We took the ferry from Split to Vis for 2 persons + a car – return ticket for 150€, which is a reasonable price considering the distance. Once we docked in the Vis port we headed towards Komiža. The road was very nice and it took only 15 mins. The whole island Vis is not that big, so going from one side of the island to the other takes only 25 mins.

10 mins in the drive and we already reached a beautiful viewpoint of Komiža, so of course we parked the car and took a nice look of our home for the next week. The original plan was to stay in Komiža 5 days and explore whatever we can, but it was so damn beautiful that we ended up staying 2 days more. Once you see the view from the apartment you will understand why!

How about that as a welcome sight. We knew already how good this trip will turn out to be. 10 mins later we were in our apartment where the nicest lady greeted us to show us the place and give us some tips in case we were on Vis for the first time. The biggest selling point of the apartment was its view and it was without a doubt one of the best you could have.

As a welcome gift our lovely host Linda even made us Viška pogača which is a Komiža speacialty made of bread, freshly sliced tomato sauce and salty srdela (european pilchard). She also made us her own limunčelo (lemon rakija). Uhh, it was all so tasty and to spice it all up with this view…priceless. The first day we just enjoyed this relaxing scenery.

STINIVA BEACH

For tourists and foreigners Vis will firstly come up as the island of making the Mamma Mia movie. For locals it is a place of infinite beauty, tranquility, amazing food and stunning nature. One of those places that will always stick to your memory after you see it is the famous beach/cove Stiniva. Located in the south part of Vis and accessable either by a boat or a 15 min downhill trekking route, Stiniva leaves you in awe!

A once closed cave which collapsed onto itself long time ago is now one of the most recognizable landmarks of island Vis. To be honest, picturing this beautiful beach as a closed cave seems even cooler!

Since it is a very touristy place, boats anchor 20m in front of the entrance throughout the day. Majority of them are usually annoyingly loud tourists who only see it as a more exotic place to leave beer cans behind instead of the town. During the summer days you get lucky with 20 mins between the boat tours to enjoy it in peace, but off season is another story. So after a nice, refreshing and surprisingly peaceful morning at Stiniva we decided to explore the town Vis.

The town of Vis

As you enter the Vis harbour via ferry, the buildings you would see in front of you as the fery docks do not amaze as much as the scenery around it. But, just a couple of hundred meters to the east there is the coziest, cutest and prettiest little area called Kut (The corner). The older part of an already old island (IV. century BC) gave off this strong mediterranean charm that knocks you off your feet.

Narrow charming streets where getting lost is never a bad outcome . As if that wasn’t enough, the clear blue sea that awaited us for a deserved refreshment was like a cherry on top.

How to end such a fulfilling day one might ask himself? In Komiža that is not a problem. By having a dinner with these landscapes. Pictures speak for themselves…

BEACH DAY

Something that an island like Vis did not lack in were mesmerizing beaches whether they were organized or wild. The sea was one of the clearest we have seen so far, so absolutely all boxes were checked for a good time. Even though we visited only some of them they all left a strong impression on us. We opened the day with one that is actually not on Vis but Biševo, an island 5.3 miles away.

Blue cave on Biševo

Something you really have to visit when you are on Vis. The sunlight reflecting from the white sand at the seabed enters the cave and creates this intense blue colour. As unique as it was, we still liked the Odysseus cave on Mljet more, but that is very spoiled of us since they were both incredible.

Stončica beach

10 mins from Vis town the road took us to Stončica beach. The asphalt road stops 100m before, so we walked the rest on the dirt road. Tess as a classic Dane prefers sandy beaches while Lovre as a typical Croatian love the rocky ones due to obvious reasons. But, even for Lovre this one was actually good as there were no people and the sea was very clear.

SREBRNA (The Silver beach)

The silver beach got its name due to its big white boulders and wide, flat rock plates that give it a strong white colour. Combined with a turquoise sea it looked incredbily appealing. It was calling for us to take a swim while looking so fresh. Since it was June and the sea was still not as warm it really was a refreshment.

PRITIŠĆINA beach

Just above Komiža, as we were driving up the serpentines we noticed one nice blue spot down at the sea level. We decided to go and check it out and we did not made a mistake. It took us 15 mins one way down the dirt road to reach it, but it was worth it. A small but very private beach (some of the time) was really what we needed. That day the sea was filled with jellyfish, but rather small ones. They sting a bit, but it passes after 3 mins.

Sunset on Hum and Tito’s caves

It would be weird if we didn’t climb somewhere and what better place for that is than the highest point of Vis, Hum. On the way up we decided to make a stop and take a look at Tito’s caves. A communist revolutionary and a politician, leader of the Yugoslavian partisans, president of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (1953-1980) Josip Broz Tito was hiding in these caves during the second world war, as this was the place where The supreme Headquarters of the People’s Liberation Partisan were located. An interesting piece of world history.

As the sun was almost setting we proceeded to Hum and by the little “Chapel of the holy spirit” we waited. The results were one of the most soothing sunsets ever. What a way to end the day.

The town of Komiža

It was hard to put into words the magnificent simplicity of this place and the beauty both visible and hidden to the naked eye. To truly feel it, the most suitable way was indeed the simplest way. A morning walk on the promenade followed by a cup of espresso machiato sitting in the shade by the sea and observing the boats out in the open.

Listening to the sounds of the summer, birds, waves and locals shouting in the background. Cats purring, laying in the sun or begging for a piece of your breakfast. Once that was done we took a walk through all the small and narrow streets (called kale in dalmatian).

Honestly, we could stroll around this place for months and it would be just as fulfilling as the first day. The old rock houses, olive trees, flowers, the colourful window shades…pure nirvana.

Couple of hundred meters from the Komiža center is a beautiful church of Sv. Nikola (St. Nicholas) on an even better location. Sv. Nikola is a protector of sailors, seafarers, fishermen and travellers keeping his eyes on Komiža.

Magical isn’t it? As our last day was reaching its end we went back to our apartment, sat on the balcony with the stunning view, made a proper dalmatian finger food plate and raised our glasses to this without a doubt special place that left more than just a memorable impression on us, but crawled under our skin, forever.

In the search of peace from the crowd, the plan was a few days trip far away from the city. Mljet is located in Dubrovnik region (Dubrovačka županija) and big part of it is categorized as a national park. Mljet is undoubtedly an island that you will fall in love with or…no other option. Peace, sea, chilling and enjoying the nature. It’s like a dream.

DAY 1

3h drive from Split over the beautiful new bridge of Pelješac and an hour of ferry ride from Prapratno to Sobra was all it took. We arrived at our apartment in Polače, within the national park, around 14 o’clock and firstly made some snack for a quick energy boost. I (Lovre) am from Split and I have seen my share of blue sea, but this one still managed to make my jaw drop.

Afterwards there was nothing else we could do than simply throw ourselves in this magical liquid. Our plan for this day was absolutely nothing, but to relax and enjoy the sun. Our favourite place to jump in was exactly the one in front of our apartment, literally 6 m away. Just when we thought that our mood couldn’t get better we were honoured with a visit by two of the cutest guests.

The most adorable cat and a tiny little kitten made our our day go from awesome to nirvana. Peace, blue sea, no people near by, vitamin D all over the place and these two little fellas. We think that this face indeed said it all, what a life.

We ended our first day in paradise with dinner at a small local restaurant with local food (or Konoba as we call it in Dalmatia). With stomachs full of fresh fish and wine we went back to our apartment and enjoyed the views until the late hours.

DAY 2

Mljet is perfect for active vacation and obviously the best way to explore is with a bike. Like most of Dalmatia, Mljet is not flat and has its ups and downs. Riding a bike equals a really nice workout for your legs. Luckily for some, electrical bikes got invented and made things much easier. Tess went with the e-bike while Lovre remained old school with the regular one. Yes, it was hard at moments, but he is glad he did it as he now has Hulk legs.

Our goal was to see as much as possible by bike trails and road. We went from Polače to Pomena first. After we headed towards the the Big and Small lake. Then we crossed to the other side of the Big lake and eventually completed the circle by riding back to Polače for a total of 27 km.

The bridge between the lakes gets really busy because it is a cute photo spot. The Small lake trail was short (around 1.5 km), but it’s nice to see it from all sides. The Big lake trail though offered more in it’s 12.5 km. Many nice views and spots along the way, like the island of Sv. Marija that has a church of the same name located in the middle. A small ferry sails often to the island, so it is easy to reach.

The sun started to show its face around 14 o’clock. We crossed to the other side of the lake and took a lunch break before heading back. Awesome thing about this place were so many wild beaches along the road. Whenever we wanted to throw ourselves in, we just did.

Once cooled down we sat on our bikes and pedaled our way back to Polače. Like a cherry on top we were greeted with a steep 1 km uphill for our final test before Polače. Only one of us got sweaty…Our 27 km ride was done and now the only thing left to do was eat and sleep.

DAY 3

MORNING

Days were just flying and it felt like we just got there. For the third day we had a car ride around the island in store and of course a hike. It just wouldn’t feel right if we didn’t climb somewhere. Swimming suits were in the bag, camera in the car and we hit the road. Our first stop was the beach Ropa aka “Port des pirates”!

This beach was definitely one of the gems of the island because it’s unique and wild. As we observed its surroundings with the sharp high cliffs, splashing strong waves and aggressive character it became even more impressive. The vibe it gave off was as if pirates smuggled stolen goods and rum here every night.

Without a doubt, beautiful. Our next spot on the list was another beach called Sutmiholjska. A place you definitely want to have your sun umbrella with you as it offers minimum natural shade. Luckily we came early enough to catch some and left early enough not to get burned.

AFTERNOON

After couple of hours of swimming we went to the other side of the island to check one of the sandy beaches called Mala Saplunara. Lovre is not a fan of sand like Tess (she’s from Denmark, that’s all they have there), but this one wasn’t that bad even for him.

Tess: “Lovre, can you please take a good photo of this beach?”

Lovre: “Of course I can…”

EVENING

After this tasty meal we took a nice swim, relaxed some more and headed back to Polače. For the end of the day we saved ourselves a treat – a sunset hike. We were aiming for a peak called Mt. Montokuc. Not the highest point of Mljet, but it offers unique views worth seeing. Original purpose of the hut on top is a fire lookout tower and is located at the height of 251 m.

We started the hike from the park entrance gates and the remaining was pretty straightforward. The hike was 4.5 km in total and it took us 1.5h. One important note! If you were swimming before take a shower to remove the salt, otherwise you will end up sweating like in the 9th circle of Dante’s hell. Especially if it is warm outside, believe us.

15 mins later we came out of the forest when this soothing scene appeared in front us. In the distance there was another gem of Croatia, the beautiful Pelješac peninsula. 1.3 km later we reached the Mt. Montokuc. The cosiness of the wooden lookout tower in addition to the beautiful 360 degree views gave off the hyggest vibes.

This was unquestionably one of the most relaxing moments. The warmth of the sun slowly drifting away while observing the scenery made any worries disappear. Unfortunately, the sun finally set and it was time for us to head back. What another lovely day this was.

DAY 4

Time for The Odysseus Cave, one of the most memorable landmarks of Mljet. At the beginning of this post we mentioned that Mljet was an important part of the famous poem Odyssey written by Homer.

THE STORY ABOUT ODYSSEUS

As Odysseus was returning home to Ithaca from the Trojan war, he experienced a shipwreck. His journey back lasted for 10 years and his family assumed he was dead. Odysseus’s ship sunk near the island Ogigija where he swam to the shore to save himself. A nymph called Calypso lived in the cave, fell in love with Odysseus and wanted him to become her husband. Odysseus was enchanted by hers and the islands beauties and consequently got trapped there for 8 years. By the order of the Peaky… sorry, the Zeus itself, Calypso let Odysseus free and he returned home after 20 long years. That cave now carries his name.

This magnificent sight for the eyes was so mesmerizing and overwhelming that we were left speechless once we got inside of it. The key feature of the cave, beside its look, was the colour of the sea in front of the cave’s entrance until the point where the sun could not reach. It was so turquoise blue and so bright that it seemed unreal. The secret behind the colour was the angle of the sun when it hits the sea on a clear day and it’s visible only from 10-14 o’clock.

Once we opened our eyes under the sea surface a whole new world appeared. We could see everything so sharp, vivid and clear. Unbelievable experience of the underwater world. Nemo would be found within minutes here! Once we were inside we got the feeling of the cave’s size. Take a look at that.

We tried to enjoy this day as much as we could as this was our last day on Mljet and what a day it was. A magical place worth every drop of sweat we wiped of our foreheads while reaching it. A definite must.

DAY 5

So the day came unfortunately. We took the last swim, packed our things and left the apartment. Even the sky told us goodbye with heavy clouds. We had the most amazing time on this magnificent island. With our batteries full and a tear in our eye we had to say “until next time, Mljet…”.