Hi there,
We are in Croatia (resting at the moment) and soon we will continue our journey towards China.
We need to plan the route from Croatia (Baška Voda) to Bulgaria (Burgas). Any advice?
Thanks in advance.
Barbara & Jack
Cycling from Croatia to Bulgaria advice
木, 2017-06-01 06:35
#1
WS Member
Cycling from Croatia to Bulgaria advice
I suggest you to take a tour of Croatia, go to Zadar, and then to Plitvice Lakes, and then continue east. Many many things to visit on this road. Not the shortest but the most beautifull
Thanks for your suggestion. Unfortunately we would like to go south crossing Montenegro.
I live in Burgas. You are still too far away to plan the trip in Bulgaria but in the case you go via Sofia I'd suggest you take the road Sofia-Karlovo-Sliven-Burgas.
Another option would be to go via Albania and Northern Greece but then you wouldn't need to go to Burgas but can enter Turkey straight away instead.
Any other questions-let me know :)
Addition: Try to avoid the main road between Nish and Dimitrovgrad in Serbia-really heavy traffic with dark tunnels between Nish and Pirot, narrow road and bad visibility. I felt it dangerous, nothing happened ot us that time but would never cycle the same piece again. If you need to cycle that route try taking the tiny roads that go over the mountain.
Thanks for your advice. We are actually very concerned about the safety of roads. We had some bad experience in Italy and now here in Croatia. It's the only down side here in Croatia. Beautiful country with stunning coast but terrible to cycle along as it's the only route to share with lorries and coaches and a speed limit that often reaches 80km/h.
We are not going through Turkey, we are taking the ferry from Burgas to Georgia.
Barbara and Jack,
Yes, June is a great season to visit Plitvice. I was there last year.
I recommend you entering Bosnia afterwards. If you like mountains, the Dinaric Alps are a hidden gem in Europe. They continue in Montenegro, with some of the most shocking landscapes you could think of.
Check out my trip map with the points I used as a reference: https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1WolUWt4yNuVYSaqgifIY4srZyWA&ll=44.06506592097358%2C15.7811681687499&z=6
At the junction of Montenegro, Kosovo and Albania border's you can visit Kombëtar National Park, beautiful as well.
Enjoy the Balkans and merge into the people
Hi thanks,
We will definitely go through Montenegro, we will check it out and thanks for the link as well.
Barbara
In Montenegro you definitely want to stay off the M18 and M2 roads: lots of trucks and generally no shoulder to cycle on. The country does have a lot of nice minor roads, but you would need to closely examine OpenStreetMap when route planning. Naturally, on the minor roads the inclines are often steeper than the main roads and you do a lot more climbing in a day, but it is much safer and less stressful.
If you are crossing the country northwest to southeast, I would recommend the minor road linking Nikšic and Podgorica through the Ostrog monastery (a cheap and picturesque, if spartan, place to stop for the night) and Danilovgrad. Where are you going from Montenegro, to Shkodra in Albania or to Kosovo?