Blue Lagoon, Hvar and Pakleni islands private boat tour

Three of the best swimming stops in central Dalmatia in one day, on a boat that belongs only to your group: the shallow turquoise lagoon at Krknjaši, the old stone town of Hvar, and the wooded coves of the Pakleni islands. A licensed skipper takes you, and the pace is yours.

This is the tour most guests pick when they want the classic Dalmatian day — clear water, one proper island town, and enough time in the sea to feel like a holiday rather than a sightseeing sprint. It covers roughly 60 nautical miles, most of it in the channels between the islands, with shorter crossings than the outer-island routes to Vis and Biševo.

Because the boat is private, nothing runs on a shared clock. You can stay longer in the lagoon, eat lunch in Hvar or on the Pakleni islands, and swap a busy bay for an empty one if your skipper knows a better spot that morning.

Worth clearing up before you book, because two different places in this region are sold as the Blue Lagoon.

This tour goes to Krknjaši, the lagoon on the eastern side of Drvenik Veli, about an hour west of Split and just off Trogir. The other one is Budikovac, near Vis, which is a much longer run and appears on our 5 islands tour.

Krknjaši is the one people mean when they say Blue Lagoon near Split or near Trogir. It is closer, calmer, and leaves enough of the day free for Hvar. If you only want the lagoon itself, without Hvar and Pakleni, you can also book half a day at the lagoon.

The tour lasts about 10 hours in total, normally 08:00 to 18:00. We do not publish a minute-by-minute schedule, because the whole point of a private boat is that the time at each stop is yours to decide — how long you swim, how long you stay in Hvar, and whether you add a bay along the way.

Departure from Split

You meet your skipper at the agreed pick-up point, get a short safety briefing and head west along the coast. It is a short first leg — under an hour — past the Split waterfront, Čiovo and the entrance to the Trogir channel.

Blue Lagoon, Krknjaši bay

The lagoon is the water trapped between Drvenik Veli and two small islets, Krknjaš Veli and Krknjaš Mali.

It is shallow — in much of it the water is only waist to chest deep — with a bottom of pale sand and Posidonia seagrass. That combination is what produces the colour: sunlight goes straight down, bounces off the sand and comes back up as the turquoise that every photo of this place is trying to capture.

Practical notes for this stop:

• The Posidonia meadows here are protected. Skippers who know the bay anchor on sand and keep clear of the seagrass — it takes decades to grow back.
• It is one of the best snorkelling spots close to Split — visibility is high and there is enough life over the seagrass to make it interesting.
• Shallow and calm makes it the easiest swimming of the day for children and anyone who is not a confident swimmer.
• There is a konoba on the Drvenik Veli shore if you want a coffee or an early bite.

Drvenik Veli itself is a small island of about 12 km² with roughly 170 permanent residents, a single village, and a ferry link to Trogir. It has stayed quiet because almost nobody stays overnight.

The crossing past Šolta

The run south to Hvar takes you along the western end of Šolta, past Maslinica and its little archipelago of islets — the most photogenic stretch of coast on the whole route.

If the sea is calm and your group wants one more swim, this is where your skipper can add an unscheduled stop. On a private boat that decision costs nothing but a few minutes.

Hvar Town

You dock in the harbour of Hvar and have free time in town — the longest stop of the day, and the natural place for lunch.

Hvar gets more than 2,700 hours of sunshine a year and has been a serious town since the Venetians; both things show. Within ten minutes on foot you have:

• St Stephen's Square, at around 4,500 m² the largest historic square in Dalmatia, built on a bay that was filled in over centuries, with a public well from 1520
• St Stephen's Cathedral and its Renaissance bell tower at the eastern end of the square
• the Arsenal, home to one of the oldest municipal theatres in Europe, founded in 1612
• the Fortica (Španjola) fortress on the hill, with the view over the town roofs and the Pakleni channel

You can also just sit on the riva with an ice cream and watch the yachts come in, which is what a fair number of guests end up doing. If you'd rather visit independently, see our guide on how to get from Split to Hvar.

Sveti Klement, Pakleni islands

Minutes from Hvar harbour lies the chain of islets that shelters it.

The name misleads English speakers: it comes from paklina, the pine resin once harvested here to seal wooden boats, not from the Croatian word for hell. There are sixteen islands and islets in the group, and Sveti Klement is the largest.

Where you stop depends on the wind and on what is left of the afternoon. Palmižana has a botanical garden, a marina and beach restaurants; Ždrilca and Mlini are sheltered channels with calm, shallow water; and there is usually an empty cove somewhere if you would rather have the last swim to yourselves. For more inspiration, see things to see on the Pakleni islands.

Return to Split

The run back takes roughly three quarters of an hour, sea permitting, with the late light on Brač and the mainland mountains behind the city.

The Blue Lagoon is small, and the day at Krknjaši has a rhythm worth knowing.

Early morning is the quiet part of the day and the best light for photographs. From late morning the big group boats from Split and Trogir start arriving and the bay stays busy through the afternoon — in July and August it can be full by ten.

An early departure puts you in the lagoon before that, and back out before the crowd builds. It is the single biggest practical advantage of doing this route on a private boat instead of a shared one.

• May and early June – air is comfortable, the sea is around 20–22 °C, and the lagoon is almost empty. The best month for photographs.
• July and August – warmest sea, longest days, busiest bays. The early departure matters most now.
• September – the sea is at its warmest of the whole year and the crowds have gone. For many guests the best month of all.
• October – still fine on calm days, though the weather becomes less predictable.

The crossings on this route are shorter and more protected than on the outer-island tours, so it often still runs on days when the Vis and Biševo routes do not. It is not immune to weather — the Hvar Channel gets lively in a strong jugo or bura — but the margin is wider.

If what you actually want is the Blue Cave and the outer islands, that is a different, longer day — see the 5 islands tour.

Swimwear, a towel, sunscreen, sunglasses, a hat, a light jacket for the crossings, a change of clothes, and cash or card for lunch and drinks ashore. Water, snorkelling gear and safety equipment are already on board. Want to add a sea scooter and SUP to your day? These can be arranged as an extra.