Eilat, Israel’s resort city

Hello World!

We are in Israel! Some of you probably already know that from our last blog with Tourist Israel (BLOG).

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We have chosen to have our “base” in Eilat, the most southern Israeli city, mostly because our Ryanair flight landed there. We didn’t know much about this city and what we’ve found out is that it is basically resort city on the Red Sea devoted to sun, fun, diving, nightlife and activities in it’s surrounding area. Being very close to Egypt and Jordan, there are several tours you can book from Eilat to Pyramids of Giza and Petra.

It is also a great base for exploring northern Israel. We booked Dead Sea, Jerusalem & Bethlehem tour.

AIRPORT

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It is the smallest airport we have ever landed in! Even though it is not allowed to take pictures, I managed to snap quick one with my phone :).

  • check if you need visa to enter Israel as a tourist
  • passport control will give you ENTRY CARD. They do not put stamps in your passports due to “stamp juggle” (several countries denying entry with Israel stamp). Entry card is an evidence of your legal entry into Israel and may be required, particularly at any crossing points into the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
    Keep it with your passport until you leave Isreal.
  • passport control will give you EXIT CARD. Keep it with you until you pass passport control in country you are traveling to.

TRAVELER’S TIP

  • take a bus to the city! Bus route No.282 will take you from Ovda airport to Eilat Main Bus Station, without intermediate stops! Price is approx. 10 EURO per person, for return ticket. You can buy a ticket from the driver (cash only, in Israeli nis.) or at Ovda airport, next to a baggage carousel at special point. City Transportation website is actually in English and you can even book it online.
  • don’t change money on the airport, unless you really need it. If you need it for a bus transfer to the city, then change only exact amount you need for bus ticket. There is “Exchange office” on Main Bus Station (final stop  of No.282 bus) with much better rate.

ACCOMMODATION

We’ve booked an apartment in the city, close to Main Bus Station and Eilat City Airport, since we wanted to get that “local feels”. However, like I said at the beginning, Eilat is resort city, so you can find numerous hotels on the Read Sea beaches.

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ATTRACTIONS

Dolphin Beach

    • take a bus No.15 from Main Bus Station. It is 15 minute ride that costs approx. 3 EUR.
    • bring snorkeling gear, there is live Coral Reef underwater on Dolphin beach
    • bring a book, buy a drink at the bar and chill in the lounge located in wooden complex on the beach (you can also find food at the bar for a reasonable price)
    • swim with Dolphins at Dolphin Reef
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    2. Explore the Underwater Marine Observatory

    3. Visit Timna Park

    4. Try a new water-sport: windsurfing, kite surfing, water skiing, stand-up paddle boarding, and parasailing. Wohooo!

    5. Relax on the Eilat Beaches

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    6. Go shopping, Eilat is a tax-free zone! Eilat’s main shopping area is around the Ocean Mall shopping center and along Eilat’s Promenade.

    7. Explore the Main promenade! There you will find stylish restaurants, clothing stores, cosmetics & gifts shops and so much more.

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    8. Try the food!

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    9. Try 24/7 Eilat bakery!

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    10. Tag us in your pictures! If this blog helped you with your Eilat trip, tag @dianomaya in your pictures on Facebook or Instagram.

    See you next time from Amsterdam! Yes, we are flying back to Europe! Any recommendation for us?

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    TOP 5 VISITED BLOGS – CROATIA

    Hello world!!

    We are working again, that means sitting home on our laptops, planing and editing. Until we plan our new adventure we are bringing you our

    TOP 5 visited blog posts!

    These are YOUR favorite posts of all time:

    1. Wellness and Spa Weekend

    We visited Villa Magdalena, in Krapinske toplice, perfect place for relaxation, wellness and amazing gourmet experience. We know two couples that visited Villa after seeing our blog post, are you planing to visit soon? Tell us in comments if you are interested and we will try to get you a discount :).
    Read more about our Wellness and Spa Weekend: https://goo.gl/XyW71Q

    2. How many lakes do you have Imotski?

    We visited town of Imotski, hidden deep in the Dalmatian inland. Picturesque little town on a hill with, not one, but two most impressive lakes, Blue and Red.
    Read more about our visit here: https://goo.gl/RB2Jjw

    3. Behind the business meeting in Vis

    Maya‘s family has a house on island Vis, so we look for any excuse to visit island. This time we were there on business, but we managed to film some behind the scenes for you.

    Read more about our visit here: https://goo.gl/Fg6xRq

    4. Senko’s konoba, island Vis food paradise

    We were invited by Senko Karuza, the best Croatian short-story writer, to his konoba (type of Dalmatian restaurant) in little town by the sea, Mala Travna (Mola Trovna, as locals call it). Senko is not only the best writer, he is also artist in kitchen.

    Read more about our visit here: https://goo.gl/SLQqV7

    5. Autumn on Hvar island, Croatia

    Maya visited HVAR island with her girls and Diano stayed in our Split home editing Frode Borge videos.
    Read more about our visit here: https://goo.gl/CdNbUe

    Don’t forget to share this blog, if you liked it 🙂

    See you next week! In meantime you can:

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    Autumn on Hvar island, Croatia

    Hello world!

    😍 Are you following us on our socials jet?
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    The content here was done only with mobile phone.

    On island Hvar, we arrived in Stari Grad. It was very late, so we had dinner in the city.
    Our pick was cozy little tavern called “La Gitana“, recommended by my friend Tea. The food was amazing and it’s host, Mateo, wonderful! He welcomed us to island with couple shots of rakija and good time.

    We booked lovely Pension Tamaris in Sveta Nedjelja on south side of island Hvar. There isn’t much to do in Sveta Nedjelja and we wanted just that – do nothing. We ended up doing so much of “nothing”, so keep reading :).

    Sveta Nedjelja

    In the morning we had coffee in our Pension with a million dollar view.

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    We went for a walk around the village. This picturesque place by the sea is famous for Zlatan otok Marina, Restaurant and under sea wine cellar.

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    When in Sveta Nedjelja, you cannot miss the Lučišća beach. Take a swim in crystal clear turquoise blue sea.

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    Pitve

    We had late lunch/early dinner in “Dvor Duboković Tavern” in village Pitve, typical Dalmatian village with stone houses, narrow paved streets and untouched nature.

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    City of Hvar

    After dinner, we drove to city of Hvar for a drink. There isn’t much to say about Hvar, that I haven’t already. City has so much beauty and history, on one hand, and crazy night life, on the other. It is also the most expensive city on island, so come “money prepared”.

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    Gromin Dolac

    Having a car on island Hvar is an amazing thing. You wake up in the morning and just pick one, of many beautiful beaches, for your morning swim. This time we drove (and walked) to Gromin Dolac beach. From Zavala the dirt road leads east towards the village of Gromin Dolac. We found a parking in the woods and walked to series of perfectly clean, azure blue beaches.

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    We were alone for hours, just enjoying quiet crickets song, smell of pine forests and the calm beauty of Adriatic sea. Only thing that was able to move us from that beach was HUNGER :).

    Vrbovska

    We hoped in car and drove to Vrbovska for lunch. Food was horrible, skip Konoba Lem, but city is lovely.

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    Basina bay

    Last night in Hvar, we bumped into my friend Žile, remember him from our Escape blog? He invited girls to see Escape, so after lunch, he & Monga picked us up with boat in Basina bay and drove us to hidden Escape location. Girls loved it!

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    When I reflect on this trip, I have a feeling like we were on Hvar for a month, but in reality it was just 2 days. Having 2 days off, sometimes, it is all the time you need to recharge.

    Call your friends right now and organize trip to Hvar! Take a car and visit several places, like we did. If you have questions about how to get to certain beach, food cost or tips for car transport, hit us down with question in comments. I would love to help you!

    Don’t forget to share this blog, if you liked it 🙂

    See you next week!

    Sailing in Croatia, Vis to Hvar

    Hello world!

    We are sailing!! Maya wanted to sail for a while now, so it is crossed from her’s bucket list!

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    We were invited by Frode Borge and his lovely wife Hege to sail with them from island Vis to Hvar, on their beautiful boat “Le Salon”. Plan was to sail and to have business meeting with Frode.

    We arived to Vis day before, if you haven’t already, go see blog about our adventure there: HERE.  Next day, we jumped on board towards Hvar island.

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    Palmižana, Paklenci otoci

    The weather wasn’t as ideal, it was cloudy and windy, which made Maya little sea sick. She just needed a little adjustment to sailing boat life. Once we docked to Palmižana, Paklenci otoci near Hvar island, she was felling much better.

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    We did our meeting while rocking on Frode’s sailing boat. Is there a better way to do business meeting??

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    The city of Hvar

    After the meeting we sailed into Hvar, for dinner. Hvar is one of many islands on Croatian coast and a great place to experience Adriatic lifestyle to fullest. City of Hvar offers great gastronomic experience, it will seduce you with is historical center and vivid nightlife.

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    We had a late night sail back to Split. Easy sail, Maya was fine :). Thank you Forde & Hege for this amazing experience!

    We are coming back from this trip energized and prepared for new challenges upon us. Feel free to contact us, should you also wish to work with us, at maivcevic@gmail.com

    Hit like, share and follow our adventures.

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    Robinson style vacation on Drvenik Mali

    Hello World!

    We are in Drvenik Mali, tiny island near Trogir. Our friends Maja and Milan have been posting their summer pictures on Instagram (make sure you follow them -> @majaimore) and gave us serious wanderlust! So, we invited ourselves :).

    How to get to Drvenik Mali?

    We drove from Split to Trogir and parked our car there. There are free parking places in the city (if you have time and patience to look for it), but you can also leave your car on paid Public parking, near Jadrolinija ticket office. Maja and Milan have a car on island, so we didn’t have to go with ours. However, you can take car on board the ferry to Drvenik Mali, but then you have to embark in ferry port Seget Donji (not Trogir). The boat departs from the Trogir and Seget Donji waterfront to Drvenik Mali and back to Trogir every day.

    So, we took Jadrolinija ferry in Trogir and enjoyed smooth sail to Drvenik Mali. Keep in mind, ferry’s first stop is Drvenik Veli, you go out on second stop.

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    Island has no paved roads and there is not much to do there; but it has beaches from your dreams! Maja & Milan studio house has no TV, internet or electricity, but has outdoor fireplace and two happy people!

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    Vela Rina bay

    Their house is in Vela Rina bay, well hidden beautiful sandy beach in the of middle Dalmatia. So, all you have to do in the morning is take your beach towel, swimsuit & flipflops (well, camera too, if you are photography freak, like us) and stroll down to the beach.

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    We still can’t decide if, in Vela Rina, sunrises or sunsets are better? What did you like better? Tell us in comments and make sure you likeshare and don’t forget to:

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    We had a day cruise, you can have a week!

    Hello world!

    We are on a cruise, wohoooo! Yacht Korab invited us for one day cruise on Brač island. Isn’t that amazing? We have been trying to find different ways to escape everyday life and being on the sea is definitely a good way to relax and get away.

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    Step one: get on board Korab Yacht and sail away.

    The sun deck is perfect to take sip of your coffee or just read a book with the sound of the sea.

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    Step two: jump from the top of the boat and swim in hidden Croatian bays.

    Korab is equipped with kayak and stand up paddle board if get bored with “regular swimming and snorkeling”.

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    Step three: have typical Mediterranean lunch on Korab deck, while sailing by magical Adriatic little towns.

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    Step four: “go back”, unfortunately that was situation for us, but you can stay over night.

    The yacht is designed to accommodate 12 passengers in 6 luxury cabins equipped with a bathroom. One-week and two-week cruises are on offer. Choose a route and create your own vacation & gastro delight.

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    Big thanks to Mate, owner and captain, for letting us see Yacht Korab’s magic for a day.

    We are driving up north Croatia next week, for wellness getaway, so stay tuned. If you like our adventures -> like, share and don’t forget to:

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    Escape community hidden beach

    Hello world!!

    Where are we this time? We have no idea! Only thing that we know is that we are on Hvar island, Croatia. Exact location is hidden and are ok with that.

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    Escape community

    We were invited by Escape community event on Hvar island. Didn’t really asked much about it, we just said YES! Escape lasted 6 days, but we had to work (like most of our summer), so we came last day of event. We borrowed tent from a friend (as we camped only once before) and we were ready to go.

    Hidden location near Vrbovska

    We took ferry from Split to Stari grad, where Escape team member Uroš picked us up. They drove us from Vrbovska trough dirt road for about 30 minutes. We had no idea in what direction they were driving, so their “hidden location” will stay hidden…at least for now.  Finally, we arrived and it was like Mediterranean Wonderland -> pine forest, right by the sea, music playing, adults walking on slackline, while children painting their faces. Honestly, we felt “escape” as soon as we stepped out of the car.

    We found Petra (one of Escape team member) lying in handmade barrel swing at the entrance. Maya knows her since she was just a kid and she was happy to see what a beautiful women and amazing entrepreneur she has become.

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    Petra showed us around Escape “Wonderland”. There are several beaches on site with few cabana’s, arts & crafts workshops, healing practices and massage area, kitchen & bar, few dance floors, movie theater and camp with toilets & showers. You can take yoga class, book rock climbing and diving tour, take stand up paddle and explore hidden bay, or just chill in one of many hammocks. Most important is to let go, play and enjoy far away from everyday life – and so we did.

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    We made video, but to tell you right away, we didn’t film much this time, just soaked Escape vibes. We hung out with Maya’s friends and Escape team members, Žile, Monga & Dragana; and had really chill time. We learnt that Escape is neither a festival nor a party. It is not just a vacation or a summer camp. Escape is love. Escape is community.

    See you next year Escape!

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    Just one afternoon on Peljesac

    Hello world!

    We are working on new projects, which we are not allowed to talk about jet, but we can show you where our new businesses recently took us -> on beautiful Peljesac peninsula in southern Croatia, about an 1,30 hour drive from Dubrovnik.

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    It is around 70 km long natural beauty with historical sites, sandy and pebble beaches, great wine and seafood (especially oysters). We only had time to stop at two little magical places on peninsula: Zuljana and Ston. This is how our work breaks look like:

    If you are interested in doing businesses with us, email us on: maivcevic@gmail.com

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    TOP things to do in STOBREC

    Hello world!

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    Recently, we have been posting few pictures from Stobrec on our Instagram page (are you following us jet? -> DianoMaya) and our followers keep asking us what are best things to do in Stobrec. Finally, we have some time to name TOP 5:

    CAMPING STOBREC 

    Camp “Camping Stobreč Split” is in green oasis, surrounded on two sides by the sea and on the third side by Žrnovnica river mouth. Besides chic and cozy bungalows, they have “Horus” restaurant and few beach bars. You can find sun chairs and parasols to rent, under which you can enjoy sipping interesting cocktails and listening good music. Beach, also, offers may activities, which are on our list too :).

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    PINNIDAE EXPLORING – Mediterranean pen shell

    In Stobrec, you can find family of Mediterranean pen shell. Take your snorkeling gear and explore underwater! Just be aware, they are protected species and fine for harvesting is 400 EUR (3.000 HRK).

    STOBREC CITY CENTRE

    Visit old Christian basilica, remains of an antique fortification wall and walk down riva promenada.

    FOOD

    There are many restaurants with traditional Dalmatian cuisine and we highly recommend “Konoba Nikola”.

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    ACTIVE VACATION TOURS IN CROATIA

    Hello world!

    We have been working very hard, so we paused with blogging for a while. Some of you already know that we are seasonal workers in Croatia. Imagine being in Croatia and not experience what it has to offer? No, big no! Always find time to have fun in life!

    Today we are taking you trough our ACTIVE VACATION TOURS:

    PRIVATE BOAT TOUR, SPLIT

    Split, Private boat tour

    Hopp on Biseran boat and ask them to take you on sunset tour near Split. Boris from Biseran was task oriented and made for us tailored tour to Čiovo. We took some Gin, fruit, lost’s of positive energy and had the best time we had in a long time!

    Find out more HERE.

    ZIP LINE, OMIŠ

    Are you as much as adrenaline junkie as we are? Experience the rush while descending through the Cetina canyon with ZipLine Omiš! It has 8 steel ZipLine wires with total length of 2.100 m and the longest one is 700m (conveniently or not, that is the first one). Also worth of mentioning is the speed, they say you can go 65 km/h.

    Before you go to big wires there is short wire where guides will teach you how to brake and act on cable on these small lines. So, if you haven’t done it before, don’t be afraid they will show you how to ZipLine. Keep in mind there are short walks between wires, so dress appropriately. Bring water! We were in bigger group, so we waited on each wire.

    We were in Omiš several times, even took a ride with a boat on a river, but the views of Cetina canyon and river from ZipLine is something very different and breathtaking!!

    KRKA WATERFALLS, ŠIBENIK

    While Plitvice National Park is more popular tourist destination, there is little difference between the two. Most important difference is that in Krka National Park you can actually swim in the water! That is also the main reason why we like it more :).

    Krka National Park in Croatia is located in central Dalmatia, just a few kilometers of the city of Šibenik. We got there from Split, with a car, but you can easily find daily tours.

    Main attractions are the waterfalls and cascades Skradinski buk, Roški slap and island Visovac with its monastery. Keep in mid there is a lot of walking, so bring appropriate shoes, liters of water and something to eat. You can make little picnic at the meadow near Skradinski buk, just be aware of hungry swans that walk around :).

    BOAT TOUR, ISLAND VIS

    Island Vis is our favorite island in Croatia, so far. We did full day trip around the island, last year, and it was the best summer memory we had! Boat trip starts and ends in Komiza city. They took us to popular beach Stiniva and Green cave, less known but wonderful Smokova and Pritišćina bay, military tunnels and we passed by Vis city.

    See you again soon and don’t forget to:

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