6 Croatian Islands including Blue Cave Tour

Croatia is known for its Blue Cave. It’s a natural phenomenon when the sun’s rays hits the sea surface through an opening in the cave. The lights reflect off the water and the white sea surface to produce a glowing blue light in the cave. In 1884, they blasted a small opening with dynamite so boats can enter. Before the small entrance was created, the only way in was to dive underneath the rock wall. We found a good deal for 75 Euro that takes you to 6 different islands including the Blue Cave.

The tour started at 7:30 AM at Toto Travel where we met our tour guide and 30 other tourists. We split up into 3 different speedboats. The Blue Cave is 1 hour and 30 minutes by speedboat from Split. When we arrived at the island of Biševo, we were told to get on the line to board a smaller boat. According to others, people had to wait at least 1 hour during the summer. Since we went offseason and arrived early, we didn’t have to wait at all.

It was a quick ride to the Blue Cave once we boarded the small boat. The entrance was just wide enough for the boat to enter. Due to the small opening, we all had to bend our head down as we entered the cave. Once inside, the bright blue lights overtakes the cave. It was truly amazing to see how beautiful nature can be. We were only inside for 5 minutes sadly but I was able to get a couple of pictures and take it all in.

Our next stop was Komiža, which is a fisherman village on the island of Vis. We had an hour to explore this island and its pebble beaches. We decided to grab a seat at a cafe and ordered a coffee and pastry before heading to our next beach stop.

We did a quick 15-minute stop at a limestone cave and Stiniva Bay. The limestone cave looked like someone stacked the limestone on top of each other with all the different layers. For Stiniva Bay, this is a beautiful pebble beach surrounded by limestone walls. The difference between this beach and others is that there is a sea entrance where the two cliff parts.

We got to stop at Budihovac Island for about an hour where we were able to get into the crystal clear water and tanned a bit on the pebble beach. This beach is best known for a friendly donkey roaming around. Our tour guide told us was that the donkey loves towels and not to run away from him. As we were getting ready to leave, the donkey spotted my bright white towel in my arm and started galloping towards me. Nervously I started to run away from it but it continue to chase me. People at the beach started to yell “Don’t run” and as I slow down, the the donkey was right next to me. It was truly friendly like everyone said and I was able to pet it. This is a beach trip that I will never forget.

Hvar is the next stop on our tour. Hvar is ranked as one of the best islands in the world. It’s known to be the luxurious beach destination. Before grabbing lunch, we climbed up to the hilltop fortress. Since we visited a few fortresses during this trip, we just took pictures outside. The stunning views overlooking the town and the sea was worth the hike up.

We grabbed lunch at Dalmatino (5-star restaurant with over 4K reviews on Tripadvisor). This is the only restaurant I have been to that offers complimentary shots to start our meal and end our meal (our appetizer and dessert). Their homemade gnocchi with shrimp and truffle sauce was to die for. I would highly recommend ordering this dish. We also order the sea bass fillet but it was a bit dried. Overall, the restaurant had great service, surprised us with shots, and served one of the best gnocchi I had.

Dalmatino
Rating: 9.1/10.0
What Have I Learned: We had a late lunch so there was no wait but people suggest to make reservation ahead of time.
Cost: Our entrees were between 110 HRK to 120 HRK (17 USD to 18.70 USD)
Hour: Mon to Sat: 11 AM to 12 AM

Our last stop on this tour was Milina, Brač. The exterior stone of the White House originated from this island. The restaurants are known to offer fresh fish, homemade olive oil, and traditional Dalmatian specialties. We didn’t get to dine here, but we did buy a bottle of olive oil.

This tour is a full day of island hopping. We checked out the famous Blue Cave, swam at a pebble beach, got chased by a donkey, had an amazing lunch, and tasted fresh homemade olive oil. I would recommend joining a one day island tour if you don’t have time to hit each island separately.

6 Islands Tour
Rating: 8.5/10.0
What Have I Learned: Croatia has 718 islands, 389 islets, and 78 reefs. Brač, Hvar, and Vis are 3 islands that usually make it on the top Croatian island list.
Cost: 75 Euro (88 USD) for 1 person
Hour: Tour starts at 7:30 AM and returns back to Split at 6 PM