Sailing Croatia in peak season?
If you really have to sail in the top season (July and August) don’t worry, we’ve got you covered with some tips.
First of all, consider forgetting what you’ve heard about Croatia and try to avoid if you can places like Hvar, Brač, Dubrovnik, The Blue Cave – and similar spots that you find in all the tourist guides.
Instead, we highly recommend sailing the North part of Croatia, where you’ll find beautiful islands like Cres, Lošinj, Krk, Rab, Ikovik, Unije, Silba, Goli island and lots of charming smaller ones.
The northern area is just as stunning, with amazing beaches, old towns and settlements, caves and everything else one can wish from sailing holidays. (See for yourself in our North Croatia sailing tour). And yes, these places are much less sailed and you can find many stunning anchorages just for yourself even at the peak of the summer!
And if it really has to be the most famous route (sailing the Split area including Hvar, Bol on Brač, Vis, Biševo and Korčula) then you should follow these tips:
Try to visit the top spots from your must-see list before or after the crowds from the tourist / day-trip boats. Most of the day-tours that visit these top locations (like the Blue Cave on Biševo island, Stiniva beach on Vis island or Green Cave just next to Vis island as well as others) usually start their tours around 10 AM, so you should be safe until around 11, and the latest these boats will leave is around 4-5 PM. Visiting outside of these hours will help you avoid most of the crowds.
However, places like Blue cave on Biševo are busy even outside that time-frame as there are plenty of charter boats out there, so we like to visit them early in the morning or in the late afternoon. This works very well for most places in the summer, the only exception being the Blue cave, where the colors in the cave are most prominent around noon.
Extra tip: Finding a berth for your sailing boat in high season
Especially in the top season of July and August, but also in the first part of September, make sure you are at your destination on time in the early afternoon, otherwise, you might be forced to change your plans.
Marinas, bays, anchorages, and ports are very busy during summer months and are full at around 16:00, but places like Hvar town are already busy even before lunchtime.
We advise you to call the port or anchorage and reserve your spot ahead (it’s not possible everywhere). This will give you an opportunity to stay out sailing and swimming all day and still find a safe place where you planned. In case you need help with this, feel free to contact us and we will help you with our contacts.
Safe & Happy sailing!