Exceed your Charter Sailing Holiday Expectations
Croatia is among the world's most popular yacht charter destinations. The eastern Adriatic's extensive sailing grounds give you quaint villages, historic towns, peaceful island refuges and fascinating countryside to explore, countless places of interest spaced at convenient sailing intervals on a leisurely charter holiday.
Croatia is a sailor's paradise, its islands and harbours providing idyllic stopover points at convenient sailing intervals. From Pula in the north to Dubrovnik in the south, the cities and towns you visit are all rich in architecture, history and local character. The spectacular coastline is dotted with quaint villages set against a dramatic backdrop of mountains, while the offshore islands, many of them cut off from the modern world, provide a welcome haven when you want to get away from it all. Your journey gives you a pleasant combination of mooring on town quays, in bays with quiet anchorages and in some of the Mediterranean's best marinas.
The Croatian communities you visit are as welcoming as any. Ashore there is usually a good choice of restaurants, and always a bar nearby to keep the local Pivo beer flowing. Colourful local markets provide an abundance of fresh fruits, fish, meat and vegetables, making re-provisioning a fun and simple chore. Local specialities include raznijici, pork kebab and cevapicici - delicious spicy meatballs. Pag island cheese and smoked Prsuit ham are popular starters, to be washed down with some fine local wines.
When sailing in Croatia, cruising distances are short and your days pass at a leisurely pace. Whichever course you set, your Croatian charter will be a pleasant sailing journey that takes you to moorings on town quays, anchorages in quiet bays, and if you choose, berths in modern marinas. With so many charter operators and sailing itineraries to choose from, the options are almost endless. Let us work through it all with you for the very best Croatian sailing holiday.
The Coastline of Croatia: Something New at Every Turn
The Croatian Coast with its 1180 islands is one of the most impressive coastlines in Europe. For a typical one or two-week holiday, the practice is to choose one of the three recognised sailing zones to explore and enjoy - Istria & Northern Adriatic, Kornati Islands & National Park, or the southern Dalmatia Islands.
Each region of the Croatian coast has has it's own character. To the north, the Istria peninsula is a land of discovery, fought over for centuries where eastern and western Europe meet. Towns with fascinating histories are interspersed with quiet bays and wilderness hinterland. Nearby are the quite places of the northern Adriatic islands.
In the Kornatis it's not hard to find peace and quiet within a unique and picturesque island group. There's a change of scenery at every turn and time ashore is rewarding with a hike over a largely barren yet in its own way stunning landscape. The larger islands all have settlements of substance where the local food and wines can be enjoyed in the real Croatian way.
In the south of Croatia, the Dalmatian islands are serviced by larger towns that are big attractions in themselves.This well-known destination is a magnet for all sorts of tourism. Once aboard your charter boat it's easy to escape from all that. Sail away and find places the land-based traveller can only dream about.
With so many bases and well-equipped marinas sited along the coast, there are numerous itinerary options for your Croatian boat charter. In addition to the usual 'out and return' charter itinerary, we can advise and assist you on planning a unique one-way sailing journey along the Croatian coast. For instance, Murter to Dubrovnik allows you to weave your way among the islands without having to double on your tracks, in all likelihood enjoying downwind conditions all the way. Other start or end points include Pula, Split and Dubrovnik: the permutations are endless!
Climate and Sailing Conditions in Croatia
The most popular time for a yacht charter holiday in Croatia is during the Mediterranean summer months between May and September, when gentle northerly winds prevail for continuous days of easy-going sailing.
Perhaps the best time for Croatian sailing is in the early summer, May and June, when the winds are light to moderate and most reliable. In July and August thee can be periods of calm and it can be hot! From September onwards the winds strengthen. At that time the local Bora (strong north wind) can blow for increasingly long periods as winter approaches. Croatia can also be affected by the Sirocco (humid east-southeast wind), which can blow for short periods at any time.
Warm, dry summers and mild winters characterise the coastal Croatia climate. Average temperatures during the charter season range between 22 and 29°C.
Navigation and Sailing Licenses
A sailing license (usually a formal certificate at any level will do) and a VHF operator's license are compulsory requirements of bareboat yacht charter in Croatia. We help you work through all that, seeking prior approval of your documentation before you travel to avoid any last-minute headaches. During your charter you must carry the original documents on board, in case of inspection by the local port authority.
Our client reviews about charter sailing in Croatia
Rating: 5 / 5Ultra's 2024 Fountaine Pajot Elba 45 was the ideal catamaran for our party of 4 couples plus a skipper. Excellent living spaces and upper deck lounging areas, well-equipped galley with outdoor barbecue plus good sized cabins each with their own shower and toilet. Even with 9 people on board there were plenty of places to go for quiet time. The galley layout was well thought out for food preparation and cooking plus two fridges and one freezer made the whole eating on board experience a very enjoyable one.
We loved having the use of the tender to explore our various anchorages and the two paddle boards we took as an extra were a great addition to the charter. Initially we had thought to skipper the boat ourselves but decided to pay extra for a local skipper and it was a great decision. Not only did we all get to enjoy the charter equally but Marijan's local knowledge of quiet anchorages and moorings, weather patterns and dealing with marina authorities was invaluable. He was a superb addition to our charter and we would highly recommend anyone chartering for the first time to use a skipper.
Highlights of the destination:
Favourite mooring was on Scedro Island off south coast of Hvar. Mooring buoy in cove in front of Tavern Kod Ive. Tranquil, rustic, beautiful with man in skiff selling local wines and taking orders for fresh croissants from Hvar bakery which he delivered by skiff the next morning.
Borova, Prezba Island (north west of Lastovo) where we anchored with stern lines tied to the rocks. Isolated, crystal clear waters for swimming and paddle boards.
Komiza, Vis - mooring buoy in the harbour in front of village of Komiza. Beautiful village to explore on foot, fresh fish from local fishmonger.
Exceptional service! Sail Connections had been highly recommended by friends who had used their services previously. Robert's vast experience and recommendations on what boat would best suit our needs, tips on a proposed itinerary, practicalities of skippering and provisioning the boat plus explaining the terms and conditions of the contract was invaluable. Thank you to Brian and Sue for their excellent service dealing with the finer details of the contract, plus liaising with the charter company on our behalf.
Paul, New Zealand, Oct 3rd, 2024
Rating: 5 / 5The boat (Fountaine Pajot Saba 50 - crewed) was perfect for our needs. Maintained well.
Vis island (was a hignlight -) day trip on scooters visiting cliff beach, town and winery.
(Your service was) great. Very knowledgeable and good recommendations for us being first timer on a charter.
Daniel, Australia, Sep 25th, 2024
Rating: 5 / 5The boat was excellent. Beautifully maintained great public spaces for our group.
We particularly enjoyed visiting Star Grad and Pocisca. In hindsight we wished we had visited more of these smaller towns. We also very much enjoyed anchoring in little coves and swimming off the boat.
The Captain's “excursions” to masonry school, beach bar and the deer were all enjoyable.
The service. On the boat was impeccable, Susan in particular did a mighty job.
Derek, Australia, Sep 13th, 2024
Rating: 5 / 5The Wave was wonderful! We had 3 couples and the skipper so we each had a berth. We cooked several meals in the kitchen and kept a fresh mint and basil plant in the the window! Our skipper and my husband are both sailors so we sailed the boat as much as the wind and time would allow and very much enjoyed that. Of course the black water issue is not great, but we managed.
All the islands along the coast of Croatia are worth checking out. We had 2 weeks to explore the beautiful towns and coves and recommend hitting the towns during the day to sightsee and pick up supplies then find a quiet cove to anchor for the night. Split was very crowded and might have been better visited in the fall after the cruise ships taper off.
Sail Connections' service was really great! We felt guided through the process, of which we knew nothing about before. We were met in Slano by Cristina, who was so good to help us. Our skipper was excellent even tho we had a bit of a language barrier, He was careful, fun, and joined us on all of our excursions and was willing to explore and find places he had never been. Joyce, USA, Aug 17th, 2019
Excellent internal layout for cruising, spacious living area, opening rear panel made for al-fresco living, closed only when in port, for security. The old cities of Dubrovnik and Trogir and Split with their history and achitecture, the beautiful anchorages in secluded bays, the clear warm water for swimming, the island walks. Your service was very good. Keyran, Australia, Jul 31st, 2016
The Best Croatian Charter Sailing Destinations
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