Gulet Cruising in Croatia : Dubrovnik to Split Route

If you have ever been inspired by the legend of Odysseus, held captive on an island by the nymph Calypso and have wondered what the famous Ogygia looked like, then the island of Mljet is the place for you. Located in the southernmost part of Croatia, the island has scenery that appears only in picture books of the world’s most beautiful fairy tales. Before your eyes you will see a lake in the middle of the island, and in the centre of that, another small island with a monastery dating from the 12th century. Although Calypso herself may not be nearby, the scene will capture your heart forever and you may never want to leave.

About the time that Marco Polo set sail for terra incognita, his hometown began to develop into a kind of urban sculpture built of stone with regular lines. That sculpture remains well preserved to this day. The streets of Korcula were carefully laid out by a local builder who was also an ingenious town planner. The streets are based on a fishbone pattern and are a true blessing in the summer. Although they bask in the golden glow of the sun both morning and afternoon, the heat of the midday sun is directed around them. If you want to experience the atmosphere of Korcula, may the good winds bring you here in July, when the city plays host to the International Festival of Song and Wine, celebrating the famous traveller, the Festival of Chivalry and the traditional sword dances performed in original costumes dating from the 16th century. The dances depict the struggle between the white king and the black king.

Mother Nature has indeed been generous to Central Dalmatia, bequeathing to it a coastline and long pebble beaches shaded by fragrant pine trees and adorning its sea with the beauty of a string of islands of exquisite beauty. Immediately above the beaches of the famous Makarska Riviera is the Biokovo massif, still the habitat of the chamois. Here you can enjoy the rising of the summer sun, with a view that extends all the way to the outermost islands in the open waters of the Adriatic. Having been recently placed on the list of the ten most beautiful islands, sunny Hvar is, without competition, numbered among the most seductive of Dalmatian islands. Boasting the largest island town square on both sides of the Adriatic, one of the first communal theatres in Europe, built in long gone 1612, the Arsenal, the famous “Tvrdalj” Palace of Petar Hektorovic, and stone-paved, narrow streets, worn smooth and glisteningin the sun, it is difficult to decide whether Hvar captivates more with the harmony of its history and art, or with the beauty of its nature, enhanced with the intoxicating fragrance of lavender.

The largest of the islands of the Split archipelago is Brac, known worldwide as the island of stone and wind. Island of stone, because the finest quality stone has been quarried here for centuries by the highly skilled and hard working local stone masons. It has been used to build not only the local cathedrals and other grand edifices, but also a number of other prestigious buildings. Bra? is also known as the island of wind. Nowhere else in the Adriatic, surfers tell us, does such a magnificent landward breeze blow as in the channel between Bra? and Hvar, particularly at the beach known as Zlatni rat, whose shape actually changes depending on the direction of the wind and waves.

Major income sources of the island are olives, fishing, tourism, vine and agriculture. The highest point of the island is Vela Straza which is 239 metres high and located eastern side of the island. On the north coast side of the island there are the large coves called Rogac and Necujam. Rogac has the main port of the island, which provides the island with ferry access. Other town Necujam is biggest bay of the island. The cove has inspired many local poets with its visual beauty. This beautiful bay is also tourism centre of the island. On both sides of the bay, there are beautiful beaches with crystal waters for swimming and relaxing.

When, in the year 305, the Roman Emperor Diocletian, who ruled the entire world at that time, decided to build his leisure time abode – in which he intended to spend the rest of his life – he had no doubt as to exactly where build to it. In the very heart of Dalmatia, in the bay of Aspalathos (Split), well protected from the sea by the islands of the Split archipelago, and defended on its landward side by high mountains, Diocletian created a special point on the map of the Adriatic: the future city of Split. Awash in the warm charm of the Mediterranean, Split is a city with rich history, not only within the walls of its museums, palaces and churches, but in the city itself. Its heritage speaks loudest and has done so since the times of Antiquity, on the Peristyle and from its stone houses, while the true Mediterranean spirit lives in the vibrant cellars, in the murmur at street corners, in the squares and alleyways and in the beauty of the waterfront. If you follow the weave of these white, stone-paved streets to the edge of the sea which gently rocks the moored boats, you will discover a city in which the famous Roman emperor left the imperial mark of his presence on every corner, together with the saint he decided to execute. Unique heart of Split has rightly been declared a monument of zero category and is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.