Two days after their 780 person wedding celebration in Kenya, newlyweds MaryAnne and Will embarked on their honeymoon vacation exploring the depths that Croatia has to offer.
While Croatia has flourished as a popular spot for weddings and honeymooners in recent years, a trek from Kenya to Croatia with a long visa process takes determination and will, and these honeymooners were bound to make it happen.
It all began after a series of pre-wedding events for MaryAnne and Will, celebrating their love with traditional Kenyan customs (not unlike many of the Croatian wedding customs we have here). After deciding a Southern European honeymoon was in their cards, MaryAnne and Will did their due diligence in choosing what destination would prove best for their special vacation: would it be Italy? Greece? Lucky for us, Croatia topped them all.
When asked how they chose Croatia, the couple admitted to using popular travel site TripAdvisor when planning their trip. “We saw the good reviews on travel agency Secret Dalmatia, and an exclusive trip customized to our liking won over the many group trips we found in other Southern European countries.”
They arrived in Zagreb via Frankfurt shortly after they said their “I Do’s” in Kenya, and Hotel Dubrovnik hosted them during their stay in our capital city. “When we arrived there was a band playing, it was perfect.”
They toured the sites of Zagreb and took a ride on the funicular to get some stunning views of the city, and the cab driver that took them to the famous Mirogoj Cemetery actually ended up giving them a tour himself - classic Croatian hospitality at its finest. They recall Mirogoj Cemetery being one of the most beautiful, and the food in Zagreb definitely won their hearts.
From Zagreb the couple made their way Plitvice Lakes. A foggy morning that turned sunny as the day went on, MaryAnne and Will gushed over the beauty of the renowned nature park. “It wasn’t too crowded and we were able to take beautiful pictures. We love the mixture of everything Croatia offers from the cities to the nature, it was so green!”
When the couple arrived to the relaxed city of Split, they wondered “when does everyone work here?”, admiring our relaxed and coffee drinking culture - “we could do this all day!”.
MaryAnne and Will stayed within the walls of Diocletian's palace and marveled at how rich the history of the city is just outside their hotel room window. They ate at popular Split restaurant Dvor and claimed “we loved it, we stayed for hours!”.
A trip to Trogir was in order to take a classic Dalmatian cooking class with none other than Tatjana and Kaja, the two made famous by Andrew Zimmern’s “Bizarre Foods” Croatia television episode. They shopped with Chef Tatjana and prepared meat dishes fired on a charcoal grill that ranged from pork chops to T-Bone steak, and applauded the butternut squash soup, zucchini pasta, eggplant stuffed with sausage and even swordfish they imbibed in.
The couple now continues their trip with a hike of the Dalmatian Hinterland (set with a picnic dinner), a boat tour exploring Biševo, Vis, the Pakleni islands, and Hvar town, and of course they will make their way down to Dubrovnik - did we mention they’re big Game of Thrones fans?
A lovely couple with only the best to say about our country, we thank you for choosing Croatia as the place to celebrate your love - we hope to have you back soon!
