It is no secret we are in love with island Vis, mostly because we are lucky to have a place to stay there anytime of the year, but also because it is beautiful. This blog is soooo long overdue, so I won’t bother you with introduction. Let’s begin naming the beaches, sorted by our preferences, of course.
1. SMOKOVA
About 100 meter long beach with white sand, clear sea and our favorite! Even though you can access it from land, it is much easier to access it with a boat. If you can’t give yourself that boat ride luxury, bring appropriate shoes, do not go down there in flip flops.
Also, keep in mind that shore is not the cleanest, because northern wind brings a lot of garbage people like to throw in the sea.
If you are up for snorkeling you can find part of a World War II bomber wing at Smokova sea bottom.
2. TEPLUŠ
Beach Teplus is one of the beaches in Rukavac and very popular among locals. You can access it very easily from Rukavac There is a 200-300 m dirt road, which ends with a parking right above the beach.
It is a soft white pebbles beach, with some natural shade, so it is children friendly. There is a restaurant at the beach where you can find refreshments, ice creams and food & wine. The food is very expensive but not really good so my advice is bring your own food & snacks. They also rent stand up paddle boards, kayaks and pedaling cars, so you can spend your entire day on this beach.
Pro tip: come in the morning. The beach is sunny since early morning, making it an ideal place to have a coffee and dive your head in the blue sea before the afternoon rush of people.
With slightly older children, take a peek at the natural lobster house located on the cliffs on the right side of the beach. The lobster catcher is no longer used so you can jump into it and dive trough it to the open sea.
3. MALA TRAVNA
It is a small fishermen village accessed by car through 15-20 minute drive on a dirt road, from Marine Zemlje. From the parking to the beach you have 2 minute walk. You can categorize this beach both as pebble and cliff beach, because Mala Travna has both.
Mala Travna is a bay next to Stiniva beach, so if you are visiting Stiniva with a boat, organize lunch in Mala Travna at Senko’s konoba. Beside crystal clear water and beautiful nature, we come here because of Senko. He is remarkable individual and Croatian poet, so don’t be surprised if you get the bill on stone rock he picked up from the floor. I’ve already wrote a blog about him here -> SENKO PARADISE.
Also, don’t forget to call Senko for reservations, he is not always open!
+385 99 35 25 803
4. SREBRNA
Another beach which has both soft pebbles and cliff side is Srebrena. Beach with a lot natural shade in pine trees also has cliffs where you can get your tan. Furthermore, in the woods you can find small bar with refreshments.
You reach Srebrna beach from Rukavac, on the same dirt road as Tepluš beach. After you park the car or bike, there is about 300 m (10 min) walk down to the beach. Yes, that means you have to walk up after.
5. MILNA
Milna is a small sandy beach, located near popular vacation village called Ženka. Best part of this beach is that you can literally jump from parking to the sea, but don’t. Because of it’s proximity to villas for rent and parking, it is often full of families with small children. Very popular activity is Stand up Paddle boarding, which boards you can rent on the beach.
There is a 15-20 minute walking path from Milna which will take you to ZAGLAV sandy beach. I haven’t been there since I was a kid, so only memories I have are from photo albums. People say it is as beautiful as Smokova. I will believe it when I see it, hopefully there next year.
6. STINIVA
West from Mala Travna bay you can find winner of “the best beach in Europe”, Stiniva. You can reach the beach by land, but it is a very steep 20-30 minute trail down, so bring appropriate shoes and avoid going with small children. Other, easier, way is to access it by boat. The downside of this is that you always have too many boats docked around Stiniva. The boat can take you up to “cliff gate” and from there you have to swim to the beach. And, of course, there is always that one idiot who has to come to the beach with a boat, so be aware, the floating border doesn’t apply to idiots.
Stiniva is pebble beach, although I saw many wrong writings online describing it as a sandy beach. You can find small coffee bar directly on the beach, but to help out your budget, bring your own food & drinks if you plan to stay there whole day. Because the beach is surrounded by high cliffs, you will have at least one side of the beach or cliff in the shade.
7. PRITIŠĆINA
This is maybe one of the smallest beaches on the island, where I usually go with local friends. It is also pebbly beach, but it has incredible cliffs on the right side of the beach. One winter we used them for the photoshoot we did for a brand.
From Pritišćina you can easily swim to Mala Pritišćina beach, beach for two. Literally the smallest beach on the island and it is only accessible by boat. 😉
8. STONČICA
Another sandy beach on the island is Stončica. It is safe bay for sailing boats, being located close to city of Vis. There is a parking above the beach, from which you have 5 min walk down. It has small restaurant/bar, volleyball field and lot’s of shade so it tends to be crowed.
Being this far on my list, it is safe to say I am not a fan and I only go there if our guests wish to see it. In that case, I combine Stončica with visit to the nearby lighthouse, which is 20 minute walk from the beach. We used to go there for sunset, so count your time right to have enough light to see the path back, or bring flash lights with you.
9. PARJA (tunnel)
About 3 kilometre east from city of Vis you will find Parja, the last village accessible by cars. It is a village, it is a beach, it is historical…it is Parja. It is probably most known for former JNA (Yugoslav People’s Army) submarine tunnel where you can also put your towel and jump into the sea. However, close by is little peninsula where you can also walk into the sea, like a normal human. Be aware, there is no shade here.
Important: please, don’t jump from the top of the tunnel, I have been informed there were many accidents there due to wrong jumps.
10. KOMIŽA CITY BEACHES
GUSARICA
The most popular beach, at the far end of the city, right below the hotel Biševo. It is a pebble beach at the beginning and almost sandy at the end of the beach.
KAMENICE
Apparently the only beach on the Adriatic coast with volcanic origin pebble stones (I’ve Googled it) and only 15 minute walk from Komiža center. It gained it’s popularly for being a place to party at night and sort of illegal camp.
LUCICA
Pebbly beach two minute walk from the Komiža port. There you can find restaurant right on the beach.
ŽANIĆOVO
Bcause it is surrounded by family houses this pebble beach mostly used by locals. This is the beach you see on our photos from restaurant Barba.
10. VIS CITY BEACHES
GRANDOVAC
Bay at the farthest end of city of Vis. It has enough shade so it is very popular for families with children, plus there is a beach bar right on the pebbly beach. Near the beach you can find another JNA greatness, however nowadays completely rot, Cezh villa.
STONCA
Beach is located just under the road, about 200 m from hotel Issa to Parja. There is almost no wind there and you can find lot’s of shade underneath the pine trees.
PRIROVO
Pebble and gravel city beach right below the hotel Issa, however, completely on the other side from most villa’s and apartments, which are in the city. Near the beach you can find activities for children (owned by hotel), bar and restaurant. It is the most popular for it’s Franciscan monastery which is built on the foundations of Hellenistic theater. I heard one guide say that you can see part of old Roman port in the sea around Prirovo. Do you see it?
There are few more beaches in the cities and on the island that I didn’t mention. My cousin Svila is gonna kill me if I don’t mention Duboka, but that is another beach I haven’t visited since I was a little kid or maybe ever. I can safely say I saw and listed all the popular ones. Hope I helped you organize your Vis island beach hunting. Let me know if I did.
In next blog I plan to write about ALL attractions on the island. Head’s up, it is mostly Tito’s JNA legacy.
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