Private Accommodations

Walls of Dubrovnik

My Mom loves hotels. Whenever I travel anywhere she always asks about my hotels. I never really understood her fascination. I see hotels as a necessity. After I am done exploring, I need a place to crash. I appreciate a nice hotel like anyone else but when it comes to budgeting a trip I would much rather spend less on the hotel and more on exploring. I had mentioned this to a friend when I was planning a trip to Croatia and he suggested I go with private accommodations. I did a little research and there were bed and breakfast accommodations that you could reserve in advance but my friend insisted that the best way was to wait until I arrived in Dubrovnik. He said,"When you get off the shuttle from the airport there will be these old ladies waiting around holding signs that say SOBE. Tell them you want a room for 20 euros and don't give them any money until they show you the room." I am fan of being flexible and not planning every minute but the idea of going to a foreign country without having a place to stay can be scary. The worst case scenario went through my mind where I am sleeping in some alley with my luggage, get arrested and spend the next 15 years in a Balkan prison camp. Okay, so maybe that was a little dramatic. I was nervous but he was so insistent that I decided to give it a shot.

View from my room

I arrived in Dubrovnik and the scene played out exactly as my friend described. I ended up getting an incredible room overlooking the water just outside the city walls in Dubrovnik. It was a short walk to everywhere I wanted to see and the woman who rented the room was better than any 5 star concierge. We talked the first night over a bowl of ice cream about my interests and she helped me develop a plan for the next few days. I started with a walk around the walls. You have to climb up a steep set of steps to get to the top but the walk around the top of the walls is astonishing. The view of the Adriatic Sea, the cliffs, the walls and the orange roof tiles create an image in your mind that you are unlikely to forget. 

Secret drink spot

While my host gave me a ton of great information there were two specific suggestions that she made that really summed up my trip to Dubrovnik. The first was a secret drink spot and the second was a trip to a War Museum at the top of the mountain. I asked for a recommendation for a place to have a drink with a view of the Adriatic Sea. She drew me a map on a napkin and told me to look for a piece of wood painted with the words " Cold Drinks" and a arrow. It wasn't easy to find and at one point I felt like I was a rat in maze but finally I found it. I had to walk through this mini-tunnel inside the wall but when I emerged on the other side I literally gasped. It was a bar on the side of a cliff with nothing but the majestic blue of the Adriatic ahead of me. I sat there for 3+ hours. I had a few too many beers and was entertained by the crazy Australian guy who climbed over the railing and jumped into the sea on a dare from his buddies. I may have stumbled upon this place on my own. Most likely, I would have walked right past that rickety sign and missed out on one of my favorite vacation experiences. 

View of Dubrovnik from the War Museum

During the first night ice cream session I mentioned that I was interested in Croatian history and how the country has changed since the war of the 1990's. My host suggested that I would enjoy the war museum located on the top of the hill in an old military bunker. She offered to drive me up and show me around. The museum was filled with photographs and weapons which were interesting to look at but the most interesting part was listening to my host talk about her personal experiences during that time. It put a real face on the war for me. The surprise of the trip to this museum was the view of the city from up there. I never would have found that museum on my own. 

Me overlooking the city

My experience throughout Croatia with private accommodations was mixed. This first one in Dubrovnik was by far the best but also the most expensive at 25 Euros a night. It had a wonderful view of the water and my host consistently went above and beyond. In Split, a city farther north up the Croatian coast, my room was tiny and in the basement. I saw my host when I got there and then never saw her again. She did leave me a note and a baggie of homemade cookies the morning I checked out. If one of your favorite parts of vacation is staying in a plush hotel, then private accommodations may not be for you. For me, the best part of vacation is trying to fit in as a local and private accommodations definitely helped me to do that.