Memorial Day Weekend in Croatia
Sitting with my feet propped up on the fence at Camp Stine in Starigrad, Croatia, I listened to the waves gently crash against the rocky shoreline. We watched as the sun slowly set with shades of pink and purple hues, causing the clouds in the sky to be illuminated in the same colors. A boat passed by and we saw him all the way in, enjoying the hum of the engine and speculating about the mission he was on. Memorial Day Weekend in Croatia was off to a great start.
We drove basically non-stop (7 hours) after Stephen got off staff duty at 6 am to make it to our campground for the night. It was our first camp of the season and the first for our pup Sven. We picked the perfect place to spend Memorial Day weekend. Upon arriving, I had to quickly switch out of my jeans, not yet used to the high temps. Through the humidity, we set up camp, opened a cold one, then changed into our bathing suits. A little bit of snorkeling was accomplished before the rains came. We worked up a hefty appetite after the swimming and shivering, leading us to savage mushroom risotto and local Croatian sausage that we cooked with our camping set, accompanied by a bottle of Merlo from Villa Sceriman. A delicious, yet simple meal – perfect for camping! It rained the first night of our camping trip, and I haven’t slept that good in a long time. Luckily, we have an incredible tent that has withstood many rainstorms and is very sturdy! (You can find it here on Amazon)
Side Note about currencies listed in this post:
1 USD ~= 6.65 Croatian Kunas (kn)
1 euro ~= 7.42 Croatian Kunas (kn)
Table of Contents
Hiking at National Park Paklenica
If we ever find ourselves back in the Zadar area, I want to go to National Park Paklenica again and go rock climbing. It was a rock climber’s paradise. Unfortunately, we had the dogs with us and are limited in activities, so we spent the first part of the next day hiking instead. I was doubting myself when I read the reviews online about how difficult it was, but I felt pretty good after hiking for 2 hours. We made it as far as the sign to the mountain lodge (where it said there were 55 more minutes to go). The dog’s feet were wearing down quickly on the steep rocky trail, and we noticed the pads of Sven’s feet growing redder by the minute. We decided to turn back and hike it down to the car.
Inside National Park Paklenica were nature pools, waterfalls, streams, summits, and great climbing routes. It’s easy to find and right along the coastline. There is an entry fee, being a National Park and all, of 40 kn per person and 10 kn per vehicle – for a 1-day pass in the month of May. You can find more prices on their website here. You can also hire a guide for hiking or rock climbing and they have a rental shop where it’s possible to rent all sorts of gear for both sports.
National Park Paklenica
Address: Paklenička ul. bb, 23244, Starigrad, Croatia (click for Google Maps)
Website: https://np-paklenica.hr/en/
Back to Camp Stine
After eating a hefty lunch at the place recommended by the owners of Camp Stine – Dinko Buffet Paklenica, we made it back to camp, switched into our swimsuits, and headed down to the shore. It was so relaxing sitting by the sea with Stephen and the pups, reading my book and soaking up the sun. I borrowed his wetsuit and did a little bit of snorkeling. Having the flippers on always makes me feel so free out there in the water. I gazed at the fish and thought I saw an octopus lying on the sea floor but couldn’t be sure.
Our dinner ended another wonderful day – a mix of steak, zucchini (both from the local grocery store – Tommy Market), and four cheese risotto. I looked forward to another night in the tent with a slight breeze rolling in off the ocean. (You can find the amazing cookware set that we use on Amazon here or in the strip below!)
Dinner is served: steak, four cheese risotto & zucchini 
Camp Stine
Address: D8 9, 23244, Starigrad, Croatia (click for Google Maps)
Website: http://campstine.com/en/
Email for reservations: campstine1@gmail.com
Up Next: Camp Slapić
Saturday morning, we woke up and decided we wanted a change of scenery. One of our favorite campsites in Croatia sets alongside a river with a wonderful restaurant, excellent facilities, and room to roam. Camp Slapić was our next campground for the weekend. It was about 2.5 hours from Camp Stine, towards Zagreb. Although the temperature was higher when we arrived, the wind blowing off the Mreznica river and the looming storms cooled things down quickly. We were looking forward to canoeing down the river again, like last summer, but because of the constant rain they had lately, the canoes were still in storage and unable to rent. We still managed to wade into the frigid water and take a little hike through the nearby fields. It was nice to relax, recline in the Eno hammock, and read our books for the day. Around happy hour, we decided to mingle on over to the restaurant and grab a few drinks. When a storm came through, we continued to munch on food and then chose to stay and chat with the couple next to us from Belgium, who were in love with Presley.
It rained practically all night that night and we hardly slept a wink once the ground around our tent started flooding. Stephen was so worried about poor Sven out in the rain, yet he refused to stay inside the porch of our tent. We’re still brainstorming on a way to make it work with him camping – he loves it, but when it comes to sleep time, he’s a bit of a nightmare. Sunday morning, we packed up our wet stuff, grabbed cappuccinos at the restaurant, and started the long drive home. I was looking forward to a proper shower and my big bed!
Camp Slapić
Address: Mrežnicki Brig bb, 47250, Duga Resa, Croatia (click for Google Maps)
Website: https://www.campslapic.hr/en/
Expenses for the Weekend
Per usual, I tracked our expenses from our trip and the breakdown is below. Using the Money Manager app makes this super easy to do and keeps you conscientious of where you are spending money during your trips! I highly recommend using this strategy if you are frequent travelers, but still semi-budgeters!
Related Post: How We Afford to Travel
Final Thoughts
Directly from my journal during our Memorial Day Weekend in Croatia: “Who knows what tomorrow holds, but today, I am grateful for feeling like we have no cares in the world sitting by the ocean. Grateful for the fact that we live somewhere that allows us to pack up and drive somewhere as beautiful as this country (Croatia).”
Have you had the chance to visit Croatia yet? Let me know your thoughts about this incredible country below!
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