Travelling to Croatia by campervan or car is an absolute must. You don't have to wait endlessly at the airport and your trip starts when you pull the front door shut behind you! Besides, it is the perfect way to travel if you want to go camping or take a round trip. Along the way, you will pass through beautiful countries and you can map out a unique route. Within Croatia, travelling by private transport is also ideal. You easily drive to all the cute villages, beaches and most beautiful natural areas. Read all our tips on driving a campervan or car to Croatia!
General information on Croatia
Are you working on a travel plan for Croatia? Then check out our tips for the best travel period, daily budget and transport to and in Croatia.
Taking a campervan to Croatia, this is what you need to know!
What is the distance from the Netherlands to Croatia?
From the Netherlands, it is about 1400 km drive to the border of Croatia. This is comparable to Florence in Italy in terms of distance. Of course, it does depend on your starting point in the Netherlands. Do you have a holiday planned in southern Croatia? Then keep in mind that you still have to drive some 600 km further. Not sure where to start? View our route through Croatia.
What is the best route from the Netherlands to Croatia?
There are many roads that lead to Rome and the same applies to Croatia. You can go via Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Austria and Italy to Croatia or via Germany, Austria and Slovenia. Which route you choose depends entirely on the highlights you want to see on your road trip. We chose the route through Germany, Austria and Slovenia.
The best and fastest route to the northern Croatia is through Cologne, Frankfurt, Munich, Salzburg, Ljubljana and then towards the border crossing at Slovenia. You can choose 2 border crossings namely Koper and Rupa. In our own experience, Koper is very busy and we had to wait here for at least 2 hours. Rupa appears to be a lot less busy!
If you go inland to Croatia or towards the south, it is better to drive towards Zagreb via Cologne, Frankfurt, Nuremberg and Graz.
Tip: Especially try the rush hour around the big German cities avoid and, of course, the black Saturdays. We left the Netherlands around 04:00, avoiding most of the traffic jams.
Hate long waits? Here's how to avoid pushing each other out of the motorhome!
If we hate anything it is waiting, especially for a check. Often, these checks are no big deal and you are waiting for that lazy customs agent who woke up this morning grumpy or that loser who only found out at the counter that he had to show his passport.
Travelling by motorhome is great but unfortunately, there will be times when you get stuck somewhere along the way. There you are in the blazing sun or, conversely, a heavy downpour. What now?
Now there will be some who think; fine, time to get Instagram and Tiktok in. But let's be honest, that's not very cosy. But don't panic because we have 3 really cool games that you can easily take anywhere!
Phase 10 is a card game. This makes the game easy to take with you on holiday. In each round, the aim is to achieve a certain card combination. The person who achieves all stages the fastest wins! The game is also available for the young travelers.
- Number of players: 2-6 people
- Age: 7+
- Playing time: 30 minutes
Uno, who doesn't know this card game! The game is cheap and it never really gets boring. You can play the game with large groups or just in pairs. The rules are easy and a pack of cards weighs nothing!
- Number of players: 2-10 people
- Age: 7+
- Playing time: 30 minutes
The mind is the latest card game. Even though we love a challenge and are both competitive, it is also nice not to be each other's competitors for once. This game is all about working together. No winner and no loser, ideal right? During the game, you have to put the cards in the right order without deliberating or showing each other your cards.
- Number of players: 2-4 people
- Age: 8+
- Playing time: 20 minutes
As you've probably already realised, we love card games. It's by far the easiest to carry around & therefore perfect while travelling. Because let's face it, unfolding an entire board is not ideal & searching for dice between seats is not very conducive to the atmosphere either.
Pick your favourite and you're bound to have a fun ride! Trust me, this really is the way to get through a boring traffic jam or check-up!
What does it cost to go to Croatia by motorhome or car?
This is one of the most frequently asked questions and for good reason. You drive through different countries with toll roads, vignettes and different petrol prices. But what should you take into account? We have listed everything for the route via Germany, Austria and Slovenia for you!
Which toll roads & vignettes to consider?
Germany: To start with, it is important to check whether you are driving through environmental zones in Germany or making a stop here. Is this the case? If so, you will need a environment sticker (€13.95) needed. You can easily apply for this online via the site of the Royal Dutch Touring Club. If you stay outside the environmental zones, such as when travelling straight from the Netherlands to Croatia, you do not need an environmental sticker.
However, we recommend you always buy an environmental sticker so you can stop whenever you want or need to. The validity of an environmental sticker is unlimited, ideal if you go on holiday by private transport more often. Renting a camper van? Then check whether it is already included.
Austria: To drive through Austria, you need an Autobahnvignette. You have 3 different types in this case.
- A vignette for 10 days (€12.95 - 14.50)
- A vignette for 2 months (€27.40)
- And a vignette for a year.
These vignettes can be purchased online at Tollvignettes.co.uk and online at the Royal Dutch Touring Club. Prefer not to order them online? Then you can buy them at ANWB shops in the Netherlands, the Austrian border crossing and at petrol stations in Germany and Austria.
Tip: We ordered our vignette for Austria online from tolvignetten.nl. You pay a few euros more than at the ANWB, but you receive the vignette in your mail within a few hours. Handy if you choose to drive through Austria at the last minute.
Besides paying for motorways in Austria via a vignette, you also have to pay for tunnels. There are two tunnels on the route between the Netherlands and Croatia.
- The Tauern Tunnel (€12.50).
- And the Karawanket Tunnel (€7.60).
Slovenia: For Slovenia, you also need a vignette. Again, they have 3 types of vignette.
- A vignette for one week (€15.00)
- A vignette for one month (€30.00)
- And a vignette for a year.
Tip: For Slovenia, it is not possible to order your vignette online. So keep in mind that you have to get it at the border. We went to the ÖAMTC driven in Salzburg. Are you going by the a converted bus? Then indicate this clearly. This is because vans are considered a means of transport which means you pay much more for your vignette than motorhomes.
Where is the best place to fill up
What you will spend on refuelling depends on many factors such as type of car or motorhome, your driving style and the route you choose. We recommend that before your departure you do a petrol price check to do. We filled up 3 times during our route to Croatia, namely in Germany, Austria and near the border of Slovenia. Petrol prices in Croatia are high compared to these countries so you can save some money here.
Summary of travel costs from the Netherlands to Croatia
So what are the total costs? We will assume in this case that you have booked a 2-week holiday and that you drive to Croatia via Germany, Austria and Slovenia, with one stop in Germany.
| Country | Item | Cost | Where to order? |
| Germany | Environment sticker | €13,95 | - Royal Dutch Touring Club - Tollvignettes.co.uk |
| Austria | Vignette for 10 days | €14,50 | - Royal Dutch Touring Club - Tollvignettes.co.uk |
| Vignette for 10 days | €14,50 | - Royal Dutch Touring Club - Tollvignettes.co.uk | |
| Tauern tunnel (outbound) | €12,50 | ||
| Tauern tunnel (return journey) | €12,50 | ||
| Karawanka tunnel (outbound) | €7,60 | ||
| Karawan Tunnel (way back) | €7,60 | ||
| Slovenia | Vignette for 30 days | €30,00 | |
| Total | Toll roads & vignettes | €113,15 | |
| Petrol estimate (outbound) | €150,00 | ||
| Petrol estimate (return journey) | €150,00 | ||
| Total | Toll roads, vignettes & petrol | €413,15 |
Additional tips for on the road and in Croatia
When friends or family ask us; what should we really consider? Then you will always hear us say the following. Make sure your car or motorhome is well checked beforehand for general things like oil level and wheel profile. Because what is actually worse than standing still at a check-up is standing by the side of the road with a breakdown! Because even you don't want to be standing by a motorway in 30 degrees in one of those fluorescent yellow vests. So prevention is better than cure.
In addition, in Croatia it is mandatory to have the items below in your car. Don't have these yet? No problem, you can easily order them on bol.com.
- A warning triangle
- A safety vest
- First-aid box
- Spare lamps
- A fire extinguisher is recommended
It is also compulsory to carry a spare wheel. If you rent a campervan or car, always check this carefully.
Good preparation is actually the most important thing, although the real work starts on the road. Avoid getting stuck by the side of the road with your partner or children or getting unnecessarily bored. Order the items in this blog and you will be ready for your trip to Croatia!
Tip: Don't have a campervan and don't know where to rent one? Check out our blogs: RVing across Europe, this is what you need to know! & Renting a motorhome? Check out our 5 handy tips.
We hope this information helps you plan your trip to Croatia. Rather book a complete round trip? Take a look at the website of TravelHome. Do you still have questions? Then you can always send us a message via Instagram.
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