GENERAL COMMENTS about Croatia

Keeping our own live-aboard cruiser in Croatia makes it possible for us to explore further and stay longer than in previous years. We re-visit places we enjoyed in earlier years (see my charter logs 2008 to 2010) and visit others we haven't seen before; based in a mainland marina between Split and Sibenik means we can get to the boat easily from Split airport. The position in central Dalmatia offers - within a range of 20 to 90 nm - a uniquely large choice of islands, harbours and coves to go to. Sometimes you find perfectly nice places close by.

The secret behind the beautiful clear water in Dalmatia are pebbles. There are hardly any sandy beaches, only pebbles and rocks. On brochure photos, the famous Zlatni Rat beach in Bol might look like sand, but it is a pebble beach too. I love clear water and do not miss the sand; but to the boater it also means that the bottom is often rocky and weedy, which makes anchoring in Croatia more difficult and less safe than on a seabed of sand and mud.

One also realizes that the weather is not long range predictable. Forecasts are only reliable for the next three days; for one week ahead there is still a reasonable probability for general patterns but not in detail, strong phenomena often get predicted. I do not regard forecasts for more than 7 days as reliable.
Sailing weather in Croatia is not quite comparable to Greece or other more southerly destinations, it is fickle. There are no firm seasonal patterns, which can be relied upon, each year can be a little different. When weather systems move in, typically from the NW and shifting along the Adriatic, there are periods of unstable weather, either rainy or too windy for the motor boater; day temperatures can plunge from 32 to 18 C and even less in no time; localized wind forecasts based on computer models are difficult, there is influence from geography and terrain, and conditions can change rapidly and within few miles. That is, anyhow, only an observation and it should not put you off your cruising plans. If weather conditions should be getting severe there will be warnings, and it will become obvious whether you should go out or not.
It's worth checking forecasts from different source using different models.

The dividing point between northern and southern Dalmatia is said to be near Rogoznica, where my boat is based. South of this point the Jugo (SE wind) has often of stronger impact than the Bora (NE wind), which can be stronger in central and northern Dalmatia, Istria and the Kvarner region. Bora winds and gusts in the infamous Kvarner channel are a special case, and not representative for other areas in Croatia.

Average weather figures do not give a reliable picture what to expect at a particular time. For example, the ideal "stable high summer weather" of the tourist brochure, characterised by clear sunny days, thermal W and NW 4-5 in the afternoon and calm nights, is true, but there is no guarantee that it happens during a particular week, or, how long it lasts. If you need to organize your holiday well in advance, you need to take a gamble.
My logs of different years show, anyhow, that there is a high chance of pleasant weather overall, with only a handful of days that are too windy or too wet to cruise.

The most hot and dry days can of course be expected during high summer, but this is the busy peak season, so you may have to accept excessive heat, overcrowding, more stress, and inflated prices.

In spring before May there is a higher chance of stronger winds than later, periods of bora (NE wind) and frontal disturbances are said to be shorter in summer than early and late in the year.
Anyhow, on the coast and islands (not including the Velebit channel) expect wind of 4-6bf, typically from NW, NE or SE, that can be regional. Bora (NE) and Jugo (SE) can be as short as one day, but can last 2 or 3 days. Gale force or above winds are unlikely in summer, that is why Croatia is considered an easy sailing region. But gusts can still be dangerous and this risk can linger a few days.
Stable fine weather in September can be very nice but the chances to get it reduce as the month progresses. Shortening daylight hours and dropping temperatures also need to be considered when planning a holiday in late September. Expect dew over night.

2014 was unusually wet, and summer 2015 very hot. 2016 offered a bit of everything, with both Jugo and Bora making powerful appearances but some stable weather otherwise and notably in mid-September. On the contrary, 2017 had a hot and extremely dry July, but September was abysmal, one low pressure system and heavy rains/thunder following another. 2018 was a better than average season, enough rain to avoid severe droughts but lots of sunshine, summer heat, and a warm and pleasant late summer.
Temperatures in winter are expected to stay always above zero, but January 2016 saw a few weeks of strong frost down to -10 C, and winter 2017 also had periods of severe frost.
In 2020 there was an apparently unpleasant June, but fine summer weather in July, and again during the first three weeks of September.
The sea temperatures in Croatia are cool in spring, and often do not reach 20C until early June. In 2020, the water was not much warmer until mid-July. The peak temperature is about 23-24 degree. 

The tourism season is about 4 months, from June to September. High season is 2 months, July and August, and peak season 15 July to 15 August, that time is very hot and extremely hectic, due to holidays e.g. in Italy in August. The added effects of mass tourism, from Eastern Europe, and ever expanding charter business make high season less attractive for yachting.
In recent years even the second half of June and first half of September, previously not considered to be high season, have seen many harbours and anchorages regularly getting overcrowded with charter yachts from Sunday to Thursday night.
The boating season runs from mid May to end of September, shorter than in Spain, Greece or Turkey. There are few yachts around in April and after September. Fine days can be found outside the season, but those are spot opportunities which suit people who live locally or stay long term. Several mooring buoys and smaller restaurants are only available from about June.

Coastal life in Croatia is seasonal; places change their character with the seasons. From November to March whole resort towns practically shut down, the cold, windy and wet Croatian Adriatic gets deserted, locals move elsewhere. For example, I found the harbour of Hvar town, the hectic epicentre of summer tourism, empty in winter, apart from one or two fishing boats. Only one small pizzeria was open in the whole town of Hvar in February; Primosten was firmly shut down. The few locals who remain in winter to do maintenance jobs do not require restaurants, they only use cafes and supermarkets.
Its climate makes coastal Croatia unsuitable for all-year-round tourism or as a retirement destination; young people leave smaller islands because they do not see enough opportunities there.

Talking about restaurants in summer, we are generally happy with the quality of food and value for money we are able to find. The choice of dishes and sophistication seem to have improved since our earliest years. Restaurant prices are similar to the UK, but depend on your choice. Beer and house wines are good value, but bottled wines are often expensive. Meat dishes are usually grills and well priced, but fresh non-farmed fish is extremely expensive compared to the UK; it is charged by its weight so ask it to be weighed for you before ordering, and check whether sides are included in this price.
Restaurants in resort towns are cheaper than in remote places. This does not surprise if you consider economy of scale, logistics and risks (e.g. bad weather). Restaurants on islands which offer free buoys or moorings to customers are often excellent value overall. However, the short season and high demand also create opportunities for rip-off restaurateurs in some popular coves. It is advisable to check online resources and get recommendations before committing.

We can see that prices for services and fees around yachting, a major source of revenue to the economy and the government, are rising year on year well above inflation.
Fields of buoys in new concession areas, which previously were free anchorages, are popping up. That said, buoy fields are necessary to accommodate the huge numbers of charter yachts that are now going around, and they are convenient, as long as they are safe and well maintained.
Marina rates for visiting yachts are going up all the time, charges in some ACI marinas such as Palmizana, Split etc have become very expensive and I find it outrageous that booking ahead in an ACI marina attracts a further premium on top. Rates for annual berthing contracts are more stable, but they are significantly higher than, for example, in nearby northern Italy.
The numbers of available annuals berths in central Dalmatia are far below demand. Even higher demand is likely to arise, and can lead to even higher charges.

Our experience with Croatians involved in the service industries is generally positive; people are friendly, trying to be helpful, show common sense and are holding up traditional values. Efficiency and communication, however, are not always their forte. Locals are used to holding on to two or three different seasonal jobs, and move between them to make a living. Your taxi driver might also run a bed and breakfast, and be a builder in the rest of the year. You will need a lot of patience when you deal with Croatian service people and organizations, compared to northern countries.
On the positive side, criminality - such as burglary and pickpocketing - seems to be generally low in the country, we feel safe.

In contrast, our encounters with authorities, e.g. harbour offices, police or regulators, have often been poor. Bureaucratic, slow, poorly organized, giving out changing and non-transparent regulations, they remind more of autocrats from the days of communist Yugoslavia than of a modern EU country which Croatia became in 2013. The sudden 'sojourn tax' law for 2018, bringing a shocking fee increase of 400% (compared to 2017) to annual berth holders like me, seems to be the latest example of the damaging inaptness of greedy and heavy-handed Croatian authorities towards the boating and yachting community. From those comments I exempt several younger officers who are in contact with the public, seem to have common sense, and try to be helpful. They expressed their own frustration with their superiors and back office decision makers.
We hear that tourism and charter business in Croatia were significantly down in 2018 due to the football world cup in Russia; and, I think, the outrageous increase of tourist tax for 2018 must have had some effect too. This tax has been reviewed for 2019, and reduced, but the charge was still a massive increase compared to 2017 fees. After much pressure on the authorities, a further review in 2020 finally offered options to the yacht owners, who keep their boat in Croatia, to pay the same amount of tourist tax for their crew as do land tourists.

I am afraid, anyhow, that the overcrowding of the central and southern cruising areas, including the islands outside Sibenik and south of Split, by ever more charter yachts each year appears to be unstoppable. Even after the 2020 Covid crises, Croatian authorities, as well as private entrepreneurs, are putting quantity and short-term revenue before quality and long-term targets. The 2021 season had already cought up with the time before Covid, and 2022 is supposed to show the highest growth and busiest yacht charter yachter sales ever.
The limited nautical infrastructure is getting overloaded, there are far too few berths in harbours and marinas. More and more high density buoy fields are being installed in once quiet bays and anchorages. They are getting packed with charter yachts all day.
Some of the charter crews use their one week holiday for reckless drinking and noisy partying, without considering other sailors or the nautical rules. Furthermore, there are commercially organized "party flotillas", of up to 100 yachts plus a afloat disco.
Discerning yachtsmen and private boat owners are forced away from beautiful and therefore popular places and have to look for niches and restaurants which still allow a quality stay. Former top areas such as the Kornati NP have been excessively marketed and become overcrowded.
It seems that Croatia's nautical tourism strategy is only about promoting even more growth of charter business, without ideas to support sustainable development and innovation projects. In the absence of limitation and quota there is fight for spaces which can have dire consequences such as cronyism and corruption.

Looking back to the last 20 years, there has been year on year growing yacht charter and flotilla business. The consequences, together with deteriorating seamanship and manners of crews, have caused our holiday experience to turn from wonderful in early years to more and more stressful and frustrating in recent years, in particular from 2018.

A further area of concern are backward environmental services in Croatia. The authorities appear to keep failing; despite paying lip service to make improvements there is still lack of sewage treatment in places; pump-out stations for boats' waste tanks are not available, recycling facilities are lacking or inadequate in many places, and dangerous waste is not separated. A scandal in a country in which the economy depends so much on tourism and pristine nature and sea are their biggest selling point.