Hvar Island, Croatia

Getting to Hvar Island

There’s no airport on the island of Hvar so you’ll have to arrive by boat.

If you’re chartering a luxury yacht around the Adriatic, this scenic island should be one of your planned stops.

There is a yacht marina named Riva in Hvar Town or several other places you could stop offshore.

Most of the visitors coming to Hvar will arrive on the ferry from the mainland.

There are two options – the slower car ferry takes around two hours and arrives near the ancient town of Stari Grad, or the faster hydrofoil service that takes about an hour and arrives at Hvar Town.

This service comes from Split on the mainland.

Suppose you prefer a more personalised, luxury service. In that case, there are a couple of other options – the Dalmatia-Express is a 24-hour boat service from Split or the airport, or there’s the Adriatic-Express which offers a similar high-speed transport option.

Weather and climate

Hvar is hugely sunny and benefits from a wonderful Mediterranean climate.

On average, in a year, the town of Hvar has 2,800 hours of sunshine and 7.7 hours a day, compared to Dubrovnik, which has a respectable 7.2 hours.

July and August are the busiest months because they have the best weather – an average high of 29C and low of 21C, and only minimal rainfall.

June’s temperatures are very similar, while September is just a couple of degrees cooler but does experience more rainfall.

For a quieter atmosphere come in the winter; it’s mild, but typical of a Mediterranean climate, this is the wettest time of the year.

Main Attractions on the Island

Hvar Town

Known simply as Hvar but often called Hvar Town or Hvar City to distinguish it from the island of Hvar, this city is the largest on the island and its top tourist destination.

The beautiful streets, architecture, coastal location, and surrounding hills and mountains make Hvar Town a very scenic place, and it’s busy in the peak summer season without being too overcrowded.

When visiting Hvar Town, here are some of the top things to see and do.

The Town Square

The giant town square (known locally as Pjaca – meaning Piazza) is the heart of the town, and it’s easy to see why!

It is the largest town square in the Dalmatia region, measuring 4,500 square metres, the whole of which was paved way back in 1780.

Various buildings are lining the square, but all beautiful in their ways – they date from the period between the 15th and 17th centuries and include St Stephen’s Cathedral.

This cathedral has soma parts that date back as far as the 14th century, but with additions from the following three centuries, the cathedral has many different infusions of architecture.

Other significant buildings to see include the Bishop’s Palace, the Paladini Palace, and the Hektorovic Palace, which remains unfinished.

The Loggia (Loza) is a magnificent building, and it has more Venetian influences in its architecture. Along with the clock tower, this is all that remains of the former Governor’s Palace.

Town Walls and Fortress

The Town Walls of Hvar date originally from the 13th century though there have been some alterations and additions in later centuries.

You can get a view of the walls if you look up toward the fortress as they stretch from here down to the square, where some houses and buildings have been built into the walls.

The fortress itself, known as the Spanish Fort, dates from the 1580s when a new defence had to be built following the destruction of the old one due to a gunpowder explosion.

Outside the Town

If you have time to venture a little farther outside of Hvar Town, there are several other charming places to visit.

To the south of town, a cape is a Franciscan Monastery and church, built in the late 15th century to the Renaissance style.

There is also a Renaissance style country home to the east of the town, built in 1530.

This is a lovely historic home to visit and was the summer home of Hanibal Lucic.

You can visit the house as it is preserved as a museum and set among beautiful gardens.