For the weekend, we planned on heading to one of the islands. I only had time for one island so I had to choose. I wanted a good mix of sightseeing and partying, and Hvar seemed to be the best choice if I’m looking for both. Practically everyone I asked also recommended Hvar, so it wasn’t a difficult decision. From Split there are many ferries running daily to any of the nearby islands. On the day we decided to leave, there were 5 ferries leaving. We chose to take the one that left at 1 PM. You can easily buy ferry tickets at the port. Since there are multiple ferries leaving each day, tickets are rarely sold out even during peak season. I suggest just booking online through the Jadrolinija website though because it’s more convenient. You can also check in advance if there are available seats on your selected time and date of departure. You don’t even need to print a ticket since an e-ticket is issued. Heading to Hvar, I paid 125 Kunas. I paid 110 Kunas for the ferry back to Split. I heard tickets prices can go as low as half of that if you buy way in advance. of course this isn’t an option if you want to keep your plans flexible. Take note that you should book a ferry to the Stari Grad Port in Hvar (not Jelsa Port!), it’s the one closest to Hvar Town and most of the attractions.

The trip only took a little over 2 hours. I knew Hvar was also a very popular destination in Croatia so I was afraid it was also gonna be really crowded like Split and Dubrovnik. Turns out I had nothing to worry about. Yeah there were lots of people walking around, but it never looked really crowded to the point of suffocation like Dubrovnik— and to think it was already the start of the official summer season. Everyone who’s been recommending the island was right. Hvar really is beautiful. You’d realize this as soon as you get off the ferry. There were lots of people and yet the atmosphere seemed very laid back.

We stayed at Dink’s Place which is a hostel I would highly recommend. I’ve been pretty much staying at the hostels within the I Travel Balkans backpacker network ever since I got a flyer from the hostel I stayed at in Budva. It’s cool because I get a 10% discount, and they give freebies on every third hostel you stay at. At this hostel i got free laundry service, which was awesome because I literally had no clean clothes left. It’s a small hostel so you’d pretty much end up being friends with everyone. They also have kitchen facilities which is essential if you want to save money in Hvar. The grocery store is also right down the stairs which is very convenient. If you also plan on joining the island’s official pub crawl, you’ll be prioritized if you’re staying at Dink’s.

It seems everyone was out when we checked in so we decided to roam around the old town. We checked out the prices in the restaurants to compare. Hvar is a very popular destination, so it was expensive as we expected. Prices weren’t as expensive as Dubrovnik though, but still more expensive than Split. I managed to keep expenses in check because I cooked all my meals. Thankfully the price of basic commodities in the grocery stores weren’t expensive at all.

Perhaps the main attraction in the old town is the fortress on top of the hill. It’s only a short hike up, it wouldn’t even take 30 minutes if you keep walking. You have to pay to get inside the fortress though, it costs 40 Kunas. In my opinion it’s worth paying that price. You’d be rewarded with awesome views of the old town and the fortress itself is pretty interesting. The dungeon in particular was noteworthy.

Renting a boat to the nearby Pakleni Islands is a popular activity during the day. To cut costs, you don’t have to join a tour. You can just rent a boat with a couple of other people. Since I was staying in a hostel it was easy to find people who were willing to split costs. In fact everyone at the hostel decided to rent a couple of boats and do this day trip together. Depending on the season, a small 5HP boat only costs 400 to 500 Kunas for the entire day. That may seem pricey, but consider the fact that one boat can fit 5 people. If 5 people would split the cost, that means you only have to pay 100 Kunas (about 15 USD) each! The only drawback is these boats don’t include a skipper. They do teach you how to maneuver the boat before leaving though, and eventually we got the hang of it.

If you just want to chill on the beach, you don’t have to leave Hvar. The island has nice beaches. Our favorite one was Pokonji Beach. It takes 30 minutes by walking from the town center but in my opinion it offers the best views. Yeah it’s rocky and pebbly like most beaches in Croatia, but at this point I’ve gotten used to those types of beaches.

 

Hvar is also famous for its nightlife, and yeah it gets pretty insane. Drinks are expensive so prepare to splurge. Alcohol isn’t too expensive when you buy em at the grocery stores so pregaming is highly recommended. I joined the pub crawl run by the hostel on my first night. They took us to 2 popular bars– Jazz Barrr and Kiva Bar. Jazz Barrr was the first stop and it was empty when we got there. At exactly midnight though, the place became packed— like packed to the rafters packed. Apparently it’s the second stop of the official Hvar Pub Crawl, so close to a hundred people came in at the same time. To save money here just skip the beers and order a long island iced tea and share it with another person. The serving is huge and they don’t skimp on alcohol so it’s really strong. Even if you share it with another person you’d still get buzzed. Our next stop was Kiva Bar which seemed to be the most popular bar on the island. A lot of the other bars were full but this was the one that seemed packed all evening. In fact people were spilling over to the alleyway. It was near impossible trying to get out because the entire alley was filled with people.

On my last night everyone at the hostel decided to join the Official Hvar Pub Crawl. They run this every night during the peak season. It costs 210 Kunas which was quite expensive (that’s more than 30 bucks!), but I did get my money’s worth all things considered. As I’ve mentioned, you’ll be prioritized if you stay at Dink’s Place. When we arrived at the dock they immediately let us in the boat and some people who were in line were noticeably pissed. lol. It’s really popular on weekends so a lot of people in line weren’t able to join because the boat was already full. To ensure a spot, you can buy tickets in advance online. The first stop was a booze cruise that served unlimited drinks for one hour. I took lots of shots to get my money’s worth— it wasn’t such a good decision on hindsight because I was practically dead 4 hours later. The next stop was Jazz Barrr where they gave welcome shots. The last stop was Carpe Diem Beach Bar. It’s a very popular bar on a separate island and you’ll surely hear about it. You need to ride one of the boats leaving from the dock in front of Carpe Diem Bar (this is a different bar located in Hvar Town). The boat ride takes about 15 minutes. No need to worry, the ride is free. The wait wasn’t long since they have lots of boats running. Prices of drinks were even more expensive, but since i was already hammered by then I just bought one drink so I didn’t spend much. If you decide to just go to Carpe Diem Beach Bar, they charge 200 Kunas for entry (150 Kunas if you arrive before 11 PM). This was one reason why we all decided to join the official pub crawl. We wanted to check out Carpe Diem Beach Bar because everyone was talking about it, and we’d get a better deal if we just joined the pub crawl. I heard it’s a really chill place during the day time so you might want to check it out during the day as well if you plan on spending a lot of time in Hvar.

Even though it’s expensive, I have to say Hvar ended up as my favorite among the places I visited in Croatia. There are ways around the expenses anyway, I actually didn’t spend much at all. The setting is also ideal, you can just chill on the island for days and you’d never get tired of it. If I didn’t have to be elsewhere in a week I would have stayed longer. It seems that I’ve barely scratched the surface of this beautiful island. Clearly it has much more to offer.