Gorgeous Hvar is an island just off the coast of Croatia near the town of Split and it’s a beautiful place to explore, party, eat and swim. There’s fun for everyone and a perfect beach for everyone. Here are my recommendations for the best beaches of Hvar to visit while you’re there.
Some of the best beaches of Hvar are not on the island itself but on the Pakleni archipelago, scattered off the north-eastern tip of the island. Here’s a view of the Pakleni islands from the walls of the fortress in Hvar Town:
Have a look at my post on exploring the Pakleni islands here – the rocky beaches on the island of Marinkovac (see above) are stunning, as is the sandy Palmizana on Sveti Klement.
All the coastal towns of Hvar have swimming places – there are several in Hvar Town itself for example but get out of the towns and see the beaches further along the coast because they are really special. The water is so stunningly clear in this part of the Adriatic and the sunshine turns it all shades of aquamarine.
Along the coast from Hvar Town Milna is a popular beach but we went further along to Dubovica, where a tiny chapel and handful of houses perch around a pebbly bay. The sun was sinking as we walked (10 minute) back up the hill to the road and we had to tear ourselves away from this beautiful spot.
On the north coast we visited a number of beaches, including the lovely Soline with beautiful views and the rocky shelves of the Glavica peninsula near Vrboska. I loved the combination of blue, green and gold (rock) here.
But the favourite by far in the north was Grebisce, 4km along the coast road from Jelsa (going towards Sucaraj). Look out for the Grebisce campsite and walk down through that to get to the beach.
The sandy beach is very small but the sea bottom is smooth and sandy, and the clear water stays quite shallow for a long way out, making it like a great big splashy pool. Fantastic if you have children!
We got to the best beaches of Hvar by bus, boat and car. In summer there are water taxis plying the south coast and the Pakleni. Because we visited off season we had to hire our own boat to get to the Pakleni.
Regular buses cross over to Vrboska and Jelsa (you can stop at Milna and Dubovica on this route) but it is a bit of a walk to the best beaches from there so we hired a car for the day to explore these beaches as well as the interior of Hvar.
Hvar really does have it all as a holiday destination – history, culture, beaches and a touch of glamour.
<em>By Natasha von Geldern</em>
What would you include on your list of the best beaches of Hvar?
