8:13am Monday 1st February 2010
Our small cruise ship nosed into a deserted bay on the wooded island of Brac in the Adriatic, and we slipped over the side to swim in the crystal-clear waters.
It was the perfect way to cool off at the end of a day that had seen us explore Croatia’s second city of Split, with its well-preserved Greek and Roman ruins, before boarding the 120ft MV Emanuel for a two-hour voyage to the south of the island, the biggest in central Dalmatia and third-largest in the whole Adriatic.
We lunched on board on pasticada – a delicious traditional Croatian dish of stuffed beef in a rich sauce – as the ship glided over the calm waters of the strait separating Brac from the Croatian mainland.
Brac is one of more than 1,100 islands off the Adriatic coast of Croatia, self-styled as ‘the Mediterranean as it used to be’.
Three other interesting islands are ports of call on Saga’s voyage: Hvar, with its 13th century walls and square; Korcula, with a fashionable town of the same name; and Mljet, half of which forms a beautiful national park.
After our refreshing swim in the bay at Brac, we clambered back aboard the Emanuel, a compact, vintage-style cruise ship which offers seven-day tours of Croatia’s coast and islands this summer.
She accommodates around 30 passengers in 18 small, but comfortable, cabins with an open-plan restaurant and a bar on the upper deck. It has a relaxed and informal atmosphere, with a friendly and helpful seven-strong crew.
We moored in Bol on Brac, an old fishing port enjoying something of a boom as a resort.
Out of the high season of July/August, it is a peaceful enough place where you can sip coffee at a waterfront cafe in the harbour, watching the small, brightly-coloured fishing boats bob gently up and down.
Along the quayside, the local winery produces the local Bolski Plavac, a red wine made from local black grapes, and you can enjoy tastings.
Around 15 minutes’ walk from the harbour is the beach of Zlatni Rat, or Golden Horn, a spectacular mini-peninsular of clean white pebbles stretching out to sea that has been acclaimed as among the world’s best beaches.
The British account for fewer than seven per cent of the visitors arriving on Brac each year and we miss something quite special. Inland, where slopes clad in Mediterranean oaks rise to more than 2,500ft, are peaceful villages steeped in ancient history, with old shepherds’ settlements nestling in the forests.
The island is also the source of the renowned karst limestone, exported around the world for centuries.
We had spent our first night on board Emanuel moored in the mediaeval walled city of Trogir, an easy drive from Split Airport. The next morning, we headed north by road along the Dalmatian coast.
By the time we returned to the Emanuel and sailed to Split, we had seen four UNESCO World Heritage Sites – all before teatime.
The old city centre of Split has a vibrancy all of its own, while no-one should miss the historic walled city of Dubrovnik, dubbed the ‘pearl of the Adriatic’ by George Bernard Shaw and rebuilt after the pounding it took from the Yugoslav Army and Serb rebels in the early 1990s.
Croatia has so much to offer visitors: magnificent buildings, a huge choice of watersports, miles of good walking and great beaches. With an expert guide to point the way, its history and heritage is utterly absorbing.
Factfile * Saga offers a new seven-day Dalmatian Island Explorer cruise at full-board between May and October 2010 from £799, including return flights, transfers, insurance and some excursions.
* With the MV Emanuel sold out, future bookings are aboard The Vapor.
* Connecting flights ex-Manchester, from £76.
* Seven-day extension stay at a five-star hotel in Dubrovnik starts at £349.
Saga reservations: 0800 0565880 and saga.co.uk/ travel.
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