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MEDITERRANEAN CHARTER
VENICE
TOCROATIA
A dream
charter
steeped
in ancient
history
Just five hours by boat from Venice
and, also, best visited from the water,
Croatia offers an unforgettable
Mediterranean charter experience.
No doubt about it – the Dalmatian Coast of
Croatia is the hot new charter area in the Mediterranean.
And for good reason: protected
cruising, crystal-clear waters, drop-dead gorgeous
scenery, and relief from the crowds and
high prices of the Western Mediterranean. As
distances between ports of call are short, you
will cruise about two to four hours each day,
leaving a maximum of daylight hours for
onshore exploration, watersports, or simply
relaxing and enjoying the five-star service
aboard your yacht.
WRITTEN BY
ANN LANDRY
The island of Vis
YACHT VACATIONS & CHARTERS
PREMIER 2004 123

MEDITERRANEAN CHARTER
10 Nights: Venice to Dubrovnik
Approximately 340 NM
Prepared by Ann Landry, KN&P
Day 1: Arrive in Venice. Your yacht will be
docked at Riva San Biagio, a 5-minute walk
from St. Marks Square. Depart for Croatia
or spend your first night on the quay at
Venice, departing at first light for Rovinj,
Croatia.
Day 2: Rovinj. Clear customs and immigration.
Stop at the Brijuni Islands. Tour the
beautiful palace of Tito. No cars are allowed
on the island; you can rent bicycles or golf
carts to get around. Zoo and golf course are
available.
Days 3 & 4: Pag Island. Visit the handmade
lace cottage industry, which rivals
Belgian lace. Dugi Otok Island. Cruise the
interior waters between islands, a national
park area with beautiful natural scenery.
Day 5: Kornati Islands. Fish for bluefin
tuna.
Waterfalls in Krka National Park
Croatia offers more than 3,500 miles of scenic coast
Venice to Croatia
Once you can tear yourself away from the
magic of Venice, it’s time to head down the
canal and on to Croatia for the cruise of a lifetime.
Croatia has a magnificent coastline with
mountains marching straight down to the sea,
plentiful harbors, and 1,185 islands, only 66 of
which are inhabited. Most of the islands are
very close to the mainland with easy cruising
distances between them. Croatia offers a stunning
3,500 miles of coastline (about 1,000 miles
coastwise and 2,500 miles of island coast). With
the water color approaching that of the
Caribbean, scuba diving is a specialty; there is
even coral in Croatian waters.
The best way to see Croatia is by sea. While
the coast and islands are relatively undeveloped,
the place is steeped in history. Don’t forget
that people have been living here for centuries.
There is so much to see and do that you
should ideally spend 10–12 days on a cruise
starting in Venice and ending at one of
Croatia’s charming medieval walled cities of
Trogir or Dubrovnik.
Much has been written about Dubrovnik,
the pearl of the Adriatic, and it does not disappoint.
Lived-in and catering to the tourist
trade, the ancient city juts out into the sea, surrounded
by water on three sides. If you want to
linger a day or two in this charming walled city,
try the Pucic Palace, in the center of the Old
Town, with 19 deluxe guestrooms and suites,
elegantly appointed with antique furnishings
and modern conveniences.
Craggy cliffs and transparent waters on Vis
Day 6: Sibenik/Skradin Marina/Krka
Falls. This is a must, a most fantastic journey.
You will travel in the yacht up a windy
river gorge with high cliffs on each side into
a lake, where you will tie up at Skradin
Marina. You can hire a tourist boat privately
to take you up to Krka Falls and the
monastery. The Konoba Zlatne Skoljke
restaurant, a locals’ seafood place, is recommended;
phone 022 71022.
Day 7: Hvar Island. Hvar Town is the St.
Tropez of Croatia. This island will remind
Californians of home, as the hillsides are
planted in olives, lavender, rosemary, and
grapes. The island town of Stari Grad was
founded in 385 BC as a Greek colony.
Day 8: Brac. Bol has a fantastic beach. The
medieval town of Korcula is gorgeous.
Day 9: Mljet Island. Anchorage is at beautiful
Polace. An island within the island has a
monastery that you can visit by hired boat,
as you are not allowed to take your own
tender. This is the greenest and most heavily
wooded island in the Adriatic, and features
Karst caves, beautiful beaches,
remains of Ilyrian castles, Roman ruins, a
well-preserved part of an early Byzantine
palace, and an early Christian basilica.
Day 10: Dubrovnik. Disembark.
PHOTOS BLUE ATTRACTION: CHRIS MOREHOUSE
Blue Attraction still has some availability this summer
in the Mediterranean, including Croatia; she can
be chartered for $72,000/week in July and August;
$68,000/week in other months. Please contact
alandry@ kochnewton.com.
Boarding in Venice
If you need a fix of bright lights, sophisticated
elegance, museums, galleries, and designer
shopping, start or end your charter in Venice,
the jewel of the upper Adriatic Sea. There’s no
place quite like the Piazza San Marco, the
“Drawing Room of Europe,” as Napoleon called
it. Venice is definitely worth a two-night stay.
Once a wealthy and powerful maritime citystate
at the crossroads of the Euro-
Asian trade routes, Venice is today a
center of art and culture, home
to a major film festival, and
the Venice Biennale, an
international art exhibition
held every two years. A
walking tour of the city took me
past several monumental bronzes
by the Colombian sculptor Botero, in
place for the 50th Biennale in
September 2003.
Above all, Venice is a lived-in city and it is
beloved by its residents. Daily life is not easy in a
city without wheels, hardly imaginable for an
American. But Venetians love their city and their
way of life. They know their history and will proudly
and passionately recount it for you.
Want to experience the lifestyle of a wealthy
merchant family of centuries past Your charter
agent can arrange the rental of a palace on the
Grand Canal where you and your guests can dine
in royal style, complete with musicians; an elegant
cocktail party or intimate dinner at the Guggenheim
Museum; or a private, after-hours tour of San
Marco, complete with music.
124 PREMIER 2004 YACHTCHARTERSMAGAZINE.COM YACHT VACATIONS & CHARTERS
PREMIER 2004 125

MEDITERRANEANCHARTER
Sunset on the island of Vis
About the Author
Ann Landry is a member of International Yacht
Vacations & Charters’ Editorial Advisory Board, and a
charter broker with Koch, Newton & Partners.
alandry@kochnewton.com
Trogir is an unexpected bonus, a lived-in
city (yes, there are ATM machines) with a very
comfortable ambience in central Croatia.
Charming, well-kept, and more low-key than
Dubrovnik, you can begin or end your charter
in Trogir. The Split airport is actually closer to
Trogir than it is to Split.
On your way to one of these ancient walled
cities, you’ll pass through the Brijuni Islands, a
string of beauties off the Southwest Coast of the
Istrian Peninsula. Here you can enjoy golfing,
beautiful beaches, and a national park with a
safari style zoo. Brijuni is the site of Tito’s private
retreat (tours are available), still maintained
as a state residence.
Disembark at Sibenik, on the mainland, and
your captain will drive the yacht straight up
the fjord-like river to the village of Skradin,
gateway to the spectacular Krka Falls in the
national park – this is a must-see. You will
board the national park ferry for the ride up to
the falls (it is not permitted to take the yacht’s
tender) where you can hike a little or a lot, surrounded
by the sights and sounds of falling
water.
The island of Hvar will remind Californians
of home, as the hillsides are planted in olives,
lavender, rosemary, and grapes. The owner of
the art gallery in Hvar Town has more relatives
in California than he has in Croatia. When phylloxera
devastated the vineyards of Croatia, the
winemakers left for California.
Croatians are friendly and welcoming. Just
about everyone speaks English; many are also
fluent in Italian, German, and French. The local
produce is very fresh and delicious. There is a
fish farm industry in Croatia and the fish and
shellfish are excellent.
Captain Nicholas Flashman, of the popular
120ft motoryacht Blue Attraction (see accompanying
photos), advises that Croatia is ideal for
chartering, providing calm cruising in protected
waters. “It’s like cruising on an inland lake. In six
weeks of cruising, I had no water on the deck,”
he says.
Because Croatia offers such an array of
options, I have provided a sample itinerary (see
sidebar), “10 Nights: Venice to Dubrovnik.”
Whatever destinations you choose, you
won’t be disappointed. Cruising from Venice to
Croatia is a trip you won’t soon forget. Y V C
About the Writer
Ann Landry is a member of International Yacht
Vacations & Charters’ Editorial Advisory Board, and a
charter broker with Koch, Newton & Partners.
alandry@yachtchartersmagazine.com
The ancient town of Sibenik, located on the estuary of the Krka River and the Adriatic Sea
126 PREMIER 2004 YACHTCHARTERSMAGAZINE.COM