Summer Blues Boat Tour
One of our highlights during our time in Split, was taking a boat tour to the island of Brač off the coast. We booked through a company called Summer Blues and it was truly the best day trip to Brac Island from Split. There are many vendors located along the harbor to choose from and after research online prior to our trip and chatting with the vendors, we were confident in our decision (it didn’t disappoint).
Day Trip Options & Cost
They offer two different trips to the islands (and if we had more time, we probably would’ve done the other one too!). We chose the trip to Bol and Golden Horn Beach. This tour only runs on Monday, Wednesday and Friday and costs 75 euros per person. You can also take a trip to Hvar & Pakleni Islands. This tour only runs Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday and costs 83 euros per person. (Children 4-14 are half price for both trips, and 0-4 are free).
Meeting Point
You meet the tour at the dock at 8:30am along the Riva. The boat departs the harbor at 9:00am and it’s about a 1 hour ride to the island of Brač. The boat cruise started off with a welcome drink – either a rum & coke or a screwdriver (orange juice & vodka). It seemed a bit early for hard alcohol but we weren’t going to turn down a free drink on our vacation! They also gave us sandwiches that were pre-wrapped. Some people ate them on the boat and others saved them for later.
Vidova Gora
Once we arrived to Bol, the boat docked and we walked 5 minutes to a waiting bus. We took the bus to the highest point on the island of Brač – Vidova Gora. The ride took almost 30 minutes to the top, but our guide on the bus told us a bit about the island’s history along the way. Brač is the 3rd largest island in the Adriatic and home to almost 14,000 people. Its main industries include tourism, fishing and producing wine at local vineyards on the island. They are also very famous for their white stone – which is claimed to have been imported to Washington D.C. to help build the White House! Once the bus couldn’t take us anymore of the way up, we walked 15 minutes to the viewpoint! You are able to see the golden horn beach below from Vidova Gora.
Golden Horn Beach
After 15 minutes of exploring and photo taking, we got back on the bus to head down to Zlatni Rat (aka Golden horn beach). From the drop off point, you still need to be prepared to walk about 10 minutes to get to the actual beach. There are bathrooms in the wooded area behind the beach, but they cost money to use – so be sure to have some coins on hand!
We had a little less than 2 hours to enjoy some time on the beach. We learned on our tour that the shape of the beach actually changes depending on the wind. Sometime’s it’s straight, other time’s it’s curved. The beach was much larger than I had imagined, and it took almost 10 minutes to walk from the start to the end (not counting the wooded area at the beginning). Visiting Golden Horn Beach is reason alone this is the best day trip to Brac Island from Split
Swim Spots
Once our time was done on the beach, we followed the walkway back to the docks in Bol to meet the group. When we were all back on the boat, we departed for our cruise around the island. They gave all of us a salad with some chicken and veggies in it for lunch (very simple but filling enough). They also served some cake and fruit for desert – so there were plenty of snacks until the end! Part of the reason we chose this company was the unlimited soft drinks (which included beer)!
After a little cruising, we stopped at a swim spot called Lučice. We were able to jump off the boat into the water and swim around for a while. We had about an hour or so at the first swim spot before heading to a second location in a bay off the island. In both areas we were completely alone with just our group. There were no other tours or boats anchored and we had the area to ourselves. It is still unbelievable to me how crystal clear the Adriatic is!
After our final swim, it was time to head back to Split. We were able to enjoy the sunset from the boat as we cruised back. They played some music while we enjoyed our last beers and chatted with the new friends we had made along the trip!
Review of Boat Tour
Overall, I highly recommend this boat cruise for anyone visiting Split (who isn’t planning on staying on the islands). Although it was a little out of our normal travel budget, it was incredibly worth it! It was one of the highlights of our trip through Croatia. The views we experienced alone were worth it (not to mention the food & unlimited beer). Be sure to visit Brac Island from Split on your next trip to Croatia!
