Along the Croatian Adriatic Coast – Cres

The trip along the Croatian coast came about spontaneously after looking at the weather forecast, which predicted a long period of cold and bad weather for the route we originally planned to take north. Besides, we were very impressed by the country and its people during our first visit to Croatia last year – on Mali Lošinj – and really loved it. We wanted to cover a large part of the route by ferry. This allowed us to experience the island worlds from the sea and get as many varied impressions of the Croatian coast as possible.

The Croatian shipping company Jadrolinija offers numerous and varied connections from, to and between the islands along the entire Adriatic coast in its summer timetable. So, a route was designed that took us via the islands of Krk, Cres and Lošinj far south into the Kvarner Bay. From there, we wanted to continue by boat through the North Dalmatian archipelago to Zadar, then on the mainland to Split, to take another ferry from there to Korčula. We would then decide at short notice and flexibly how much further south we wanted to go. In any case, the return journey will be along the famous Jadranska Magistrala coastal road. Since it was still high season, I booked the route from Mali Lošinj to Zadar and from Split to Vela Luka on Korčula online in advance. This meant the two longer stretches were firmly fixed in the itinerary. Shorter crossings, e.g. from Korčula to Orebić, should also be possible spontaneously without long waiting times

The first stage led directly from home across the Alps to Cres. Since the island of Krk can still be reached via a bridge, the first ferry crossing takes place on the short route from Valbiska to Merag. As expected, the queue of waiting vehicles stretched from the pier up the hill. Enough time to walk to the front and buy the ferry ticket. Later, I will see several times how drivers race straight to the ship just before departure, only to be turned away without a ticket.

After a short trip on deep blue sea and over narrow, winding roads, we reached our first destination – Cres – in the early afternoon. This left enough time for a nap before a walk into the beautiful old town of Cres with its colourful houses in the picturesque Mandrać harbour, or a visit to one of the cafes or restaurants. Right there on the quay, you can watch the excursion boats return while the tables fill up and the refreshing evening sets in.

More pictures in the Croatia gallery.