Zadar to Dubrovnik by Yacht: Kornati, Krka and the Classic Islands in One Charter

Quick answer

• Distance: about 210 nautical miles, or 3.5 to 4 hours a day at the 8 knots SYMPHONY cruises at.
• Stops: Zadar, the Kornati, Skradin for Krka, Trogir, Hvar, Korčula, Mljet, Dubrovnik. With 10 days, add Brač, Vis and Lastovo.
• What it adds: the two northern national parks, which a Split to Dubrovnik week never reaches.
• Getting there: fly into Zadar, or into Split and drive about 1.5 hours north.

Why this route needs a fast yacht or a mini-cruiser

Dubrovnik and the Kornati are at least 150 nautical miles apart. On a sailing catamaran at 7 knots that is a week spent underway.

A motor yacht at 15 knots or more covers it, and the fuel bill for a 250-mile week is the number to ask about. Our Croatia yacht charter itineraries keep the two in separate weeks for exactly that reason.

A 30-guest mini-cruiser splits that fuel bill 30 ways. SYMPHONY and her sister ARETHA are based in Zadar, cruise at 8 knots, and include fuel for up to 5 hours a day in the rate. A 4-hour leg on a 52-meter yacht is a morning on the sundeck, not a passage.

Most crewed weeks in Croatia stay between Split and Dubrovnik, because that is where most yachts and marinas are. Start in Zadar and you cruise through the parks first, then join the classic islands at Trogir.

Day 1: Zadar through the Kornati, 15 to 22 nm

Boarding is at 15:00 in Zadar, a walled old town on a peninsula with its own UNESCO-listed defenses. The yacht leaves the same afternoon, so the first evening is already out among the islands.

The Kornati National Park is 89 islands, islets and reefs, bare and stone-walled, with no resort town on any of them. In high summer it is still one of the emptiest stretches of the coast.

The park has anchorages and a marina at Piškera, and the crew picks between a night inside the park and a quiet bay on Dugi Otok, which has one of the best sunsets on the coast.

Day 2: Kornati to Skradin for Krka, about 40 nm

This is the longest day, about 5 hours. The route runs south past Šibenik, the first Croatian city with two UNESCO sites: the Cathedral of St James and St Nicholas Fortress at the mouth of the channel. It is also home to Pelegrini, one of Croatia’s first Michelin-starred restaurants.

From Šibenik the yacht runs about 8 miles up the Krka river to Skradin. The Šibenik bridge stops the tallest yachts, but SYMPHONY docks at Skradin, where the berth has to be booked well ahead.

From the town the park’s own boats take you to Skradinski buk, which drops in 17 cascades through green woodland. Swimming under the falls is no longer allowed, so it is a walk on the boardwalks and lunch back in Skradin.

Day 3: Skradin to Trogir, 30 to 35 nm

Back down the river and south along the mainland. Primošten, an old town on an islet joined to the shore, is the lunch stop. The Drvenik islands off Trogir are the afternoon swim, with the sandy bay at Vela Rina on Drvenik Mali the quieter choice.

Trogir is a walled medieval town on its own small island, a UNESCO site since 1997, and the yacht ties up along its quay. This is where the route meets the classic week, with Split a few miles across the bay.

Day 4: Trogir to Hvar, about 30 nm

Split stays a view from the deck. The yacht passes the city, crosses the channel past Brač, and stops for a swim in the Pakleni islands on the way in.

Hvar town has the harbor, the fortress and the nightlife, and the Pakleni islands sit just offshore for a quieter anchorage. Our 7-day Split to Dubrovnik itinerary covers this stretch island by island.

Day 5: Hvar to Korčula, about 25 nm

Korčula is a walled old town on a peninsula, with the Pelješac mountains behind it. The yacht ties up on the quay or anchors off the town. Afternoon on the water, dinner in the old town.

Day 6: Korčula to Mljet, 15 to 19 nm

Mljet is a national park with two saltwater lakes and a 12th-century Benedictine monastery on an islet in the larger one. Yachts moor at Pomena or Polače.

The lakes are a short walk or a bike ride from either harbor. Dubrovnik is the last leg, so this is the quiet night.

Day 7: Mljet to Dubrovnik, 30 to 35 nm

The Elaphiti islands are the swim stop on the way in. Lopud is car-free with the sandy bay at Šunj, and Šipan is the largest of the three inhabited islands.

The yacht has to be back in Dubrovnik by 16:00 the afternoon before you disembark, so the last night is spent in the marina at Komolac or at anchor off the old town. Disembarkation is at 09:00.

The yachts that run this route

SYMPHONY is 52 meters and ARETHA 49 meters, each with 15 cabins for 30 guests and 12 crew. They are beamy and heavy with a flat hull, which our brokers find cuts the rolling a lot, so a 4-hour leg is spent out on deck.

The distance is built into the rate. Fuel for up to 5 hours of cruising a day is included, with the crew, breakfast and one main meal a day, and dockage at both ends. Drinks, the 13% VAT, harbor fees at the stops in between and the crew tip are extra.

2027 rates run from EUR 96,500 a week in spring and October to EUR 123,000 in high summer, for 30 guests. That is about EUR 3,200 to EUR 4,100 a person before VAT.

Both stay in Croatian waters, so the route ends in Dubrovnik. More options are in our Top 10 Croatia yacht charters for 13 to 30 guests.

With 10 days, add Brač, Vis and Lastovo

The week above is about 210 nautical miles, 3.5 to 4 hours a day, with the longest day Kornati to Skradin at about 5 hours. Three islands do not fit in it.

• Brač: a night at Milna on the west coast, between Trogir and Hvar, with Zlatni Rat a short tender ride away.
• Vis: the furthest out of the central islands, between Hvar and Korčula. Komiža, the coves of the south coast, and the Blue Cave on Biševo.
• Lastovo: a nature park of 46 islands, between Korčula and Mljet, with almost no light pollution at night.

With all three the route is 250 to 290 nautical miles over 10 nights, still under 4 hours a day, with one night in every place. For a north-only week, see our case for a northern Croatia charter.

Getting to Zadar: fly in direct or drive up from Split

Zadar airport is 8 km from the city, about 20 minutes from the marinas, with summer flights to about 60 airports, mostly on low-cost airlines.

If you land in Split, Zadar is about 1.5 hours north by motorway. That is less extra time than it sounds: Split airport to the city marina already takes 30 to 35 minutes before summer traffic. Our guide to getting to your Croatia yacht charter covers the transfers.