Review: Unforgettable Croatia coastal cruise – Part 1

My 7-night Croatia coastal cruise from Dubrovnik to Split begins with a driver greeting me at Dubrovnik airport. The private air-conditioned transfer takes me past emerald islands dotted through the sparkling Adriatic, before the steady descent through millennia-weathered limestone mountains to Dubrovnik’s port.

My Wish, a sleek and gleaming 18 cabin, 36 berth yacht, is ready for a week exploring Croatia’s coast and some Adriatic island-hopping. 

Launched in 2020, there’s an exclusive and intimate private yacht feel to a small vessel able to moor up on the islands and drop anchor in secluded coves. As the Unforgettable Croatia credo asks, “Why do ordinary?”

The welcome

With boarding from 2pm, we gather for a sparkling fizz and canapés reception. There’s a buzz of excited chatter amongst guests from Australia, Canada, the UK and the USA. We had studied the ship and the itinerary on the Unforgettable Croatia app. Now, as we are welcomed in impeccable English by Lana, our Cruise Director, it becomes a reality.

Generous welcome gifts include a bottle of Croatian red wine, a water bottle, a tote bag, a restaurant guide and a Privilege Card giving 10% discount at selected restaurants.

The cabin

Lana guides me to a light grey coolly air-conditioned cabin with balcony. The bed can be configured either as two singles or a double. Wall-mounted TV, dressing gown and slippers tick the luxury boxes. Meanwhile my passport can snooze in the safe for a week. 

Spacious by cruise ship standards, the well-lit bathroom features a rainfall shower. A door leads out onto a balcony with two chairs and a table.

Day 1: Dubrovnik

Late afternoon, a 15-minute coach ride takes us to the grandiose Pile entrance of Dubrovnik’s Old Town. Within the 1.2 miles of the city walls, Lana guides us through a millennium of dramatic history in a city that has recently starred as a backdrop for Game of Thrones. Back in the Middle Ages, employing considerable nerve and diplomatic tact, trading between the mighty Venetian and Ottoman empires, Dubrovnik became a rich city state.

But after the earthquake and tsunami of 1667, and later fire, little remains of that era’s Gothic splendour. Our tour takes us to St Saviour’s Church and the ornate gothic-cloistered Rector’s Palace, two of the few buildings to survive. 

Lana introduces us to the surprisingly liberal psyche of the Dubrovnik people. She points out a Lazy Susan arrangement whereby mothers, unable to parent, could, without shame, give their child to an orphanage. Remarkably it dated from 1408. 

In the 16th century the city abolished slavery and, ahead of its time, women were able to own businesses and property. Aware of the risks of corruption, Rectors were only allowed to rule the city for a month …

Back on board, there is a welcome cocktail before a three course set menu dinner. 

Day 2: Dubrovnik to Slano

For a dedicated few, the day starts with a workout at the outdoor mini-gym on the sun-deck. But most guests begin their day with an extensive buffet breakfast, a huge selection of fresh fruit and eggs cooked to order: Eggs Benedict, omlette, scrambled eggs.

Then we sail to take a closer look at imposing harbour walls, sometimes 85 feet tall and 16 feet thick. They did their job for centuries. Until the city fell to Napoleon. 

A small group, interested in learning more of Croatian history, gather on the upper deck to hear Lana tell of Croatia’s past and how the older generations still reminisce about the comfortable life of full-employment under Marshall Tito’s communist regime. Even though Tito’s spies were often listening in to conversations.

Mindful of the negative impact of the Yugo winds on mental wellbeing, past governments warned judges not to sentence too harshly when the oppressive southerly winds blew. In contrast, the cool northerly wind, the Bura, was welcomed for clearing the mind. 

Dropping anchor close to the craggy, pine-clad shore, it is time for the first of many swims in clear waters, rated the cleanest in Europe. After a light three-course lunch on-board, there is time for another swim. As the temperature rises the cicada chorus becomes louder. 

Come evening the small fishing village of Slano is the departure point for a coach ride to oyster tasting. We pass a five-mile long medieval wall built to defend the salt plains from invading Ottomans. In the Middle Ages salt was prized as richly as gold.

A small boat takes us to the ropes of an oyster farm that produces between three to four million Mali Ston oysters annually. Such is the local demand for these oysters, thriving in a clean current of fresh and salt water, that none are exported. Odds for an individual oyster egg making it through three years to harvesting are one in half-a-million.

Oysters and a cool, crisp white wine is the appetiser for a three-course dinner back on land on the terrace of a Ston restaurant: black cuttlefish-ink risotto, swordfish and finally flan. 

Day 3: Mljet and Korčula

Mooring at Mljet we hike for 25 minutes to the lakes of a National Park covering most of the north west corner of the island. 30 species of orchids are dotted amongst the Aleppo Pines and Holm Oaks. 

Included in our entrance ticket is a journey on a solar-powered boat through the larger of two lakes to the tiny island of St Mary. It is home to a small Benedictine Monastery and a cafe terrace for one of the world’s most idyllic coffee-breaks. If you’re walking around the lake there is a red-flag to wave to call for a ferry to take you to the island. As summer lake temperatures can hit 30 centigrade, swimming is irresistible. Though hiring a bike and kayak are also options. 

Early afternoon we sail on to Korčula, one of Croatia’s most populous islands where winged Venetian lions give an Italian feel to the Old Town. For centuries stone masons were kept busy carving the limestone, including the Tree of Life surrounding the entrance door to St Michael’s Church. The right-hand column shows time speeding up whilst the left covers the decline to the symbolic skull of death. Three trade brotherhoods still thrive and throughout the year they organise 55 processions. At Easter one man carries an 80 kg candle. Just three times is he permitted to announce “Ave Maria” and put the candle down for a rest.

Andrea, our oracle of a guide, is not entirely convinced by the town’s claim to be the birthplace of explorer Marco Polo back in 1324 – despite the momentous seven century celebrations. She is more impressed by the heroic story of the British Baron, Sir Fitzroy Maclean, perhaps a dashing MI6 prototype for James Bond. Covertly parachuted into Yugoslavia in 1943, Maclean may have persuaded high command not to bomb Korčula. Unforgettable Croatia’s knowledgable guides go beyond the usual stories. 

The town’s medieval designers were ahead of their times, designing a fish-bone street layout, using sea breezes to provide natural air-conditioning but curving the right-side alleys to reduce the impact of the winds. They also offset doors and windows for privacy.

Restaurants, running along the ramparts’ promenade, provide the first opportunity to use the Privilege discount card. As the sun dips, Filippi’s al fresco tables, shaded by a mature pine, give a commanding view across the bay and the Korčula islands archipelago. Michelin recommended, Filippi uses traditional herbs and local artisan pasta as part of their contemporary take on Dalmatian cuisine.

The odyssey continues

Only three days into our Croatian voyage of discovery and one guest is declaring, “I’m not sure that I’ll be able to go back to real life after this.”

But there are still many more leagues to sail and the sights of The Blue Cave, Vis, Hvar and Split to enjoy. 

The facts

Unforgettable Croatia offers seven-night cruises from £1,795 or $2295 per person, including breakfast, lunch, private transfers, all excursions and Wi-Fi. Flights are not included. For further information on May to October 2025 departure dates, visit Unforgettable Croatia or call +44 20 8004 2345

Disclosure: Our stay was sponsored by Unforgettable Croatia.