Before You Travel Guide

We have put together some basic information as a guide to help you get the best out of your Sail Croatia cruise. 

What to Take

We recommend you take as little luggage as possible - a swimming-suit, a pair of shorts, a few T-shirts and good mood will suffice. We also recommend that you take clothes for cooler evenings (for example a tracksuit, fleece, and wind-breaker).

In most cabins, you will be able to store bags under the bed, however, in the case of excess luggage, please ask check-in staff to give you additional information about possible storage (bus station lockers or similar).

The cabins are well equipped with clean bed linen. It is necessary to bring your own towels for swimming and showering (shower towels are provided in ensuite cabins).  Extra towels can be hired onboard the boat at an additional cost of 3 Euros.

There are power points (European 2 pin plug) in each Ensuite cabin and 1 - 2 power points in the main dining area on the boats. All appliances require a double round pin type plug for 220 volts, AC, 50 hertz.

As all the ships are licensed, please do not bring alcohol onboard. Each boat has its own bar and drinks consumed onboard (inc. bottled water) must be purchased from here. You can pay a supplement onboard of 100 kunas for the week which entitles you to 1 litre (2 x 500ml) of chilled bottled water per day.

Breakfast and lunch is included every day. Breakfast is simple continental-style (bread and spreads). You can pay a supplement onboard for a cooked English breakfast. Lunches are usually 3 courses, with a soup/salad starter, meat or fish-based main course and fruit/cake for dessert.

Money & Insurance

The Croatian currency is the Kuna. It is cheaper to convert money in Croatia than at home. Exchange offices charge commission but some banks do not. You can get cash advance on your credit card at banks throughout the country, though Visa credit cards are not accepted by all banks. It is recommended you change any Kuna back to your preferred currency before departing Croatia. You can pay with both Kuna and Euro for your tab on the boat.

Most towns and islands in Croatia have ATMs that are linked into international networks. Credit cards (Visa/MasterCard is most recognised) are accepted in most tourist areas, but if you are travelling off the beaten path, be prepared to use cash. It is difficult to specify the money that you can spend per day; as a general rule 25 – 30 Euro can provide you with additional meals and drinks as well as optional entrances.

Visitor’s tax of 20 Euro and National Park entrances (optional - approx 10-15 Euro depending on place/season) are not included in the price. These are to be paid locally.

Tipping your crew and Representative is at your discretion.

We recommended that all passengers travelling on Sail Croatia trips have personal insurance to cover medical and repatriation costs. Our partners, Down Under Insurance, offer great deals. Click here for an insurance quote.

We share our responsibility to protect Croatia's environment and culture with our guests and require that our travellers respect the Captain and have consideration for his boat as it represents his family's livelihood.

Ship rules are to protect our customers on board and we would like all clients to have consideration for other people.  If, in our opinion, any passenger behaves in a way to cause or likely to cause danger or distress to any third party we reserve the right to terminate the travel of the person(s) concerned without any refund.

Passengers on board are obliged to abide to the ship rules, as the Captain is responsible for the safety of all passengers and the crew. The Captain has the right to change the itinerary in case of bad weather or similar inappropriate conditions in ports to ensure safety on board.

• Passports are to be handed to the Captain for registration on the first day of the cruise.
• Jumping or diving from the boat during navigation is forbidden. Climbing on the masts is not allowed.
• During rough weather, movement should be done with extreme care. The floors can often be wet and slippery. Passengers should take extra care crossing between boats when they are docked together in port. Do not hesitate to ask a crew member for assistance when crossing. Movement between the ships is the individual’s responsibility.
• Safety belts are placed under the seats in the dining area or below the bunks in the cabins.
• As sound travels on the boats, all passengers are asked to understand this and behave accordingly. Special attention must be given to the designated quiet time onboard, which is from midnight.
• Smoking in the salon and cabins is not allowed. Cigarette butts must not be thrown in the sea.
• Bed linen must not be taken out of the cabins.
• Please do not throw anything into the toilets except toilet paper.
• Passengers are not permitted to bring food and drink (including alcohol) on the boat. This includes all drinks and food products purchased on shore. The only exceptions are: personal care products, liquid medicine, food products specifically for infants and food products for special diets. Regional products purchased during visits to the ports will be stored onboard and returned to passengers at the end of the cruise.
• Guests are obliged to respect meal times on board, which are placed on the board in the salon, as well as departure times to the next port.
• Any damage must be compensated to the Captain by the passenger. Lost cabin keys are charged at 150 Kuna per key.
• It is forbidden to throw rubbish into the sea.
• Water is a problem on every boat; therefore please ration it very carefully. The same applies to the electricity which runs on the generator.
• Guests must close the portholes in below deck cabins during navigation, to avoid cabins getting wet by seawater entering through the porthole.

The Captain and crew are available for any queries and will do their best to make your stay a most pleasurable one.

Resolving Problems Onboard

We only wish to have happy customers onboard our boats. Most problems can be resolved quickly and there is no reason to endure ongoing issues on your trip. However, unless we know about a problem, we cannot begin to resolve it. We encourage you to communicate problems immediately.  We have found most issues are often simple language or cultural issues so we have put together this simple step by step guide to help you through this process and make resolutions a breeze:

Step 1: Please communicate problems to the Captain and Crew immediately so they are able to address them.

Step 2: If you feel the issue has not been resolved, then you must inform a Representative if onboard or by calling or texting +385 91 578 6194. Our Representatives are responsible for resolving these problems and will assist wherever they can.

Step 3: Sometimes it may not be possible to resolve a problem. However, we should be given every opportunity during your trip to do this for you. All the boats have complaints books for written complaints if you wish issues to be addressed by the Captain/owner of the boat.

By following the process above we will have a clear record of events from all parties involved and we will have been given every opportunity to resolve problems for you.

If you still wish to make a formal complaint this can be emailed to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with information on the issue and the steps you took to resolve it onboard.

In any critical situations please contact Graeme Higgs, our Croatia-based Operations Manager on +385 (0) 91 578 6194, or Grant Seuren, Managing Director – Sail Croatia Adventures on +44(0)7 8151 44 618.

Crime rates are very low in Croatia but you should still take precautions as you would anywhere else:

• Keep your cabin door locked when not in use
• Do not leave valuables on beach or on boat decks
• Beware of pickpockets in crowded markets.
• Avoid discussing the war in sensitive areas.
• Show respect for other people’s property, feelings and cultural differences

If something is stolen, you must report it to the police and obtain a crime report for your insurance company.

Public health service standards are similar to those in the rest of Europe. There are hospitals in large towns and clinics on the islands and in smaller towns. Most doctors speak English.

The sun can be quite intense in the Adriatic in summer so we recommend that you use a high factor sun screen, wear a hat and drink plenty of water. Whilst the tap water is normally safe to drink in Croatia, we recommend you drink only bottled water on the boat.

There is so much to see and do in inland Croatia and in her neighbours such as Slovenia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro and Albania.

Balkan Road Trip run specialist mini-bus tours that show you the best of the National Parks (such as Plitvice Lakes and Krka Waterfalls), fascinating cities (Sarajevo, Mostar, Ljubljana, Tirana) and nightlife in the region.

These trips are 3, 5 or 7 days in length and are designed to link up perfectly with your Sail Croatia cruise!

Choose from:

Croatia to Slovenia or Slovenia to Croatia

Bosnia-Herzegovina

Croatia to Greece or Greece to Croatia