Having never been to Croatia, I was excited to drive down to the Istrian peninsula, after a few days of trekking in the Julian Alps in Slovenia. Touted as a hidden gem, I was expecting wild turquoise beaches, rolling hills with vineyards, and authentic towns without a touristy feel. But Istria feels like a bit of a rundown vacation destination for locals, with lots of ugly vacation apartments, boring inauthentic family focused entertainment like a dinopark and aqua park, and

This is a guide for how to plan a 3 day hut to hut hike in the Julian Alps in Slovenia. It's a beautiful and varied hike, starting in the forest and climbing up to rocky peaks that resemble the dolomites and make you feel like you are hiking on the moon. At the end of September, when we did the hike, we had beautiful weather, and the place had a very authentic feel. Not at all crowded or touristy. Most of the time we we're alone on the trail, but there were plenty of hikers t

Overall I really liked the Philippines. I chose it because I read it's less crowded than other Southeast Asian countries. And I always...