If you’ve watched Below Deck, a reality TV series that chronicles sunny days and cocktail-charged nights aboard a superyacht (available free on 7Plus), the storyline might sound familiar: 35 guests and 10 crew set sail along Croatia’s Dalmatian Coast for an adventurous week, dive-bombing off the back deck into the Adriatic Sea and partying until dawn in some of the Med’s wildest ports.
There will be flirtations, espresso martinis, beautiful sunsets and string bikinis. My one hesitation? I don’t want to be cast as the frumpy middle-aged woman in a sea of glamorous young people. Twentysomethings can be great fun (and they usually give me helpful tech tips), but do I really want to be the only guest over 50? Or 30, for that matter?
I needn’t have worried. The night before I embark on an Unforgettable Croatia small-ship cruise from Split to Dubrovnik, I chat with a couple of friendly Texans by the hotel pool. Celebrating more than 30 years together, they’ll be joining me on MV Memories, one of six ships in the Unforgettable fleet.
During check-in and orientation the next day, I meet a fun gaggle of guests from Perth who are around my vintage, a sweet babymooning couple in their 30s, two stylish young women from Philadelphia and a husband-and-wife duo from the Boston area, so loved up, they’ve either been married for three years or 53. Turns out it’s 53.
Our group has representatives of every age group from 20s to 80s, hailing from Australia, the US and the UK. The crew is made up of Croatian and Serbian nationals, with no less than three Ivans.
And so the fun begins. Croatia’s dazzling coastline, historic walled towns and pristine national parks surrounded by sapphire-hued water were made to be explored on deluxe small ships.
Daily swim stops quickly become the highlight of the day. After a hearty breakfast buffet spread of fruits, cereals, cheese, ham and eggs, we change into swimming gear and race to be first into the big blue. Some hop on the stand-up paddleboards, others float on inflatable rings or dreamily drift on foam noodles as we chat and laugh. The invincible sunshine and cold, salty shock of water is invigorating, enlivening, a daily dose of nature’s generosity.
Over three-course lunches on the ship, conversation flows. Open seating at five tables of seven-to-eight passengers encourages people to mix and mingle in a way that I have rarely experienced on larger cruise ships.
Shore excursions are included in the fare, with an emphasis on hyper-local and authentic experiences. An oyster farm in Ston, merriment at a Hvar winery and Game of Thrones gossip on a Dubrovnik walking tour.
One of the great advantages of small ships is they can dock right in the heart of European old-town ports. Anchored until early morning, there’s no frantic pier-running to make it back to the ship for all-aboard curfew. We are free to explore the buzzing restaurants and bars of town centres in Trogir, Vis, Korcula and Hvar. Impromptu plans fall into place to dine together, toast a birthday girl, rendezvous for late-night gelato.
“It’s wonderful to meet a group of people who travel as well together as you all have this week,” says cruise director Tena Perkov at our raucous farewell dinner. “I suggest you swap contact information and make plans to meet up again next year.”
THE DETAILS
FLY
Emirates flies from Sydney and Melbourne to Dubrovnik, via Dubai. See emirates.com
CRUISE
Unforgettable Croatia offers seven-night small-ship cruises from $3549 a person twin-share, including breakfast, lunch, two dinners, private transfers, all excursions and Wi-Fi. See unforgettablecroatia.com
MORE
croatia.hr/en
The writer was a guest of Unforgettable Croatia.
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Kristie Kellahan swapped life as a lawyer for the freedom and adventure of travel writing 20 years ago and has never looked back. Sydney-born, her commute home is a little longer now that she is based in New York City.Connect via Twitter.
