Croatia

Stretching along the Adriatic Sea with a coastline of over a thousand islands, Croatia offers medieval walled cities like Dubrovnik, crystal-clear water, and a relaxed Mediterranean way of life. It's one of our favorite places in the world.

Croatia is less of a trip for us at this point and more a second version of home.

A few years ago, after spending a long time traveling around Europe trying to figure out where we could actually picture ourselves living part of the year, we ended up buying a place in Cavtat, a small Mediterranean town about ten minutes from Dubrovnik Airport. Within minutes of arriving, we knew it was the one.

Cavtat is our happy place. Palm-lined promenades, stone pathways along the water, a walkable little peninsula, boats drifting through the harbor, gelato around every corner. The town slogan is "where life is a simple pleasure," which honestly describes the rhythm of life there pretty perfectly.

Most days are surprisingly simple. Morning coffee at a café on the sea, walks along the seafront, swims in the Adriatic at sunset, and dinners outside on our patio fresh from the local farmer's market. We've also become unofficial tour guides at this point because there's been a steady rotation of friends and family visiting us ever since we bought the place.

The rhythm with guests is pretty set by now. Day one is Dubrovnik day, the famous old city near us. Walk the Dubrovnik walls in the morning, have lunch with a view at Panorama, then head back to Cavtat for an afternoon swim before at Ankora. The next day is usually all about the water — a full boat day around the Elaphiti Islands with lunch on Lopud. The third day is countryside day, winding through the backroads of the Konavle region, which people often compare to the Tuscany of Croatia. We'll do lunch at Lancana, hike down to Pasjača Beach for a swim, then finish with peka at Konavoski Dvori, where lamb or veal cooks slowly for hours under a bell over coals. With more time, we might add a beach club day at BOWA or Val Di Breno, or even a quick day trip into Montenegro.

The country is bigger than Cavtat, too, and one year we did a yacht trip around the islands while another year we road-tripped up the coast. We flew to Zagreb, drove through Plitvice Lakes National Park, then continued north toward Rijeka and Istria. Istria was a surprise — truffle hunting, olive oil tastings, vineyards, hill towns, incredible seafood. Rovinj in particular became one of our favorite places in the country. If you ever visit Croatia beyond Dubrovnik, Istria is the region I think people most underestimate.

What I appreciate most about Croatia overall is the pace of life. People spend time outside. Meals are slow. Families gather nightly along the promenades. Kids are still out playing late into the evening. Nobody seems particularly rushed. Coming from American startup culture and city life, there was something about that rhythm that resonated with both of us immediately.

Another thing that stood out to us over time was the way locals slowly took us in once we became regulars. Croatian culture isn't overly bubbly or performative at first, but once people know you, the warmth runs deep. Neighbors bringing over homemade wine, olive oil, fresh asparagus they've picked in the wild, invitations to dinner, long conversations on patios. Those moments ended up meaning just as much to us as the scenery itself.

If you ask me my favorite place we've been, Croatia is usually my answer — Cavtat specifically. And somehow, after all the countries we've visited, the simple days there still end up being some of our favorite ones.