Croatia

This was our first VBT tour - the cycling, scenery and support from Andrej was excellent. Unfortunately, the value for the accommodations was lacking. Two out of three hotels were not what we would have expected for the cost. While we thoroughly enjoyed Croatia and the cycling, we will be looking for alternative tour operators in the future.

Thank you, Silvy, and the VBT reservation office for making this a true vacation and taking care of all the details. From the moment we hung up the phone I was certain my first trip with VBT would not be my last. Our local, native Croatian host, Andrej, was friendly, timely, helpful, informative, and an all-around nice guy. I also loved the Ride GPS app and the opportunities to explore Ston and other points of interest — I especially enjoyed roaming around the uninhabited town of Nakovana. With VBT arranged hotels all along the coast and beautiful September weather, I was able to swim in the Adriatic most days of our trip (bring water shoes to walk along the rocks and cobblestones!) So much more to explore…I will be back!

We have been on several trips with VBT and they have again delighted us. Croatia is a beautiful country and I feel like we got to see some really exceptional sights on this trip. Our trip leaders, all locals, really enhanced the experience with their local knowledge and caring customer service. The food, wine and accommodations were all excellent. We got e-bikes which helped us enjoy the trip even more. Our group was compatible and both the pre- and post- add-on trips to Zagreb and Dubrovnik were amazing. We are so glad we did all of it. We would highly recommend VBT and especially this trip to anyone.

This is a great trip! The rides in the Dalmatian islands were well planned and we experienced very little vehicle traffic. Some of routes have some steady 5%-7% climbs, but if you ride regularly, a road bike is just fine. I found the length of rides to be long enough to take in a lot of scenery, but still have time to relax on board. There opportunities to swim and visit the various port towns. In addition to the riding, the extra activities brought us to vineyards, olive groves and local restaurants. The yacht accommodations were excellent, 5 star quality. Great meals provided on board with excellent wait service. It was easy to enjoy a true mediterranean diet while on board. Unlike other VBT trips, there was no packing up for the next hotel and shuttling to rides. We got off the boat and started riding. The captain and the crew were great and we never experienced any boat rocking or rough seas. Very smooth sailing. The VBT guides were also excellent. It’s hard to be enthusiastic all season, but our leaders made each day enjoyable and interesting with their local knowledge and engaging personalities, while always providing watchful support. This is our 4th VBT trip and arguably the best.

This was a fantastic trip taken at the perfect time of the year in September. We were able to ride, swim and dine in gorgeous settings every day. The chance to meet the locals in their homes for dinners and to hear of their lives in Croatia was priceless. We were very fortunate to have two excellent guides in Nevenka and Natasha; they were both so knowledgeable and accommodating, we couldn't have asked for better leaders!

Just returned yesterday from Croatia. This was our first VBT tour and I'm sure it will not be our last. Our guides, Marko and Vanja were exceptional and we hated to leave them. They went above and beyond with recommendations for restaurants, things to see and do during the tour as well as the post tour extension in Split.

Country Walkers crafted the perfect itinerary for Slovenia and Croatia. Each phase of the trip was carefully selected right down to the selection of high end hotels, meals in interesting restaurants and side trips which we actually enjoyed such a fun wine tasting and a truffle hunt. The walks were all scenic but within the range of difficulty promised. Our guides were knowledgeable, pleasant and caring. We have traveled extensively but this was our first Country Walkers trip and we will definitely travel with them again. Every participant on our trip extended either before or after. That is something to keep in mind.

From having caring and knowledgeable guides to great companions, beautiful hikes, great places to eat and stay, it was a wonderful trip.

We had a great trip thanks in a large part to our guides and our Croatian hosts! Dani and Dani were a great guiding team, who adapted the itinerary to meet our needs. They were thoughtful, informative and knowledgable. I would highly recommend this trip. You will learn so much about the wonderful and beautiful Dalmatian coast.

We had an amazing time on this trip and could not have been happier with our decision to take our first ever group tour with Country Walkers. Everything about our trip was seamless. Our tour guides, Dani 1 and Dani 2, were knowledgeable, mature, funny and amiable, each in his own way, and added greatly to the trip/experience. Their local knowledge of culture, food, people, history was unmatchable. We had deep trust in them, and we knew that although everything seemed to go smoothly, they were constantly working behind the scenes to adjust plans due to weather, changes in schedule, etc. They made it look easy, but we knew it was not. Of course the hiking was nice, the views and location fantastic. The food was sumptuous and always different, so we sampled many things and felt we got exposed to all kinds of traditional Croation fare. The wine and grappa were always flowing generously. The eating locations themselves were unique. We heard rumors that this tour was being regrouped or cancelled and were quite surprised as everyone in our group seemed quite happy indeed. It would be a shame to lose these fantastic guides/guys.