Depart Chicago Dubrovnik is 7 hours ahead of Central Standard Time. Meals: Meals on flight. Meals: Meals on flight

Arrival Dubrovnik, Croatia. Upon arrival, clear customs and meet the local driver and guide who will be with the group the entire stay. Transfer to hotel for check-in. Dubrovnik, a small island inhabited by Illyrians and the Romans seeking refuge, became part of the mainland in the 11th Century. The city, once ruled by the Byzantines, the Venetians, the Normans, the Hungarians, Napoleon, and Austria, shows its strategic importance as a trade port on the Adriatic Sea. In the last Century, it was part of Yugoslavia and was under siege in the 1990s by Serbian forces. Today it peaceful is the new star of Europe. Encompassed within ancient walls, the glorious past is also part of the developing future. Welcome reception and dinner at hotel. Hotel Lero or similar Meals: Meals on plane, Dinner

Breakfast and depart on a short drive via a spectacular seaside road to Konavle. Visit a small farm where they operate three greenhouses and onsite cold storage facilities. Visit a winery where we will try local wines and learn history of their winemaking. Lunch on a farm. Return to Dubrovnik for a tour of the Old City. Included on UNESCO World Heritage List, it is surrounded by medieval walls and fortresses that have been well preserved. Stroll down the Stradun, with its Franciscan Monastery (15th C. with Baroque façade) and Ancient Pharmacy (700 years old), the Cathedral (built by Richard the Lionhearted after a shipwreck in the 12th C.) and various 15th C. fountains. Rest of afternoon free. Dinner on own. Hotel Lero or similar Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

After breakfast, grab your passports and depart to Montenegro. Montenegro, a little known country in the Balkans with coastline on the Adriatic and some of the harshest mountain landscapes in the East, has little arable land. Forestry is the main agricultural commodity. Bauxite, used for aluminum production, is one of the main natural resources. Steel manufacturing remains one of the main industries as well processing of agricultural products from nearby countries. City tour Kotor, spectacularly set in a secluded part of the Bay of Kotor. In the Middle Ages, Kotor was an important commercial and artistic center and like other Adriatic ports, many empires battles for control over it. Enjoy a city tour starting at the Sea Gate and continuing through the Old Town’s narrow winding alleyways discovering quaint squares, marketplaces, the palace, town walls, and cathedrals. Lunch included. Stop will be a private small-scale family farm near Nikšić with cattle and fodder production. Continue to visit a dairy factory producing 15 to 25 tons per day of milk, sour cream and yogurt for the domestic market. Dinner included. Late return to Dubrovnik. Hotel Lero or similar Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast and then depart to the well-known isthmus with its town Pelješac. Visit a local wine (pošip) and olive oil producer who has won the World Olive Oil Prize. Tasting included. Continue further along the Dalmatian coast to the Ston with its well preserved 14th and 15th C. town walls. The town is known also for its salt works and oysters. Lunch included. Visit a plant nursery that produces commercial vegetable plants. It has a high-tech greenhouse which is very productive in the Neretva River area, known for its sunlight and mild climate. Continue into Bosnia-Herzegovina to Mostar for hotel check-in. Dinner included. Hotel Mostar or similar Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast. Morning walking tour of Mostar, situated in a beautiful valley bedded between the high mountains of Herzegovina in a desert-like landscape. Thanks to the River Neretva, the city developed into a trading center. The world-famous Star Most (Old Bridge) made of white stone spanning across the turquoise water of the river. The single span bridge, built by the Ottomans in the mid 1500s as this was one of their garrison towns, was a major feat of its time and also provided an easy crossing. Sadly this bridge was destroyed during the 1990s war but rebuilt in 2005 and achieved UNESCO World Heritage appointment. The region is noted for its quality wines (žilovka and blatina), tobacco, fruit, and vegetables. Transfer to a cattle farm in Višići, Bosnia. Visit the 500 head mostly Holstein farm with 1,000 acres of arable land. Lunch in the nearby town. Depart to Zadar, heading back to the northern Dalmatian coast, a relatively undiscovered region of history and beauty. Dinner at or near hotel. Hotel Falkensteiner Club or similar Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

After breakfast, take a journey through ancient history on a guided walk along the marble streets of Zadar’s Old Town, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. See the Church of St Donat (9th C.), Cathedral of St Anastasia (largest in region), the Roman Forum (1st C. BC), the Sea Gate, Land Gate, city walls and squares. Also visit the city produce market where we can marvel at the plethora of items available from the region. Lunch on own. Enjoy a free afternoon in this enchanting seaside town or take advantage of the hotel’s spa offerings. Head down to the waterfront to enjoy Alfred Hitchcock’s named “best sunset in the world” and then enjoy the modern art installations Sundial’s light show and Sea Organ’s music show. Hotel Falkensteiner Club or similar Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

After breakfast, early departure to the Plitvice Lakes National Park where we will have a lunch picnic box. Plitvice Lakes is the oldest and largest national park in Croatia. The park is situated in a mountainous region and boasts stunning scenery including 16 lakes, in an array of stunning colors, cascading into the next and held by naturally formed travertine dams, giant trees and plenty of wildlife. Continue to Zagreb. Dinner at or near hotel. Hotel Academia or similar Meals: Breakfast, Lunch Box, Dinner

After breakfast, head to Slovenia. Visit a sheep farm and enjoy a picnic lunch on the farm. This afternoon we will tour the famous Postojna Cave by underground train. It is the said to the world’s most captivating cave with its magnificent formations, vast subterranean halls, underground rivers and diverse fauna. Return to Zagreb early evening. Dinner on own. Hotel Academia or similar Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

After breakfast, discover Zagreb on a walking tour. As the Capital of Croatia since 1991, Zagreb has been the center of cultural and political focus of the country since Medieval times. The capital has a population of almost one million and with good museums, a café culture, and vibrant nightlife. The Baroque and Art Nouveau buildings are a remembrance on the Austro-Hungarian Empire past. Visit the city’s boisterous fresh market where local men drink their tiny glasses of brandy and locals bargain for fresh produce. Lunch and afternoon free to discover the many museums, do final souvenir shopping, people watch from the numerous cafes, or see the fall colored gardens throughout the town. Farewell dinner with regional specialties. Hotel Academia or similar Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Transfer to airport for flight home. Arrive Chicago on same day. Meals: Breakfast, Meals on plane.