2nd June 2016: London to Hvar, Croatia

Darian and Frankie had been raving about the delights of Croatia since their last holiday.  Neither Rach or I have ever been so when they suggested we all go together as part of Daz’s 40th birthday celebrations along with a larger group of friends – we couldn’t wait to go!

For most of the week we would have in and around Split, we would be sharing a large villa on the popular island of Brač (pronounced ‘brach‘) for most of the week.  However, a few of us booked to come a day early to spend a night on the quieter island of Hvar.

It was less than a three hour flight from Heathrow to Split and a taxi took us into the centre of town within about 30 minutes.  Split seemed like a nice town as we walked along the mostly pedestrianised harbour area with a lively buzz, seemingly lots going on and tourist but not uncomfortably so.  We met Daz and Frankie in a bar by the pretty quayside already enjoying a few afternoon drinks in the warm sun.  Before long, it was time to get on the ferry to Hvar.  It was a large boat with plenty of room and comfortable seats and we sat and caught up some more during the 40 minute transfer to the island’s main town which shared its name with the island.

Frankie had booked a sweet AirBnB apartment for us to share with them only a few hundred meters up the main street which was great and had a lovely view back across the bay.   The others were staying in hotel in the port area so once we had unpacked out bags, we changed and headed back down to the port to meet up with the others.

Hvar is beautiful – a charming town on a laid back island.  The port area has several older buildings and situated on the side of a steep hill on top of which is an old abandoned fort.  There were colourful flowers and plants tucked into many corners and it felt well maintained but without losing its character.

We met up with two more friends – Izzy and Jay – who had flown in from Zurich and were staying in a hotel on the quayside and together we strolled around the small town.  Darian knew a bar that he said would be great to watch the sunset and we followed the coastal path for about 30 minutes with great views across the bay to a place called ‘Hula Hula Bar‘.  This seemed like quite a trendy place and it was busy with lots of mostly young people (like ourselves??) and a DJ playing some relaxed beach music.  We grabbed a bar near the water’s edge and it was perfect to watch the sunset with some cocktails and a lot of laughter and enjoy the rest of the evening.

3rd June 2016: Hvar, Croatia

Our morning rarely starts with coffee and we found a cafe in town to get us going before it was time to start exploring the Hvar.  It was an old town with many narrow, cobble walkways – either going straight up the steep hills or traversing across them.  The pretty buildings were built in a off white stone and all were decorated with flowers, painted doors, shuttered windows and red tile roofs.  There were a few other tourists about, but we felt like we could get away from what little bustle there was into almost deserted areas.

We walked up and down and around the backs of churches and just enjoyed the fresh, hot air.  We eventually made our way back down to the port area (all the paths either start of finish there!) and to a lovely cafe where Rach and I enjoyed a glass of wine.

In the afternoon, it was time to head back to the mainland to join up with the rest of the group as and start the next phase of the holiday in our villa on Brač.