Croatia Charter – Korcula The Enchanted Island

In southern Dalmatia, live your Croatia Charter experience starting with a dip in the sea of Korcula to discover a rich biodiversity: corals, sponges, squid and small sharks. Korcula is one of the biggest island of the Dalmatian Coast. The paternity of the first settlement on the island is attributed to Antenore, character of the Iliad, about 1200 years before Christ. Archaic suggestions, more legend than history, mixed with the feeling you get on the island and that represent the real way to enjoy it. Look out over the sea at sunset, waiting for the water to become the color of the wine, surrounded by the scent of rosemary, sage and lavender. That’s what living a Croatia Charter vacation means. The island stretches 47 kilometers from East to West, and has a maximum width of 8 kilometers. With its 279 square kilometers, the island is the sixth largest island in the Adriatic Sea. Some years ago The Guardian has entered the island among the 20 most interesting in the world: the greenest, the most different, the most attractive of the thousands of Croatian Islands.

The Guardian especially appoints the eponymous village of Korcula: its walls of the Fifteenth Century, the masterpieces of the palace and the treasure of the bishop. The main town is replete with the exquisite architecture of that time, including the fortified walls and towers so reminiscent of Dubrovnik. But we do not recommend Korcula to visit its villages, but to discover its amazing seabed.

Croatia Charter – The diving experience

We advice you to start your dives at Vela Luka Bay, village in the West of the Island. Dive along the coast, just off the bay, that goes south.Vela Luka, close to the western tip of Korčula, is a pretty little port set in a lovely natural harbour. There are coves for swimming but no beaches around town. Small boats can take you to the idyllic offshore islands of Proizd and Osjak.  There is a gently sloping seabed up to ten – fifteen meters, then collapses with walls covered with red gorgonians (Paramuricea clavata) and here surely you will meet goldfish like Anthias. Another dive experience worthy of interest, after those in the bay and just outside it, are those in the caves, reserved to experienced divers. In the cave called Blue Hole, for example, you enter just 9 meters below sea level and you can follow a challenging course that goes 35 meters below sea level. But you are not obliged to do so: just admire the cave walls, to enjoy the wonderful colorful sponges and corals shining under the lights of the torches.

Route recommended by YourBoatHoliday:
Split and Central Dalmatia – Croatia Charter Itinerary

Day 1st Split to Makarska
Day 2nd Makarska to Mljet
Day 3rd Mljet to Dubrovnik
Day 4th Dubrovnik to Sipan/Trstenik
Day 5th Sipan/Trstenik to Korkula
Day 6th Korkula to Hva
Day 7th Hvar (Bol) to Split
Day 8th Split

Sailing in Korcula waters is like sailing to a miniature version of Venice, or a very small Dubrovnik.  The city planners deliberately aligned the major streets to run east to west, allowing the buildings to block the cold northerly bora that routinely blows in winter. This positioning also leaves open space for the cool prevailing westerly winds to provide natural air conditioning for the residents during the summer, made all the more effective because the town is located on a narrow peninsula. The 29-mile-long island is narrow and indented with numerous secluded coves and bays, making Korcula sailing a paradise for cruising your Croatia Charter vacation.

Croatia Charter:

WHEN – From April to September
HOW LONG – From 7 to 14 Days
NAVIGATION – Easy
TIPS – Have aboard a skipper with experience in Croatian waters