Few regions of Europe are as culturally vibrant and geographically breathtaking as Dalmatia. The Romans and the Venetians left the strongest mark here, still standing in the hearts of the coastal cities, but the Illyrians, Greeks and Habsburgs have as well. Even the Turks nibbled on the hinterlands though somehow, unlike much of the rest of the Balkan peninsula, the Venetian fortifications held up.
But the true defining feature of this region are the islands. Hundreds of them. It’s impossible to visit the area without being tempted to step onto at least one. Our stay in Split was quite short — just a week — but we, too, ended up giving into the temptation. By the end of the week we bought three ferry tickets to Hvar, one of the larger islands accessible from the city. Two for ourselves, one for the Tenere.
We boarded the ferry late afternoon on Friday. As most lines sailing out of Split, the boat was operated by Jadrolinia. Unusually for the Mediterranean, where ferry companies are often run by foreign enterprises, this particular line is 100% owned by the Croatian state. In practice the operational differences were few. The typical 2-3 booth checks preceding the boarding we were used to on the Italian ferries were replaced by a single guy with a scanner. There were also no tie downs for the bikes. Probably because our vessel’s path never breached the open sea.
First in line, the two wheel privilege.
A brief video from abord the ferry, in Split Harbor.
The crossing itself was uneventful, but enjoyable. Considerably more airflow than on the heat drenched streets of Split. Also great views of other islands on both the port and starboard sides.
We made our landing on Hvar right as the sun was beginning to set around 7pm. We mounted the Tenere and reached the town of Stari Grad only minutes later.
Within a half hour we were settled in the Airbnb, the bike was parked for the night and we were out and walking the harbor looking for dinner.
Stari Grad was alive but far from overcrowded. A perfect get away for those looking for a bit of a slower pace and presumably a bit of solitude on the beaches. You won’t find any signs declaring it to be the oldest town in Croatia or one of the oldest continuously lived in settlements in Europe — more of an American practice — but it is. 2410 years old to be precise, first established by Greek settlers from Paros.
The next morning we set out for the port of Sucuraj on the far east corner of the island. We were very tempted to visit the town of Hvar just a half our to the west, but that would have put us in the saddle for at least 5 hours that day and we decided we’d rather take the time to enjoy an espresso and a swim somewhere along the way instead. Hvar would have to wait for another visit, but it is only a question of time based on what we did see.
Our first destination was the village of Vrboska only 10-12 minutes away from Stari Grad.
Even smaller than Stari Grad, this felt more like the south of France, somewhere between Marseilles and Sant Tropez, minus the crowds.
Modest, non-million dollar yachts, a rare sight.
Jelsa, looking northeast.
We left Vrboska behind as there were no signs of open coffee shops that morning and hugged the coastline for a few more minutes before ending up in the harbor of the next village, Jelsa. Not sure if the final approach to the harbor from the north is meant for vehicles — we did attract a little bit of attention on the docks — but in the end the Tenere got a pass.
Here coffee AND bakery shops were aplenty which explains Min happy disposition above.
Jelsa was every bit as pretty as the other two neighboring towns and the coffee shops with outdoor terraces were packed at 9am on that August Saturday. Packed, but not overwhelmed. More like a community coming out to bask in the first rays of the morning sun.
Well caffeinated, we continued east. We didn’t have much of a plan at this point beyond finding a beach and making the 1:30pm ferry to Drvenik so we just picked one out of the dozens of beaches that show up on Google maps at random.
It was one of these beaches on the south shore, but I don’t remember which one. They all look spectacular when you finally get there so I don’t think you can go wrong.
We ended up choosing a private beach in front of a couple rentals. We asked the owner for permission to take a dip and they graciously said yes. The water was epic.
Here’s a 15 second video from our leisurely ride to the beach down a winding dirt road. Perhaps someone can id the beach from the video and/or photos.
Same road, Min posing in our summer gear. Alpinestars AirTech 5 Plasma and well camouflaged Leatt knee guards. Anything more would be undoable at 35C. We brought a single pelican case and a couple small GiantLoop tool bags for the overnight trip.
The harbor in Sucuraj turned out just as charming as all the others on Hvar, but with the sun blasting and the vehicle loading lines already full we didn’t explore the rest of the town.
The ferry arrived on time. This would be a short sail, only 30 minutes. The mainland is visible in the background above. There was one more motorcycle in the line up on that run and we ended up making a new Bosnian friend.
30 minute proved a bit short for swapping life stories and Almir invited us for a meal at a restaurant on the other side. Needless to say we had a blast. A wonderfully generous and colorful character with a life story to match. Hope to run into him often in our European travels.
After lunch, we gave Almir a big hug and continued along the Adriatic shores back toward Split. The sun hid under a vail of light clouds for which we were thankful as the temperature hadn’t budged much from 35C.
Eventually, Min ordered a second swim for the day and minutes later we descended the steep shores down to a quaint little harbor in the village of Pisak. Once again, the water was crystal clear, the temperature ideal. The 35 min swim was just enough to keep us going for another hour to Split.
As we approached Split we rode through Omis where wild fires ravaged the shores only a couple weeks earlier. The smell of burnt grass and trees still hung in the air. Unfortunately not a sight we’re unfamiliar with living in the American West.
The wild fire sights aside, this was one of the most fun and pleasant trips of our 7 months on the road. Simply put, Croatia is an Adriatic wonderland. We’ll be back.
And here’s the complete loop. About 200km plus two ferries.