A Complete Guide to the Croatian Islands

Hi, I’m Kim, the Abundant Traveler, and this is a video guide to the Islands of Croatia. Look at The Cove where we are—there’s nobody, there’s no soul but us. I spent a week on a yacht named the San Antonio, traveling from Split down to Dubrovnik and back to Split. These are the highlights of all the different islands I’ve visited, along with some of the fun stops and the private coves along the way.

My girlfriends and I boarded the yacht on Saturday morning in Split. We had the opportunity to meet the other passengers and the staff on our way to a swim stop. Our first evening was in the gorgeous island of Hvar. This is our first swimming spot. Day two, we were off to Hvar. Today, we’re headed into the town of Hvar on the island of Hvar, and I believe it is one of the biggest islands and the sunniest island here in Dalmatia. It’s also known for lifestyles of the rich and famous. So, if you want to see and be seen, you definitely want to come to Hvar.

As we disembarked from our yacht in Hvar, we noticed the gorgeous limestone walkways, buildings, plazas, and lots and lots of restaurants to have a cocktail and some delicious food. Cheers! Salute! Here’s to Hvar, Croatia, or “For” in the local language. Cheers! And we’re for having drinks and for sunset. We decided to walk to the top of the hill, where we can see the entire port and all of our yachts coming into dock. It was so cool to tour all of the yachts as they were docked next to each other each evening. Like glass, life.

Make sure to join the tribe and become a member of the community by clicking the link in the description below. Our next stop was the Pelješac Peninsula, which felt like an island but was actually the Croatian mainland. Here, we disembarked, had a cocktail, and then headed into the mountains for a delicious homemade dinner at an agriturismo. Before dinner, we had a tour of a sweet little church and the opportunity to meet the local wildlife. At dinner, we had some interesting homemade spirits, delicious pork, lamb, and beef, as well as homemade bread and some charcuterie.

Day four was spent at the national park. At each new island, the staff takes great care of us as we disembark, and then Ivan, our guide, takes us on a little tour of the island. Thank you. Good morning! It is day four. We’re on the island of Mljet, or as I practiced for about 10 times with our guide, Mljet. Yeah, I still can’t get it right. We’re going to be hiking and swimming in one of the salt lakes, so can’t wait. All of us are going there, like 30 people around me. Ivan is going to tell us all about the island and the national park.

There’s a sweet little island in the middle of Mljet, part of the national park, where they have a monastery and a little church of Saint Mary. It takes about 15 minutes on the boat to get out here, and honestly, when you walk the entire island, it only takes about eight minutes of walking to walk the entire island. Life on the San Antonio is basically the same every afternoon after lunch. We all seem to come up to the top deck and have a nap or a glass of wine, read a book, and just relax, waiting on our afternoon swim stop.

Every day was another island, as well as a delicious swim stop in a secluded cove somewhere along the way.

So, after swim time, it is a brief pause for some rest. My knee feels perfect right now, you feel me? Hello, different perspective. It’s so cool when we’re actually looking at the walls of the city here. It’s just incredible. It looks so small from the sea.

Well, good morning Dubrovnik! We landed last night, had a delicious buffet dinner, and today we’re headed up the Vernacular and going to take a tour of the city. Personally, I’m going to go walk the walls. Our first adventure for the day, we are online and we are going to see the views. I definitely suggest walking the walls of Dubrovnik in the evening before they close and after all the cruise ships have left town for the day. People everywhere, and this is not a busy day in Dubrovnik.

Well, it’s official. We’re on the walls of Dubrovnik. It really is spectacular. I’ve seen a lot of walled cities and a lot of places in my life, but this is second to none. It’s unbelievable how well-preserved this city is.

Well, good morning! I am still in my PJs. It’s about 7:15. We have just left Dubrovnik and we are headed to Korčula. So, first coffee of the morning, just out of bed long enough. As soon as they turn on the engines, it wakes us up and I want to come out and see what’s going on. So, we have a couple of hours and then a swim stop. But the weather has changed today. The weather is much cooler and windier. It’s really fall now, so anyway, we’ll see if I do a swim. But in the meantime, coffee.

The best view of town is from the top of the bell tower. This gorgeous, gorgeous view. This is steep, and look, my foot doesn’t even fit on the step. It’s quite a hike up to the bell tower in Korčula, but it is so worth it. It’s so worth it. And my favorite thing about Korčula was in the evening. I headed out to one of the outdoor bars, had a glass of wine, and listened to some of the local musicians.

And day seven, we were in Brac almost. And we’ve just arrived at our final swim stop just outside Bol and Brac. And yeah, it’s kind of cool, but still gonna take a swim.

Morning. It’s about 8:30 on the last day. We are already back in Split, and I am so sad to be leaving this boat. I don’t want to leave. We don’t leave. Thank you very much, San Antonio, and the crew at San Antonio. We appreciate you. And here they come with our luggage. What a fun week it’s been on the San Antonio. The crew was amazing. We saw some gorgeous islands, and I’m looking forward to heading back to Croatia very soon.

I’m Kim, the Abundant Traveler, and I’ll see you on the next adventure.