Sailing Holidays Croatia

A Sailing holiday in Croatia is something which everybody should experience at least once in their lifetime. Croatia has been one of the top holiday destinations for decades, cities like Pula, Zadar, Split, Dubrovnik have long been recognized as recommendable and attract more and more tourists every year.

But with 1800 km long coastline and over 1200 islands, isles, cliffs, reefs and rocks, Croatia is literally a sailing paradise: The clear blue sea of the Adriatic, the numerous bays and hidden beaches, which can only be reached by boat, is just a few of the reasons why a sailing holiday is something everyone should try out.

In relation to planning and actually booking a sailing holiday on a sailing boat, catamaran or motorboat in Croatia, there are a few things which might be good to consider thoroughly. No need to say that first thing is to investigate if you or some other part of the crew, has the necessary sailing licenses to charter a boat in Croatia, if that is the case you can continue your planning with the following steps: (If that is not the case, you have two options charter with skipper or sailing school program)

Sailing boats in bay Komiza on Island Vis Croatia

Sailing areas in Croatia:

Basically, it starts with the question, which sailing area is best for a sailing in Croatia? With 1800 km of coastline, the variety is quite large, so you should make the decision according to your wishes and preferences. When it comes to yacht rental, we divide the sailing areas into Istria, Kvarner Bay, North Dalmatia (Zadar), Central Dalmatia (Split) and South Dalmatia (Dubrovnik).

Once you have narrowed down the sailing area, you might want to consider how much you actually would like to sail on a daily bases. How many hours do you want to spend at sea every day and are you more into anchorages or harbours and marinas? Most Croatian charter companies have a predefined set of recommending sailing routes in Croatia, which include information about distance and approximate sailing time of the daily tours. Consider your crew, if there are children on board, maybe the daily sailing legs shouldn't be too long.

Weather conditions:

Another main thing is the local weather conditions, which can influence your daily sailing routes and planning. It is very important to pay attention to the weather reports, no matter what sailing route you have planned, in the end it all depends on the weather conditions. Once you arrive in our office, we'll provide you different sources where to follow local weather forecast.

Berths, anchorages & marinas:

Once you have found something which roughly matches your wishes, you should also check out the destinations on the route, like cost of mooring and facilities, restaurant or markets in that particular place. If you should not find a route which match your sailing preference, you should contact the charter company and ask for assistance in making an individual sailing route with suggestions about berth possibilities. Most charter companies have a specialist who can easily create a customized sailing route according to your needs. But also on spot, we can help you to organize a berth in some bays and marinas.

In our blog post you can find some interesting Apps, which have information about berth cost and contact numbers for harbours, anchorages and marinas.

Best time for sailing in Croatia:

The best time depends on what you are looking for while on sailing vacation (party, sailing, swimming, diving, exploring).

The yacht charter price depends on the season, in the high season it is of course the most expensive, but in the high season is everywhere a lot going on. There are numerous concerts and events on the islands and the nightlife on some islands (like Hvar) is literally "on fire". The bays are of course also crowded and therefore the berth costs are also more expensive and, especially for some ports, a pre-reservation is required in order to get the berth at all.

The pre-season is generally reserved for sailing enthusiasts, the days are long, wind conditions are excellent for sailing, the islands and bays are still "relaxed" and without crowds, swimming is only for the brave ones, as the sea temperature might not be ideal for everyone. The berth and mooring costs are lower and you can find a berth in all ports and bays without much stress.

The after-season in September and October is also a bit quieter, although September has been well booked in recent years. But by the end of September and October charter and mooring prices are going down again, the sea temperature is still comfortable (from summer) and you can swim. The only disadvantage is that the days are shorter, which shortens the sailing factor.

You have probably already agreed with the crew which direction to go. Each island in Croatia has something to offer, from tranquility and solitude when anchored in one of the lonely bays, to gorgeous and historic old towns with their museums, galleries and well-preserved architecture, as well as adventurous countryside.

While sailing in Croatia, try to relax, live eco-friendly and treat nature, but also the underwater world, with respect.

When all of that is in place, you are basically ready to start your sailing holiday in Croatia. We will do our best to help you with finding the most suitable charter boat for you and your crew. Please feel free to contact us for any further particular.