Sailing tips in Croatia - Guide and useful Information

Sailing tips Croatia

Currency

Since January 1, 2023 EURO is the official Croatian currency instead of the Croatian kuna.

Foreign currencies can be exchanged at banks, exchange offices, post offices and at most tourist agencies, hotels and camping grounds. Banking hours are 8 am to 7 pm from Monday to Friday. In the larger cities some banks are also open on Saturdays until noon. Credit cards: Most hotels, restaurants and shops accept credit cards (American Express, Diners Club, Mastercard, Visa).

Electricity
Voltage of city power gris -220 V, frequency 50HZ

Climate that you can expect while bareboat in Croatia
Croatian cost is 5790km long, rugged with 1242 islands and reefs with only 47th inhabitated islands. Climate is typical Mediterranean. Summer temperature is between 28-35Celsius. Sea temperature is 5-15°C and in the summer time between 23-26°C. The salinity is 38. Currents are the average of 0,5 knots, but near the river mouth can reach up to 4 knots. Sea tides have relatively small amplitudes. Summer daylight is between 6:30-20:30 hour.

Water
Tap water is potable throughout Croatia. The islanders will be grateful if you do not overspend water and clean the boat in their port.

Telephone code
The telephone code for Croatia is +385.

Time zone
GMT plus one hour in winter and GMT plus two in summer.

Travel documentation

Passport or some other internationally recognised identification document. For more information: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Croatia

Medical service

Foreign tourists do not pay for medical services if the Health Care Convention was signed between Croatia and the country they come from. Expenses of health services provided to persons coming from the countries with which the Health Care Convention was not signed are charged directly to users according to the price list. There are hospitals and clinics in all the major towns, and health centres, as well as pharmacies, in the smaller places. For patients whose lifes are in danger, there is emergency transport by air (helicopter) or sea (speedboat).
There is a network of veterinary clinics and centres in Croatia.

Holidays in Croatia
1 January - New Year's Day; Easter, including Easter Monday; 1 May - Labour Day; 22 June - Anti-Fascist Resistance Day; 25 June - Statehood Day; 5 August - Victory Day and National Thanksgiving Day; 15 August - Assumption; 8 October - Independence Day; 1 November - All Saints' Day; 25 and 26 December - Christmas Holidays.

Important telephone numbers

International dialling prefix for Croatia: 00385
112 - official Croatian emergency phone number
193 - Fire -service
194 - Ambulance
195 - rescue on the sea
192 - Police
987 - Assistance on the roads 987@hak.hr (If you are calling outside of Croatia or using a mobile phone dial ++3851 987)

Food on board

There is unwritten rule that there is never enough food on a board:-) In Dubrovnik and Trogir there is supermarket directly in the marina. In ACI Split there is one small but well equipped shop. As it is always crowded there, we kindly recommend better priced supermarket outside of the marina, distanced 5 minutes walk. Do not forget water, spaghetti, rice, instant soups, smaller package of milk or similar food which is always good to have while sailing. If you have booked bareboat charter from Trogir, there is a green market in the old-town with fresh vegetables and fruits. Split has also a green market in the center of old town (best way to go by taxi boat from ACI marina Split).

Boat fridges in all charter boats are smaller than one that you use at home, so these just fit the most important for the first few days of sailing vacation. If you didn't get the opportunity to buy everything or forgot something, don't bother yourself, on most islands in bigger places you can find supermarket to buy provision.

Regarding the kitchen work on board, it should be agreed in advance who does what, cooking falls on the person who has the most fun and experience, the other crew members are divided as auxiliary workers: preparation, cutting, stirring, mixing and finally Wash the dishes.

The most important thing is who you eat with and the mood of the crew, if there is the feeling of harmony and unity of the crew, everything tastes better ;)

Traditional dalmatian fish food

Restaurants

Most of the restaurants accept credit cards as payment, but those without electricity (for example island Scedro) maybe will be unable to charge your credit card so cash is again the best solution. Always check the price list in any restaurant before choosing fish. Croatian fish is well known and some types are expensive. Even cheaper fishes are good, especially if they are grilled. Also with ordering mixed meat you will not make a mistake. Grilled vegetables or plain boiled are part of Croatian daily menu (chard for example). For Vegetarians Risotto or Italian pasta with mixed salad can be good choice! Kids of course like pizza, but they should try grilled fish, mixed meat or "čevapčići".

Some islands, which don't have frequent connection to the mainland and are poorly inhabited, have no water pipes, so even a bottle of water can surprise you in price and the food came from "far away", so everything could appear a bit more expensive.

Many restaurants now also offer mooring buoys in front of their restaurants. Some of them do not charge any fees for this, but expect that someone who uses their berth service should eat or drink in the restaurant. Since such berths in high season are often occupied, if you have a certain restaurant in mind, you should reserve both a table and a berth in advance, and clear whether the berth is included in price.

Moorings

Mooring fees vary from place to place. Mostly it depends of the season time (pre-season, high-season), the length of the boat and the service in the individual harbor or marina. In marinas, harbors and ports the prices varies between 4€ and 13€ per meter of length. Please note that in almost all marinas there is a 50% - 100% surcharge for catamarans, because of the width. In the high season it is also common that for a short mooring, you have to pay already half daily price. Therefore, it is good to plan an approximate sailing route in advance, having some alternative moorings to choose from.

For mooring buoys in bays, you have to pay between 1€-7€ per meter of length. The concessions for individual mooring buoys are issued for the sea area, not for the individual buoys, so it can happen that the concessionaire in the bay asks you to pay even though you do not use their buoy but are on your own anchor.

In some bays with restaurants the concessionaire is also the restaurant owner, in such cases there is usually no charge for the buoy but it is understood that you as a guest eat or drink something in the restaurant. Otherwise, anchoring is free everywhere, unless it is marked as prohibited (nature or national park).

Moorings in marinas

All marinas have reception, restaurants, showers etc. When arriving in any marina their staff will help you to find your berth place and take your boat documents to the reception. When leaving please do not forget to pay invoice and take your boat documents again with you. Some of spot marinas in Southern part of Adriatic are: marina Baotic, ACI Trogir, ACI Split, ACI Milna (island Brač), ACI Vrboska (island Hvar), ACI Palmižana (island Hvar), ACI Korčula (island Korčula), ACI Dubrovnik etc. Regarding northern part, there are Marina Kornati, ACI Piskera, Marina Punat, Pula. If there is bad weather forecast predicted, we kindly advice to look for a berth in a marina, since marina have the better facilities and protection. Also it is good after 2-3 days of sailing to spend a day in a marina, to fill up water tanks, wash your laundry, or charge the batteries on shore power. If you have rented a boat in peak season (July and August) and don't have a berth reservation, try to reach the marina before 16:00h because it can be crowded. Price depends of boat length and season. Price can be checked online on the website of each marina. There are also some mobile apps (free of charge) where you have the phone numbers, berths and prices for most of the marinas and bays along the Croatian coast.

Moorings in harbor and port

Some smaller places as Jelsa, Komiza, Vis, Starigrad, Sipan, Lumbarda, Vela Luka, Orebic, Luka Slano will provide you mooring on a pier with water and electricity. Please mind that some islands as Mljet, Vis or Lastovo have own water provider service, but are not connected with shore (avoid cleaning of boat and long showering). Some places as Starigrad, Hvar, Korcula ,Vis, Veli Lago (Lastovo), Mljet will charge you for mooring buoys. Hvar town is expensive and if you do not look for party & wild night life it is better to avoid peak season and mooring stress in Hvar. We suggest to find a berth in a nearby ACI marina Palmizana or Vinogradisce bay, from where you can always have taxi boat to visit Hvar. Prices for bows in listed places are from 40€-90€. Ask the port authority what is included in price of the berth (water, electricity).

Anchorage

Anchoring is possible in lot of bays, but please take care about the signs where is forbidden it is clearly signed. Always take care how local boats are anchored so you can see on which wind the bay is open. If plants and trees grow near the sea it is a sign that the place might be good for anchorage. If you are looking for quiet places for day swimming and maybe night anchoring where no one will charge you there are lots of places on your way. Most of the island offer several anchorage bay which are free of charge, but try to avoid them if it is not good weather forecast and better look for a berth in a marina or harbor. The best place to have swimming in clean first of last day of your charter is south side of Brač (bay Osibova, bay Maslinova or Lučice) or south side of Šolta (bay Livka, bayTatinja). Anchoring in National park Mljet will be charged but it includes entrance tickets to National park and 2 day stay.

What to see?

National Parks along the coast: NP Mljet (island with beautiful salty lakes), NP KRKA (waterfalls-easy to reach from marina Skradin), NP Kornati, NP Brijuni.

National monuments:Mali Ston (oysters are delicates of that area), Blue cave (island Biševo) near Vis, Bear cave (near Vis), Bay Stiniva (island Vis), island Brusnik and Jabuka (please mind, because of lots of ore "magnetite" on this island compass does not work it is not recommended by own boat), Zlatni rat (island Brač), Significant landscapes, Pakleni otoci, Šćedro, Pustinja Blaca (closed because of reconstruction), Island Ravnik (Green cave). Here you can find some sailing itinerary suggestion for mentioned National parks and islands along Croatian coast.
Traditional stone house in Croatia

Fishing & diving licence in Adriatic sea - Croatia

You may only fish if you have a permit, which you can obtain online. Recreational fishing is allowed all along the Adriatic, except in the national parks (Brijuni, Kornati, Mljet and Lastovo) and nature parks. Diving areas must be clearly marked by setting a red or orange buoy in the center of the area, or by displaying a diving flag from a high point on the boat being used to dive from. The maximum depth permitted for recreational diving is 40 meters.

More about fishing and diving in the Adriatic while on sailing vacation you can find in our blog.

Fishing licence
Licence for recreate (not professional) fishing can be bought online here or some harbor offices (Trogir, Split, Hvar, Brac). Please mind that many protected animals live in Adriatic sea: Dolphin, the Mediterranean monk seal, turtle, seahorse, shell Prstac, starfish (Asterina, Ophidiaster ophidianus), red coral etc. Half of the year protected are also: Lobster. Penalties are from 3.000,00€ to 15.000,00€.

Diving licence
Possible only with diving licence (CMAS,PADi,SSI,NAUI,NASDS,YMCA etc.). We kindly recommend to have diving course in one of many licensed diving schools. Diving is prohibited in most of the areas(near marinas, in national parks, in protected Cultural areas etc.). Penalties are up to 3.000,00€.
sunset sailing in Croatia

Kids on board

If you have kids on board it is the best to bring their own life belts as maybe one that charter fleet have will not be suitable for your child. Contact us before your arrival so we can arrange some life belts which are suitable for small children. Do not forget: hat, sun-cream, mosquito repellent cream, sailing shoes, sunglasses...
Cover your child with light white T-shirt between 11:00-15:00 hour ( sun protection ). The boat can be very slippery, so let the children have rubber shoes most of the time (can be bought in supermarkets).
Children on board do not need much. The boat itself is fun to them. They especially like to play with the dinghy and jump into sea from the stern. When renting a boat pay attention to the cockpit, stern and always take a boat with Bimini.Teach your child to take part in the ship's duties and enjoy the time together. Even withouth TV or Smartphone you can have a very pleasant time with card games, chess or fishing etc. Avoid to eat sweet while sitting in the cockpit because of the bees. Choose a shorter daily routes and bays where they can buy ice cream and have a "good run". Penciles, paper, books and favourite teddy bear should not be forgotten.

More about sailing with children on board and family sailing you can find in our blog 10 Tips for sailing with Kids in Croatia

kind on sailing boat in Croatia

Watch out!

Always check is the gangway stable.
Do not drink water from boat - water tank.
Tap water in Croatia is completely safe
Electricity on boat works on battery so spare electricity if you are not connected to shore power with 220V.
Be sure that at least one crew member know how to start the engine.
Always take flesh light with you when leaving a boat late afternoon.
Do not jump into the sea if you were staying too long on sun (it can be shock).
To wave when passing by other sailing boats is custom and shows good crew behaviour if you help someone with mooring, tomorrow someone will help you.

do not throw rubbish into the sea while sailing in Croatia
do not discharge waste water from a boat near the shore and in protected areas
does not violate the law on fishing
protect aquatic plants and animals
apply to the competent bodies of environmental pollution
fire on open is forbidden
save the water, Croatian is reach with water but islands are not, so please save the water whenever you can (do not clean boats or take long showers).
Croatian tap water is safe for drinking so you can always refill your botlles (but not the water tanks on your sailing boats).
save energy: sail as much as you can, try wiindsurfing (Korčula area), kayak (island Mljet national Park), avoid skutters and motor boats.