Croatia Hvar Tours

Hvar Tours introduce visitors to Croatia's longest island, a strip of limestone and lavender running through the central Dalmatian archipelago. The island pairs a compact stone harbor town with pine-covered hills, vineyards and a scattering of small islets just offshore, making it one of the more varied stops on the Adriatic coast.

Many visitors reach Hvar as part of a wider Croatia itinerary, arriving by catamaran from Split in roughly an hour or continuing on from Korčula and the southern islands. Hvar Tours typically combine walking routes through the old town with time on the water, since much of the island's appeal lies in its coastline as much as its streets.

Hvar Town and St. Stephen's Square

Hvar Town centers on St. Stephen's Square, one of the largest squares in Dalmatia, flanked by the 16th-century St. Stephen's Cathedral and an old Venetian arsenal that once sheltered galleys. Narrow stone lanes climb from the square toward the Fortica, a fortress built by the Venetians in the 13th century and expanded over the following centuries, with views over the harbor and the Pakleni Islands.

The Pakleni Islands

A short boat ride from the harbor, the Pakleni Islands are a chain of wooded islets with rocky coves, seasonal beach bars and quiet anchorages. Water taxis run throughout the day in summer, and many visitors spend a half day island-hopping between Jerolim, Marinkovac and Sveti Klement before returning to Hvar Town for the evening.

Lavender Fields and the Interior

Inland, the Stari Grad Plain stretches across a valley first cultivated by Greek colonists in the 4th century BC and still farmed today, a pattern of stone walls and parcels recognized by UNESCO as a living agricultural landscape. Lavender fields bloom here from mid-June through July, alongside vineyards producing the local Plavac Mali red grape.

Local Wine and Cuisine

Alongside Plavac Mali, the island grows the white Bogdanuša grape, both served widely in the harbor restaurants and konobas of Hvar Town and the smaller village of Jelsa. Fish and shellfish caught off the island's coast are typically served simply, grilled with olive oil, with rosemary from the surrounding hillsides showing up in much of the cooking.

Sailing from Hvar

Hvar sits on the route of several multi-day sailing itineraries along the Dalmatian coast, with catamaran and ferry connections to Split, Korčula and Dubrovnik. One option covering this stretch is the 4 Days Sail Blue Cruise Croatia Split to Dubrovnik, which calls at Hvar alongside other islands on the way south.

Getting to Hvar

Car and passenger ferries run to Hvar Town and the smaller port of Stari Grad from Split throughout the year, with additional catamaran services in summer connecting the island to Dubrovnik, Korčula and Vis. Stari Grad, on the opposite side of the island, is the older of the two ports and sits closer to the lavender fields of the plain.

Best Time to Visit Hvar

June and September offer warm weather without the crowding of peak summer, when the harbor fills with charter yachts and daily ferry traffic from Split. July and August bring the busiest nightlife and the highest prices, while spring is better suited to hiking the interior before the summer heat sets in.