According to the Croatian story, the Greek hero Odysseus was shipwrecked and held captive on the Croatian island of Mjet. He bought into that myth during a visit in May when I and six other sailors lost the motor on our 54-foot yacht.
“Remember, Odysseus spent seven years in Mljet,” said our captain Ivan Ljubovic. “We can stay for two nights.”
A clogged fuel filter was essentially a minor issue that was hampering a seven-day island-hopping cruise from Split to Dubrovnik on a yacht that passengers helped navigate. Even for a yacht, engines are essential for anchoring and sticking to a schedule on quiet days, but most of my colleagues agreed that getting mugged in a village with Roman ruins in a turquoise bay is an acceptable fate.
When I signed up for the trip last November, I was resigned to what I thought would be greater inconvenience. Then, travel agency G Adventures had several travel deals on sale over the Black Friday weekend. The best deals were during the off-season, which meant potentially chilly weather and closed restaurants and attractions. But at about $1,300 (after the 30% discount) for a seven-night island hopping trip in late April, it was too tempting to pass up.
My cousin Kim agreed and we packed our raincoats and made plans to meet in Split to test our budget boundaries.
'Everything in between is an adventure'
Little information about the itinerary was released prior to departure, and none of it was firm.
“Split and Dubrovnik are decided.” On the first day, the captain, who would solo the ship and act as a guide, spoke. “Everything in between is an adventure.”
It started with the Sauturnes, a stunning Kufner yacht with four cozy guest cabins, four economical bathrooms with retractable faucets acting as shower heads, and a spacious galley. Our “crew”, made up of Australians and Americans aged between 18 and 75, spent most of our time on the boat. On the boat, foam mattresses provided sunbathing and the cockpit awning provided shade.
The sunny and comfortably cool weather wasn't our biggest concern. The G Adventures website mentioned famous islands, including coastal Brac and Vis, which portrayed convincing Greek countryside scenes in the film 'Mamma Mia 2'. However, many places are closed during the off-season, so according to the captain, we decided to proceed depending on the weather and coastal conditions.
Meals were not included, so finding a restaurant that was open was important. For breakfast and lunch on board, we each split 50 euros (about $54) and bought communal groceries from the local market. At night we ate at a restaurant. G Adventures advised us to budget $250-$325 per week, which was accurate, but we often splurged on Croatian wine (a bottle of house red averaged $15).
small port
After a frantic grocery shopping trip and transfer to the bunk cabin Kim and I shared, we set sail on a sunny morning as the ship departed for the 43-mile-long Hvar, Croatia's longest and sunniest island. I experienced Zen. .
Neighboring islands passed by as the wind created ripples and waves in the sea. A swarm of shearwaters soared to eye level.
Within a few hours the steep ridges of Hvar emerged, revealing terraced lavender fields and olive groves. Driving down a long, narrow bay, we arrived at Stari Grad, a village of stone houses with terracotta roof tiles, just as travelers have done since 384 BC, when Greek sailors from the island of Paros settled here.
Our mooring offered a front row view of the fishing boats and cafes moving along the shore. Stari Grad's attractions, including the Greek ruins of Paros and the 17th-century Venetian cathedral, are not yet open for the season, but we enjoyed exploring the old town's narrow alleys and deserted squares.
A 20-minute aerobic hike from the coast takes you up a steep hill decorated with giant white crosses and views of Stari Grad and the plains beyond. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, it is a 4th-century agricultural sector with stone walls surrounding vines and olive groves. .
That evening we arrived at Konoba Kokot, a farm restaurant specializing in 'peka', a type of barbecue where meat is grilled under an iron lid topped with hot coals. The family who runs the place opened their doors in the pre-season welcoming us with a glass of rakija, a local herbal liquor. At a long table under the pavilion, we gorged ourselves on house-made goat cheese, wild boar pâté, and stove-roasted lamb, veal and octopus, along with unlimited red and white wine for 35 euros per person.
starry night
Small ships are unrivaled for access to small ports, but sailing is also like camping, where most mornings start with DIY instant coffee. The marina provided a free bathhouse with shower.
Cool temperatures appear to have hindered celebrity-packed megayachts known to dock in the town of Hvar on the island's south coast. Our captain declared this the “Mykonos of Croatia” as we passed through the port, crowded with visitors carrying shopping bags and gelato cones.
With clear weather forecast, we anchored in an undeveloped bay east of town. The mooring was owned by the owner of the Moli Onte restaurant, who took us on a motorized dinghy where we could visit the fortress above Hvar before dinner and drink Ozujsko beer in St. Stephen's Square, the largest in the region. I gave it time. Dalmatia.
Back on board, with no artificial lights to obscure the night sky, we reached the upper deck to stargaze. As my colleagues went to bed, I grabbed my blanket and beanie and laid down in bed under the stars, waking periodically to capture the drama of the rising moon reflecting off the still water.
Little Dubrovnik
Gray fingers of rock reach out to meet vineyards sloping along Hvar's southern coast as we set off for neighboring Korcula. For five hours, the longest day of the voyage, I welcomed the opportunity to act as first mate, steering the line on the jib sail.
To break the journey, Captain Ljubovic moved to a quiet bay on the Peljesac peninsula. It was the Caribbean's blue waters, cloudless skies, and sandy bottom that made us want to jump in despite the numbing sea temperatures.
15th-century walls surround Korcula's historic center, earning it the nickname “Little Dubrovnik”. After passing through a stone gate carved with a winged lion, symbolizing the Venetian Empire, which ruled most of the Adriatic since the 13th century, the narrow alleys lead you to ornate churches and mansions. There is no better journey through history than getting lost in a web of pedestrian streets. Or so we said to ourselves as we passed Marco Polo's house, where preseason wasn't over yet.
Restaurants along the waterfront wall served pizza and seafood under lights strung from pine trees, and we captured the sunset from an old turret. It is now the Massimo Cocktail Bar. Here, customers must climb a ladder to the rooftop.
The most romantic port on the trip was also the noisiest. At least in the marina where the Polish Sailing Regatta was being held. The next morning, when I went to take a shower at 6am, I found the group still cheerfully dancing on the yacht, with empty liquor bottles and crushed potato chips strewn about.
Stranded in Mljet
We left Korčula in a strong 20 knot “jugo” or southerly wind and Captain Ljubovic let down the sails saying “You paid for a sailing holiday, not a motorboat”.
As we pulled back and forth towards Mljet, the boat tilted at an unsettling angle and we took pictures of the faces of the sea spray.
In Mljet, home to Mljet National Park on the western tip of the island, we rented bicycles (10 euros) and rode the breathtaking trails across the park's mountain spine. On the other side we cycled around two inland lakes and took a boat trip to a 12th-century monastery on an island on one of them (park entrance fee, 15 euros).
Anchoring in the still quiet town of Poles, we heard stories about the high season. Up to 100 yachts docked in the bay and members of the band U2 have been spotted cycling in the park. After a short shower, the village glowed with sunset light, and Stella Maris Restaurant welcomed us with grilled sea bass (25 euros) and shrimp (20 euros).
Fellow Sydney traveler Nova Hay, 46, who was traveling with her 18-year-old daughter, said: “I'm very glad I chose this time because it wasn't crowded.”
In the morning I had the trek to the summit of Montokuc on my own. The roughly three-mile round trip hike took us to one of the highest points on the island, a rock ledge with a spectacular panorama shared by a family of wild goats.
Soon the Sauternes' engine failed to turn over and we were stranded in a national park on a remote island with no technicians.
Teaming Dubrovnik
The next morning, Captain Ljubovic made repairs, but they did not last long and the engine died again. This time we were right across from Mljet's cave, which jokingly should have been Odysseus' refuge.
After a morning of light sailing, a mechanic from the mainland arrived by speedboat, and within an hour we were driving towards the Franjo Tudman Bridge, which spans the entrance to Dubrovnik Marina, where hot showers awaited.
“Dubrovnik is the most expensive city in Croatia,” said Captain Ljubovic. We spent the last of our savings, €70, on hiring a taxi van to and from the heart of the ancient walled city, about 15 minutes away.
With two large cruise ships docked in the port, Dubrovnik was crowded with visitors and the cost to climb the stone walls surrounding the city was a shocking 35 euros. (Kim and I were planning to spend two days in the city after our cruise and purchased a more comprehensive Dubrovnik Pass for €35, which included admission to the city walls, several museums, and public bus transportation.)
On our final evening we gauged the closed museums and lack of crowds. Perfect hiking weather and great swimming water; Plenty of dock space and more restaurant choices – we felt we could sail ahead during discount season.
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