Archived:PlanN

THE PLAN

... rotated and time-recalculated for a Zagreb start (I leave the plan, unmodified, in the archive)

1. AM: Fly to Zagreb; PM: Zagreb -> Ljubljana (90 miles, 2 hrs); explore Ljubljana
2. AM: Ljubljana -> Lake Bled/Bohinj (45 miles, 1 hr); explore lakes and castles and waterfalls and majestic karst and so forth. PM: finish exploring; return to Ljubljana (45 miles, 1 hr)
3. AM: Ljubljana -> Vienna (250 miles, 5 hrs). PM: Explore Vienna (note that if we have all done enough Vienna in the past, we might consider proceeding to Brno in the evening here, to give us more time in Krakow on the next day)
4. AM: Vienna -> Brno -> Krakow (300 miles, 6 hrs). PM: Explore Krakow.
5. AM: Krakow -> (slow cruise in the Tatras) -> Miskolc (200 miles, 5 or 6 hrs (allowing for slow cruise)). PM: Explore Miskolc. (note that the addition of Miskolc (and the route of the subsequent day) is indeed an addition; before you call me on that, I draw your attention to sb of 02/02, 2050hrs or so, where this addition was condoned by Phil (and Rev? I think), and which adds to things on the lists of Ben and Micky, and of which Ed, at least, also approves)
6. AM: Miskolc ( -> Tard ) -> Eger -> Budapest (150 miles, 5 or 6 hrs (allowing for exploring Eger and also for country roads)). PM: Explore Budapest.
7. AM: Budapest -> Vukovar (180 miles, 4 to 5 hrs). PM: (Explore Vukovar?); Vukovar -> Sarajevo (160 miles, 4 to 5 hrs) (note that this could easily be split into two days, to ease the load on the drivers; I'm just not sure there's much actually to see in Vukovar)
8. AM: Explore Sarajevo. PM: Sarajevo -> Pluzine, Pluzine -> Podgorica (170 miles, 5 hrs (inc. Roman remains of Doclea and also some fantastic scenery))
9. AM: Podgorica -> Dubrovnik (120 miles, 4 hrs (inc. crazy cool environs and the hairpin-filled Podgorica/Kotor road). PM: explore Dubrovnik. (note that I know Dubrovnik is not listed below, but both it and Podgorica mean, to me, the area containing and between them, full of scenery, Roman stuff, additional scenery, old-town stuff, further scenery, giant town walls, etc. This, not the town itself, is the interest of Podgorica.)
10. AM: Dubrovnik -> Mostar (90 miles, 2 hrs); explore Mostar. PM: Mostar -> Split (120 miles, 3 hrs)
11. The day: Explore Split.
12. AM: Split -> Plitvice (160 miles, 4 hrs). PM: Explore Plitvice Lakes.
13. AM: Plitvice Lakes -> Trieste (170 miles, 4 hrs). PM: Explore Trieste.
14. AM: Trieste -> Skocjan Caves (20 miles, 0.5 hrs). Explore Skocjan Caves. PM: Find way out of caves. Skocjan Caves -> Ljubljana (60 miles, 1.5 hrs). (I am well aware that we will have been to Ljubljana before; this is for stopping purposes and no more)
15. AM: Ljubljana -> Zagreb (90 miles, 2 hrs). PM: Fly home.

I am additionally aware that this uses 15 days, not 16 days. This is partially due to it being more efficient when starting at Zagreb, and partially due to the long day from Budapest to Sarajevo via Vukovar. IT HAS BEEN POSITED that the optimal use of this day is to deal with our finding ourselves unable to match the Plan's demands, and, consequently, to using it to absorb time as and when we see fit. Should we not need to do this, we can always expend it in e.g. Trieste at the end of the Plan.

HERE IS A MAP. Please note that the map depicted, due to limitations placed upon numbers of checkpoints and of countries in which it works, does not show stops at (in order): Tard/Eger, Vukovar, Pluzine, Plitvice, probably some others; it also shows nothing like the correct route from Sarajevo to Podgorica. I have also not taken into account the distances to places which are not exactly within the towns; the total distance covered is, in truth, closer to 2,400 or even 2,500 miles.