Split is the centre of Croatian yachting. ACI Marina Split sits directly across the harbour from Diocletian’s Palace, Marina Kaštela handles the larger vessels and much of the technical work along the bay, and Marina Lav at Podstrana is the resort berth just south of the city. Between them they turn around most of the Dalmatian charter fleet.

It is also the best-connected place in the country, an international airport, ferries to every island, and road access that actually works. For provisioning that combination is decisive: Split is where a Croatian season should be stored, and the islands should be treated as places you arrive at already full rather than places you resupply.

Orders travel from our French cellar on EU logistics, Croatia is in the EU and the euro, so there is no customs frontier and no import paperwork, typically two to three working days from confirmation. For a yacht doing back-to-back charters out of Split we plan to the changeover days and deliver ahead of them.

Dalmatian wine is one of the genuine pleasures of a Croatian charter and almost all of it is grown within sight of this coast. Plavac Mali from the Pelješac peninsula, Dingač and Postup are the serious sites, makes powerful reds; Pošip from Korčula is an excellent white; Babić from Primošten is worth seeking out. We stock them beside the Burgundy, Bordeaux and Champagne an owner will expect.