes under the sun, with beach cafes close by for ice cream and lazy lunches. As the day ends, you stroll the pretty harbour of Bol as the light softens. This evening, enjoy a relaxed family dinner of island seafood, pizza and pasta by the water. Rest well on beautiful Brac, ready for more island fun tomorrow.

Today the family enjoys a full day of gentle island adventures on Brac. The day is flexible and made for fun: you might try sea kayaking or stand-up paddleboarding along the clear coast, snorkel over turquoise shallows in search of little fish, and enjoy easy family cycling or walking through the fragrant pines and olive groves near Bol. You can return to the dazzling white spit of Zlatni Rat for more swimming and beach games, or discover a quieter cove for a peaceful family picnic by the sea. There is time simply to relax, build up an appetite, and enjoy plenty of ice cream. Older children might learn about the luminous white Brac stone used to build Diocletian's Palace. As the day ends, you return to Bol, sun-kissed and happy. This evening, enjoy a fun family dinner by the harbour. Rest well on Brac, ready to sail on to Dubrovnik tomorrow.

Today the family journeys to Dubrovnik, the magical walled 'Pearl of the Adriatic'. You take the ferry back towards the mainland and travel down the beautiful, scenic Dalmatian coast to Dubrovnik, the terracotta towns and turquoise sea sliding past the window (you might pause at Ston to see its great walls and salt pans). Arriving in the afternoon, the whole family gasps at the first sight of Dubrovnik's honey-coloured walls rising from the sparkling sea, a real fairy-tale fortress. You settle into your family-friendly hotel and take a first stroll along the marble-paved Stradun as the stone glows in the evening light, perhaps with an ice cream in hand. As the day ends, the walled city sparkles. This evening, enjoy a relaxed family dinner in the atmospheric old town. Rest well, ready to walk the mighty walls, ride the cable car and go sea kayaking tomorrow in Dubrovnik.

Today the family enjoys the thrilling adventures of Dubrovnik. In the morning, with your guide, you walk the complete circuit of the mighty medieval city walls high above the terracotta rooftops and the shimmering Adriatic, spotting towers, cannons and hidden corners (and, for Game of Thrones fans, the real King's Landing). You ride the cable car up Mount Srd for a spectacular bird's-eye view of the walled city, the islands and the blue sea far below. In the afternoon comes the highlight for many: sea kayaking together on the calm, clear water right beneath the towering walls, paddling around the cliffs to a hidden beach cave for a swim, an exciting, safe adventure the whole family loves (with an option to sail to green Lokrum island instead). As the day ends, you savour the walled city aglow. This evening, enjoy a fun farewell family dinner. Rest well ahead of departure.

After a final family morning in Dubrovnik, perhaps a last stroll along the Stradun, a final ice cream, or some souvenir shopping in the old town, you are transferred to Dubrovnik Airport for your onward departure. The family leaves having shared a fun-filled adventure across the coast and islands of Croatia, exploring a real Roman palace in Split, swimming near the turquoise waterfalls of Krka, enjoying beach days, snorkelling and kayaking on the island of Brac, and walking the mighty walls, riding the cable car and sea kayaking beneath the ramparts of Dubrovnik. The memories stay vivid long after you land, the Roman maze of Split, the thundering falls of Krka, the white spit of Zlatni Rat, and paddling beneath the walls of Dubrovnik. Croatia offers fun, variety, beauty and easy adventure for all ages in abundance, and the whole family departs already dreaming of a return to this sunny, welcoming and beautiful coast.