Croatia wasn’t somewhere we’d considered for a family holiday. Not properly. We knew about Dubrovnik from Game of Thrones and had a vague sense of “nice coastline” but that was about it. Then a friend came back raving about it — affordable, safe, gorgeous water, kids loved it — and we booked flights the same week.
She was right. Croatia is one of the best family destinations in Europe and we’re slightly annoyed we didn’t go sooner. The Adriatic coast is staggeringly beautiful, the food is familiar enough that nobody kicks off at mealtimes, it’s a two-and-a-half-hour flight from most UK airports, and since Croatia joined the eurozone in 2024 you don’t even need to faff about with currency exchange. Just tap your card and go.
It’s also genuinely safe. The kind of place where you don’t clutch your bag on public transport or worry about walking back to your apartment after dinner. That matters when you’ve got small people in tow.
Here’s everything we’ve learnt from multiple trips with kids of different ages.
Split
Start here. Split is the practical hub of the Dalmatian coast and makes the best base for families who want to see more than one place.
The heart of the city is Diocletian’s Palace — except calling it a palace undersells it completely. It’s an entire neighbourhood. A Roman emperor’s retirement home that people never stopped living in, so now there are cafes and shops and apartments stuffed into 1,700-year-old walls. You walk through it freely, no ticket needed. Our kids were fascinated by the idea that people still live inside a palace. The basement halls (those are ticketed, around €8) are worth a look if your children can handle “old stones” for twenty minutes.
Outside the palace walls, the Riva promenade runs along the waterfront. Wide, flat, lined with palm trees and cafes. Perfect for an evening wander with ice cream while the kids run ahead. Behind the old town, Marjan Hill is a forested park with walking trails, viewpoints, and quiet pebbly beaches on the far side. We spent a full morning there and barely saw another tourist.
Split works well as a two or three-day stop. Enough to explore the old town, hit a beach, and use it as a jumping-off point for the islands.
Dubrovnik
We’ve written a full guide to Dubrovnik with kids, so we won’t repeat everything here. But the highlights: walking the city walls is unmissable (€35 adults, under 10 free), Lokrum Island is a fifteen-minute ferry ride to peacocks and swimming in a salt lake, and the cable car up Mount Srd gives you views that make everyone go quiet for a moment. Even the teenagers.
Dubrovnik is pricier than the rest of Croatia and absolutely heaving in July and August. If you can manage June or September, do. The old town is compact and entirely pedestrianised, which makes it surprisingly relaxed with children despite the crowds.
One practical note — if you’re doing both Split and Dubrovnik, the coastal drive between them takes about three and a half hours and briefly crosses into Bosnia-Herzegovina at Neum. Passports required. Or you can take the new Pelješac Bridge and skip the border crossing entirely. Much easier with kids.
Plitvice Lakes National Park
This is the day trip that justifies renting a car.
Plitvice is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the forested interior — sixteen terraced lakes connected by waterfalls, with wooden boardwalks threading between them right at water level. The colour of the water is absurd. Turquoise, emerald, sometimes almost teal, shifting with the light and the mineral content. Photos don’t do it justice. Not even close.
Tickets cost between €15 and €30 for adults depending on the season, and children under seven go free. Budget four to six hours to see it properly. There are two main routes — the upper lakes are quieter and slightly less dramatic, the lower lakes have the big waterfalls and the crowds. Do both if legs allow.
It’s doable as a day trip from either Split (roughly two and a half hours’ drive) or Zagreb (two hours). We did it from Split and it was a long day but absolutely worth it. Pack lunch — the cafes inside the park are overpriced and uninspiring.
A word of warning: the boardwalks are narrow in places and there are no railings in some sections. Manageable with sensible children, nerve-wracking with toddlers who like to lunge sideways. Pushchairs are a non-starter on most of the trails.
The Islands
Island-hopping is one of the great pleasures of Croatia with kids. Ferries are frequent, affordable, and the kids treat every crossing as an adventure.
Brač is our top pick for families. It’s the closest major island to Split (about fifty minutes by catamaran) and home to Zlatni Rat, one of Croatia’s most photographed beaches. It’s a long pebble spit that changes shape with the wind and current — the kids thought this was brilliant. The water is shallow enough for paddling and the beach has facilities without feeling overdeveloped. Bol, the nearest town, is small and laid-back.
Korčula is quieter still. Gorgeous walled old town perched on a peninsula — like a miniature Dubrovnik without the cruise ship passengers. Marco Polo was allegedly born here, which our history-mad eldest found thrilling and everyone else tolerated. Good kayaking, good swimming, good restaurants. Proper family pace.
Hvar is the glamorous one. Beautiful town, lavender fields in the interior, fantastic restaurants. But it skews older and livelier, particularly in high season. Teens might enjoy the energy. With younger children it felt slightly less our scene. Worth a day trip from Split rather than a base, perhaps.
Zadar
Zadar rarely makes the shortlist for first-time visitors and that’s a shame because it might be our favourite Croatian city for families.
It’s smaller and calmer than Split, with a gorgeous old town on a peninsula and far fewer travelers. But the real draw is the Sea Organ — an architectural installation built into the seafront steps where waves push air through tuned pipes beneath the stone. The result is a haunting, ever-changing musical hum. Our kids sat on those steps for forty-five minutes, which is approximately forty-three minutes longer than they’ve ever sat still for anything.
Right next to it is the Sun Salutation, a circular glass plate set into the ground that absorbs solar energy during the day and puts on a light show after dark. Free. Mesmerising. The kind of thing kids remember years later.
Zadar also works brilliantly as a base for Plitvice Lakes (under two hours by car) and for reaching some of Croatia’s rare sandy beaches.
Istria
If you prefer something less “beach holiday” and more “Italian hilltop village with incredible food,” head northwest to Istria.
The Istrian peninsula sits right up against the Italian and Slovenian borders and the influence shows — pasta, truffles, olive oil, hilltop towns with terracotta roofs and church bells. Rovinj is the headline act, a fishing town so picturesque it borders on ridiculous, but Motovun, Grožnjan, and Poreč all deserve a visit too.
The coast here is less dramatic than Dalmatia but significantly less crowded. Beaches are rocky but the water is clean and warm. The interior is green and hilly — proper countryside, great for families who get restless lying on a beach for a week straight.
Istria is also the truffle capital of Croatia. Our kids, who would normally reject anything more adventurous than pasta with butter, ate truffle pasta and asked for seconds. That alone was worth the trip.
Beaches — What to Expect
Here’s the thing nobody tells you before your first Croatian holiday: the beaches are mostly rocky or pebbly. If you’re picturing soft white sand, adjust your expectations now.
Water shoes are non-negotiable for kids. And honestly, for adults too. The pebbles range from “smooth and manageable” to “standing on Lego” depending on the beach. Buy them before you go — they’re cheaper in the UK than at Croatian beach shops.
The upside? That rocky coastline is exactly why the water is so impossibly clear. You can see fish swimming around your feet. Snorkelling straight off the beach is brilliant — even in shallow water the visibility is extraordinary.
If you desperately want sand, it does exist. Nin, just north of Zadar, has a proper sandy beach with shallow warm water. It’s famous for its therapeutic mud too, which kids find hilarious. Saharun on Dugi Otok island is another — white sand, turquoise water, genuinely Caribbean-looking. Worth the ferry trip.
Food
Croatian food is one of the best things about a family holiday here. It’s Mediterranean, it’s fresh, portions are generous, and it won’t bankrupt you.
Grilled fish runs about €12 to €18 for a plate, depending on the type and the restaurant. Čevapi — little grilled meat sausages served with flatbread and ajvar (a roasted pepper relish) — are everywhere and usually €8 to €10. Kids demolish them. Pizza is on every menu and consistently decent. Gelato shops outnumber people in some towns. Slight exaggeration. Only slight.
Our fussiest eater survived entirely on pizza, bread, and grilled chicken, which is available at virtually every restaurant in the country. The less fussy ones ate grilled squid, fresh mussels, and octopus salad without complaint. Something about being on holiday lowers the resistance.
Eating out is noticeably cheaper than western Europe. A family dinner for four with drinks — proper sit-down restaurant, not fast food — rarely topped €60. In Split or Zadar, sometimes closer to €40.
Getting Around
Rent a car. That’s our strongest recommendation for Croatia with kids.
The coastal roads are good, distances between cities are manageable (Split to Zadar is about ninety minutes, Split to Dubrovnik three and a half hours), and having your own wheels means you can reach beaches and parks that bus-dependent travelers miss entirely. Parking in old town centres is limited but there’s always paid parking within walking distance.
For the islands, Jadrolinija operates the state ferry network. Catamarans are faster (foot passengers only) while car ferries are slower but let you bring your vehicle across. Book car ferry spots in advance during July and August — they sell out. Foot passenger catamarans rarely need booking.
Buses connect all major cities and are decent — clean, air-conditioned, reasonably punctual. But with children and beach gear and the general chaos of family travel, a car makes everything less stressful. We booked through a local Croatian rental company and paid about €35 a day for a mid-size car with full insurance.
When to Go
June or September. Full stop.
July and August are hot — regularly above 35°C — crowded, and expensive. Dubrovnik in August is shoulder-to-shoulder. Ferries are packed. Restaurant prices creep up. If school holidays force your hand, go early July or late August to catch the edges.
June is gorgeous. Warm enough for swimming (sea temperatures around 22-24°C), long days, everything open, but without the August crush. September is similar — slightly shorter days, sea still warm from summer, crowds thinning, prices dropping. We’ve done both and genuinely couldn’t pick a favourite.
May and October are pleasant for sightseeing but the sea is cooler and some island ferry routes run reduced schedules. Fine if beaches aren’t your priority.
Is Croatia Good Value?
Yes. Not dirt cheap — it’s more expensive than it was five years ago and Dubrovnik specifically can sting — but compared to Italy, France, or Spain’s popular coastal spots, Croatia offers better value almost across the board.
Accommodation ranges wildly. A family apartment in Split or Zadar runs €80 to €130 a night in June, more in August. Dubrovnik is pricier. The islands vary — Hvar expensive, Korčula and Brač more reasonable.
Flights from the UK start around £40-60 per person each way with budget airlines if you book early. Split has the most year-round connections. Dubrovnik and Zadar are seasonal but well served in summer.
The euro makes budgeting straightforward. No mental arithmetic at every transaction. No leftover kuna in a drawer at home.
Final Thoughts
Croatia has become our go-to recommendation when friends ask “where should we take the kids in Europe?” It has everything — history that children can actually touch and walk through, water that makes you gasp, food everyone eats, and a pace of life that feels properly relaxed without being boring.
It’s not flawless. The pebble beaches take adjusting to, Dubrovnik’s popularity is a double-edged sword, and the coastal roads can be slow in summer traffic. But honestly? Those are minor grumbles. We’ve been three times now and we’re already planning a fourth. The kids ask to go back. That tells you everything.