Croatia island hopping 2026: ferry routes, prices, four itineraries

Croatia has more than a thousand islands and a ferry system built for the people who live on them, which is the best news a visitor can get: it means cheap, frequent, reliable boats to the forty-odd islands that matter, run by a state company that has been doing it since 1947. Island hopping here is not a cruise product, it is a matter of reading two timetables. This guide explains how the network works, gives four routes with real ferries, times and 2026 prices, and lists the rules that catch first-timers: cars go on ferries and never on catamarans, catamarans stop in October, and the south wind can strand you for a day.

How the network works: ferries and catamarans

There are two kinds of boat. Jadrolinija's car ferries run all year from the mainland hubs of Split, Zadar, Šibenik, Rijeka and Dubrovnik out to the islands and back, like spokes on a wheel: Split to Supetar on Brač, Split to Stari Grad on Hvar, Split to Vis, Zadar to Ugljan, Dubrovnik to the Elafiti. They are slow, cheap, carry cars, and rarely cancel. Catamarans are fast passenger boats that run along the coast and between islands, which is what makes hopping possible: Krilo and TP Line from Split down through Brač, Hvar, Korčula and Mljet to Dubrovnik, Jadrolinija's own catamarans from Split to Hvar and Vis and from Zadar to Dugi otok. They are two to three times the price of the ferries, do not take cars, sell out in August and mostly stop between late October and May.

Route 1: the classic, Split to Dubrovnik through four islands in 7 to 9 days

This is the route the catamarans were made for, and it runs in one direction only, south, with the boats leaving Split in the morning. Split to Brač: the 08:00 Krilo stops at Milna, or take the Jadrolinija ferry to Supetar and the bus across to Bol for the Zlatni rat beach, two nights. Bol to Hvar: the Krilo or the summer Jadrolinija catamaran from Bol to Jelsa or Hvar town, one hour, two nights in Hvar town or the quieter Stari Grad. Hvar to Korčula: the Krilo continues at about 10:30, 1 hour 30, two nights. Korčula to Mljet: one night at the national park, or skip it. Mljet to Dubrovnik: 1 hour 30 on the same line, arriving early afternoon. Total boat cost around 85 to 110 euro per person for the whole chain, booked as separate legs on the operators' sites.

Route 2: the Vis loop from Split, 4 to 5 days

Vis was a military island closed to foreigners until 1989 and still feels like it, which is its appeal. The Jadrolinija car ferry from Split takes 2 hours 20 minutes for about 8 euro per person and runs two to three times a day all year; the summer catamaran does it in 1 hour 30. Stay in Vis town or Komiža, hire a scooter, swim at Stiniva and Stončica, take the small boats from Komiža to the Blue Cave on Biševo. From Vis, the summer Krilo catamaran continues to Hvar in an hour and back to Split, which makes a triangle: Split, Vis, Hvar, Split, five days, about 45 euro in boats. Outside the summer, return to Split the way you came.

Route 3: the Zadar archipelago, 3 to 4 days without a car

Zadar's islands are the cheapest hopping in the country because they are close and served by ferries all year. Ugljan is 25 minutes and about 4 euro on the Jadrolinija ferry from the city pier, with a bridge to Pašman and a cycle path along the whole channel. Dugi otok is the prize: the Jadrolinija catamaran to Sali or the ferry to Brbinj in 1 hour 15 for 6 to 8 euro, Sakarun beach at the north end, the Telašćica cliffs and salt lake at the south, and boat trips into the Kornati islands from Sali for 50 to 70 euro with lunch. Iž and Silba are the quiet extras, Silba with no cars at all. Three nights on Dugi otok and one on Ugljan is a slow, cheap week.

Route 4: Kvarner, the northern islands with a car

From Rijeka or the Istrian coast the islands are big and joined to the mainland by bridges and short ferries, so this is the route for a car. Krk has a bridge; from its west coast the ferry from Valbiska to Merag on Cres takes 30 minutes, and Cres and Lošinj are one long island pair with the road running down the middle to Mali Lošinj. Rab is reached from the mainland at Stinica to Mišnjak in 15 minutes, or from Krk's Valbiska in summer. Pag has a bridge from the south and a ferry from Prizna to Žigljen in the north. Car ferry fares are 20 to 40 euro per car and 4 to 8 euro per person, and there is no need to book except on August weekends, when the queue at Valbiska can be two sailings long.

The rules that catch first-timers

• Cars go on Jadrolinija ferries only. If you plan to hop with a car, you are limited to the spokes from the mainland, plus the Korčula to Orebić and Hvar to Drvenik car ferries in the south.
• Catamarans run south from Split in the morning and north from Dubrovnik in the afternoon. Hopping north against the flow means early starts and overnights.
• Book catamarans online in July and August, a week ahead for the Split to Dubrovnik line. Ferries need no booking for foot passengers.
• From 28 September the ferries run the winter timetable with fewer sailings and lower fares. Check the day's timetable, not last week's.
• A strong jugo, the south wind, cancels catamarans and keeps ferries in port only in real storms. Never book a flight for the morning after an island night.
• Ferry ports are not always in the town: Hvar's car ferry lands at Stari Grad, 20 kilometres from Hvar town, and Brač's at Supetar, 35 kilometres from Bol. The catamarans land in the towns.
• There is no island pass. Each leg is its own ticket, from the operator's site or the pier office.

Costs for a week

A couple doing the classic route in June spends about 200 euro on boats for two, plus 100 to 160 euro a night for a double in an apartment on the islands, plus the food, which on Hvar and Korčula runs 60 to 80 euro for dinner for two and 20 to 30 euro for lunch. The Zadar route costs a third of that. A car on the ferries adds 35 to 50 euro per crossing on the long lines and the one-way rental fee if you end in a different city. October cuts the accommodation by 30 to 40 percent and keeps the catamarans until the 18th or the 31st, which makes it the best-value month for the classic route.

Where to book and check

Jadrolinija's site and app sell ferry tickets for cars and passengers and show live timetables. Kapetan Luka's Krilo and TP Line sell the coastal catamarans on their own sites. For the Zadar catamarans use Jadrolinija and the local company G&V Line. Aggregators add a fee and are useful only for comparing. Our guides to Split to Hvar, Split to Dubrovnik and the Jadrolinija winter fares go into each line in detail.