4 Favorite International Trips in My 20s

3. Dubrovnik & Hvar, Croatia

Croatia is best known for yacht week where you rent a boat (or get on Contiki) to go island hopping across Croatia and Greece. But without a ‘yacht’, there are regular boat rides between islands so you can island hop to your heart’s content. Personally, I loved Dubrovnik and Hvar the most.

Dubrovnik is a lively city where you can jet-ski during the day (the waves are pretty strong), check out the Dubrovnik Symphony Orchestra inside a fortress for about an hour, and head out to popping nightclubs at night. I’ve had some of the best seafood of my life (oysters the size of my ears!)

Hvar, on the other hand, offers a very well-balanced ‘island’ experience. It’s a party island but it’s still clean and beautiful. There are a lot of tourists and locals mixed together. You can go hiking to see the beautiful tower, chill at a cafe on the harbor, bum around on the beach, or hardcore day drink. Their famous bar/lounge, Hula Hula, has sick music and everyone there is just enchanted by the sunset views and vibes.

Many hostels host sweet bar crawls for tourists (you can pay and sign up even if you are not a guest) and you will meet so many people from all over the world.

There is a free ferry ride (about 30 minutes) to a smaller island near Hvar where you will see a spacious, outdoor club called Carpe Diem with beautiful dancers and hammocks. The boat rides are provided 24/7. Seriously, you will not regret staying in Hvar for 2-3 days.