We're back in May 2013 - first Eurotrip of my life. I'm looking at discovering as many places as possible within 6 months. I'm also a broke student, so Ryan Air quickly became my best friend (not really!) I'm regularly checking their website to see good flight deals, which is what brought me to Croatia. Ryan Air is a low cost carrier, and its airports are usually not located in country capitals. They're a bit further away from city centres. In Croatia for example, we landed in Zadar.

What that means is, we didn't see the city of Dubrovnik, it was too far and we only had one week there. However we took a bus along the coast (I would NOT suggest a window seat if you're scared of heights) and drove all the way South to Split. We briefly stayed in Split, but the idea was to take the ferry to Hvar Island a couple days later.

*I highly recommend visiting Split, it's a nice little town. You should definitely check out Saint-Domnius Cathedral (go on top of the tower) while you're there, and have a drink in the port.

Hvar what? You're probably wondering how the hell to pronounce the name of that place. Well, so did I. I still quite haven't figured it out yet. I'm usually good at languages, but no one pronounces the name of that place the same way. It sounds something like: /h/-FAR (with a rolled "r" like in Spanish), but most tourists end up just saying FAR.

Proper pronunciation here.

What to do on Hvar Island?

• Take a walking tour of the Harbour and explore the old town of Hvar.

• Go to Pokonji Dol beach. This beach is more secluded than others. It's accessible by foot (30-min from Hvar).

• Take a boat to Pakleni Islands, and get your tan on at my favourite place: Palmižana. (Funny how my favourite place was actually not on Hvar!)

• Book a trip to the Blue Caves.

*Unfortunately, I wasn't able to do this one when I went a few years ago. I went to Croatia early May, and tours only started mid-May. I believe they've changed that based on this site, but I would double-check. Also this tour is only available if weather conditions are optimal.

• Climb up to the fortress to get an amazing view on Hvar.

• Experience the nightlife. Hvar is town that is very-well known for its crazy nightlife. The town dramatically changes at night. During the day it looks more like a historic village, whereas at night it turns into a wild drinking place.

Where to stay?

I really really recommend staying at Villa Marija, a one-of-a-kind youth hostel. This place is a 15-min walk from downtown Hvar, it's cheap, clean, spacious, and full of amazing people!!

Youth Hostel Villa Marija

Lucije Rudan 7
Hvar 21450
Croatia