Where to cruise if you've only booked a charter week? Realistically, it's only six days at sea anyway. Eating up miles is out of the question for us, because we want to get to know a unique area with enchanting bays.
However, it is only the end of April, which is the earliest pre-season for a charter trip along the Dalmatian coast. Will the konobas and mini supermarkets on the small islands be open at all? Will the prices be more moderate than in summer? To be on the safe side, we are stocking up on enough food to last us a week if necessary.
Also interesting:
A light wind is blowing from the south, and fibrous clouds have lined up in the blue sky. The weather forecast for today is still calm. But over the next few days, the southeasterly jugo is expected to pick up and bring a lot of wind with the corresponding swell. We decide to take advantage of the aft wind and head straight for our furthest destination, the island of Žut.
Three mooring options in Žut
It is almost exactly 50 nautical miles from our starting harbour, Marina Agana, to ACI Marina Žut. We leave the island of Žirje, which we save for the way back, on our port side and reach the spacious Luka Žut in the last light of the can.
There are three mooring options here. The ACI Marina offers the most berths. It is only occupied in the southern part, which makes sense considering the expected Yugos. In the south-west corner of the bay is the "Sandra" fishing lodge with two dozen moorings. And on the south coast of the bay is the private marina of the "Fešta" restaurant. A marinero guides us to a free berth and hands us two murings.
The "Fešta" is a good address, as it is said to be one of the best seafood restaurants in the Mediterranean. When I met owner Krešimir Mudronja 25 years ago, the then young man owned nothing more than an old stone house with an overgrown olive grove. He had neither electricity nor water and certainly no capital. But Krešimir had a plan: he wanted to set up a fish restaurant that could compete with the best, as well as a small marina for his guests. Today, he employs 40 people in summer, generates electricity from generators and solar panels, produces fresh water from desalination plants and is listed in international gourmet guides.
He explains the level of ingenuity and perseverance required to successfully run a catering business in such a remote location with an example: yesterday, he received a new generator on his pier by ship. Delivered on a pallet, the device, which weighs more than two tonnes and is the size of a minibus, has to be transported about a hundred metres up a slope via a narrow gravel track. But how? First of all, a "carriageway" has to be built from planks, on which iron pipes are placed as rollers. The generator is then pulled uphill millimetre by millimetre using a tractor and an excavator ...
Gourmet dinner for over 100 euros
"We are completely on our own here and have to be able to do everything," says Krešimir. "Generating electricity, mastering every type of technology. For example, if one of our more than 30 pumps breaks down, we can't call a technician. My people work up to 70 hours a week during the season, isolated on an island for six months. You have to find them first."
The guests of his marina and restaurant should feel at home and, if possible, not realise the effort that goes into it. This is also reflected in the prices, which are not listed on the homepage - whether because of seasonal fluctuations or to avoid scaring anyone off remains to be seen. In any case, you should be prepared to fork out over 100 euros for a three- to four-course dinner with accompanying wine. In return, however, the "Fešta" usually offers exquisite cuisine and unusual compositions.
Our plan is to circumnavigate Žut once, as the island offers more than a dozen bays - with and without konoba. Although it is already part of the Kornati archipelago, it is not in the national park itself. If you decide to stay on Žut with your boat and skip the national park further out to the west and south, you will save a lot of money.
For a 46-foot boat, we would now have to pay a hefty 95 euros per day within the park in the low season. In the low season, mind you, i.e. in April or May. From June to September inclusive, the national park fee would be an impressive 190 euros per day. That's why we're staying in Žut, at least this time, and prefer to take the money to a konoba.
Low season in Croatia means empty anchorages
We start the circumnavigation in the north and travel in an anti-clockwise direction. The wind has briefly shifted to the north, and a moderate bora replaces the jugo blowing from the south for a few hours. Such changes between jugo and bora are not uncommon along the Croatian Adriatic coast at this time of year and should therefore be taken into consideration when choosing moorings or anchorages.
In the far north, the bays of Bizikovica and Pinizel offer good anchoring opportunities. There are several former hermitages on the shores, which have now been converted into holiday homes. There is no konoba. Although there would be suitable places to drop the iron in the two outgoing shore zones, we continue on, as they are far too open in Bora.
After rounding the northern tip of Žut, we head for the Uvala Bodovac fjord, a really beautiful spot, protected from the bora with enough room to swing at water depths of less than ten metres. Old stone walls bear witness to historical settlement. Today, however, you are alone here - and without service.
Just under three miles further south, we pass Uvala Jagodna, an equally beautiful fjord. However, the water depths even inside the bay are still 20 metres. At best, you could anchor here with a lot of chain and a land anchor. This is time-consuming and you have to like anchoring so deep. I'm not a fan of it, because I've already experienced a situation in the Kornati where the anchor got wedged between rocks at a depth of ten metres. Uvala Jagodna is also a marvellously lonely place.
Finally, in the far south, the spacious Uvala Muravnjak invites you to anchor. There is plenty of space here, the water depths near the shore are less than ten metres and there are several fishermen's houses. However, no one runs a tavern here either.
The west coast of Žut is very interesting from a nautical point of view and offers beautiful, little-used bays that provide good shelter, especially in northerly winds. The water is clear and the shores are clean. However, you should not expect catering or any kind of service.
We round the southern tip and pass the Žutska Aba channel, which separates the small island of the same name from Žut. In summer, this shallow spot is also a popular anchorage. Our destination is the larger Uvala Hiljaca, which consists of the sub-bays of Pristanišce, Dragišina and Sabuni. There are hermitages with konoba in all three places.
During our visit at the end of April, the jetties in the two southern bays were still closed. You have to expect this if you go on a cruise so early. The restaurants on the islands don't usually open until the beginning of May. But things are different in the northern bay of Sabuni. There are already several sailing and motor boats moored at mooring buoys.
A friendly young man waves us to the jetty and holds up a line as a sign of invitation. We moor in Roman Catholic style and even get electricity. Luka Juraga, who now runs the "Žmara" tavern together with his older brother Frane, greets us with a handshake. Their father Edi, who set up the business, still takes care of the procurement of fish and ingredients.
"We're just finishing off the technical work before the start of the season. But please, you are very welcome." He sets a table for us with a view of the lake. He apologises that there is no fresh fish yet and offers us ribeye steaks instead. He also serves fresh salad and grilled potatoes. Everything tastes delicious and doesn't cost much more than in Germany at this time of year.
There are ten mooring buoys for guests of the restaurant. The small bay in front of the restaurant is divided by a floating dock, where four to six yachts can moor with mooring lines in the northern section. In the southern part, two smaller boats can go alongside. When the generator is running, electricity is available at the jetty from around 6 pm to midnight.
Strunac offers a well-known konoba
From Uvala Hiljaca, our course now leads north-west, past the uninhabited islets of Gustac and Tovarnjak, around Cape Strunac and soon afterwards into the bay of the same name. Here we go to the pier of the konoba "Bain". It has also been a well-known address in the archipelago for decades.
The landlord has just opened for the start of the season and asks if we would like some freshly caught hake. Of course we don't say no! The fish tastes great and the spectacular sunset on the terrace comes free of charge.
We close our circle around the Kornati Islands and moor again in Luka Žut. The reason for this is the forecast weather: a strong jugo with up to 7 Beaufort is expected in the evening and during the night. Jugo usually also generates swell. However, the south coast of the Bay of Žut is safe.
This time we moor at the jetty of the "Sandra" fishing lodge. Owner Damir Bozikov has now handed over the business to his son Grga, who is also a professional fisherman. The whole family helps out in the restaurant. We enjoy the fresh catch from the barbecue, while outside the Jugo creates a grey light atmosphere and a lot of wind.
Pre-season is often simple, but atmospheric
After rounding Žut, we have another destination: in the morning, the wind dies down enough for us to head south-east to Žirje. About 13 nautical miles separate the two islands. There's a touch of melancholy as our bow is already pointing towards the charter base and we only have two days left.
We first call at the island capital of the same name, Žirje, whose harbour is located on the north coast in the funnel-shaped bay of Muna. There are supposed to be murings here, but there is no harbour master to be seen far and wide, so we moor alongside the pier. Although the town is often flooded with tourists in summer, it still looks deserted at the beginning of May. All the cafés and restaurants are closed, the terraces empty.
Luckily, a small supermarket opens in the afternoon with a modest selection. We buy the last of the bread, some cheese, ham and wine. But as nothing else tempts us that could justify a longer stay, we cast off again after shopping.
We continue south around Žirje. Our new destination for the day is the popular Vela Stupica bay. 30 mooring buoys are laid out, but it is still sometimes difficult to find a free spot in the high season. Now we only come across one other yacht.
So we have a free choice and take the dinghy over to Konoba "Stupica". Here, too, the family that runs it is still busy preparing for the season: they are tidying up, repairing and tidying up. The lady of the house apologises that the kitchen is not yet ready for use. But she puts a carafe of wine on the table, serves us fresh bread and a plate of ham, cheese and olives. The restaurant overlooks the remains of a Byzantine fortress and the beautiful, almost empty bay.
The simple but atmospheric meal is also the perfect end to our Dalmatia cruise in the early season. If you charter at this time of year, you should definitely be prepared for the fact that many konobas or mini markets on the islands may still be closed. On the other hand, it is wonderfully quiet everywhere and you only have to share the most beautiful bays with a few other yachts - if you don't even have them all to yourself. That alone is a very special experience in this popular sailing area.
And the pre-season cruise has another advantage: the charter prices are lower than the sometimes absurdly high rates in the main season. In addition, many town harbours and buoy fields are not yet officially in operation, which means that nobody comes to collect mooring fees. This part of the holiday budget can then be spent much more rewardingly in the open restaurants.
But even then, Croatia is one of the most expensive destinations in the Mediterranean. This is proven by the latest report by Andreas Fritsch.
Tips and highlights
Arrival
The charter base in Marina Agana is located in the town of Marina, about 21 kilometres from Split Airport. This means that the base is easily accessible from all major German airports. The transfer takes about 20 minutes and can be organised by the charter company on request.
Travelling by car takes a little longer. It takes around ten hours to reach Marina Agana from Munich and eight hours from Vienna. If you live in northern Germany and still want to travel to the Adriatic with your own car, you can take an ÖBB (Austrian Federal Railways) car train from Hamburg to Villach on the Austrian-Slovenian border during the season. From Villach it is then a six-hour drive to the charter base.
- More information: autoreisezug-planer.de/oesterreich.htm
Charter
The Moorings is one of the largest charter companies in the world and offers sailing holidays in over 20 countries - from the Caribbean to South East Asia and the Mediterranean. In Croatia, Moorings has its own base in the ACI Marina Dubrovnik and in the Marina Agana in the town of Marina. In Marina, Moorings offers a large fleet of sailing yachts as well as motor catamarans from 37 to 53 feet. The fleet is young and modern, and most of the boats have been in operation for one to three years.
- more information: moorings.com/en
Wind & Weather
From May to September, the coast of northern Dalmatia and the offshore islands is characterised by a mild and sunny climate. The fair-weather Maestral wind blows from the north-west from morning to afternoon and dies down in the evening. It can reach its greatest strength between 4 and 6 pm with up to 6 Beaufort. The dreaded bora (cold downslope wind from the north-east) blows relatively rarely here in summer and not as strongly as in Kvarner further north. However, unstable weather is to be expected in the early and late season. Strong winds and swell can also be caused by the Jugo (from the south-east) or a thunderstorm (from the west). From May to October, daytime temperatures range between 20 and 33 degrees.
Harbours & anchorages
On the islands in northern Dalmatia, you will find the convenience of a marina in Piškera and Žut (both in the Kornati archipelago) as well as in Veli Rat (in the north of Dugi Otok). There are now mooring places for yachts in almost every village or town harbour, usually with electricity, water, Wi-Fi and sanitary facilities. In numerous bays throughout the area there are either licensed buoy fields or private buoys belonging to the konoba owners. In addition, there are still plenty of bays where you can anchor freely.
Literature & Maps
- Bodo Müller/Jürgen Straßburger: "Coastal Handbook Croatia and Slovenia"Edition Maritim, 39.90 euros. shop.delius-klasing.de
- Müller/Scheiter/Straßburger: "Gourmet cruises in Croatia"Edition Maritim, 34.90 euros. shop.delius-klasing.de
- Delius Klasing Recreational boating chart set 7: Adriatic 1 "Venice - Rijeka - Sibenik - Drvenik V."64.90 euros. shop.delius-klasing.de
- The Croatian Tourist Board, 60313 Frankfurt/M., Stephanstraße 13, Tel. 069/238 53 50, Fax 069/23 85 35 20, sends out free information for pleasure boating. croatia.hr
