The beautiful port city of Split is one of the most popular travel destinations on the Croatian coast. The beaches in Split are covered mainly with small pebbles. The water in the sea is impeccably clean, turquoise in color, and visibility is up to 50 meters deep.
Split attracts tourists not so much for its beaches as for its world-famous attractions. The fact that one of the seasons of the Game of Thrones was filmed in here and the surrounding area has attracted additional tens of thousands of visitors a year.
Despite relatively few but impressive sandy beaches, Croatia has become a serious competitor to Turkey and the Balearic island of Mallorca.
The turquoise blue sea and a wide range of water sports activities are the biggest plus points.
In addition, the water quality on most stretches of beach between Istria and the Dalmatian coast is often excellent, which can be seen from the blue flag, which stands for a functioning environmental management system.
Table of Contents
The Best Beaches in Split and its Surroundings
1. Bacvice Beach
Bacvice is the most popular beach in Split because of its sand cover, comfortable sunbeds, umbrellas, cafes. In fact, it is the only sandy beach in Split. However, the idyllic picture is spoiled by the amount of garbage on the beach.
Moreover it is pretty much crowded most of the time and there is also loud music playing.
Having said that, it is great place for families with children as the entrance to the water is shallow, the bottom is soft, the shallow depth is safe for the kids.
Another advantage of this beach is that it is located just ten minutes from the historic center of Split.
Sea water is usually surprisingly clean during the mornings, except in the afternoon when it is known to get crowded with a very large number of bathers in the shallow sea water.
Bačvice is open 24 hours a day with many beach bars. There are cafes, restaurants, massage tents and points of sale for excursions around Split. At night the bars adapt to offer a vibrant nightlife scene.
The most popular game on this special beach is ‘Picigin’. Picigin is a traditional, old game with a small ball that you have to hit all the time with your hand, but the ball must not fall into the sea and the game must not stop. This is probably the only beach where ‘Picigin’ is played and it is protected as a cultural heritage.
2. Ovčice Beach
This pebbled beach is a continuation of Bacvice, about 150m towards it’s east. Ovcice beach is a 15 minute walk from the city center.
The entrance to the water is gentle and convenient for children. Unlike Bacvice, it is quieter and calmer, there is no loud music. The cost of sun loungers is 70 kuna.
According to tourists, it is good to come here on a hot day. On the shore there is a bar serving various soft drinks and the greenery protects from the heat.
Ovcice beach has a Blue Flag, which means it meets the highest quality and cleanliness standards for beaches.
3. Trstenik Beach
Trstenik beach is the best maintained beach in Split. Its a great place to relax, go scuba diving and enjoy a delicious dinner at a nearby cafe.
This beautiful pebble beach is located just below the Radisson Blu hotel which partially maintains it.
It is connected to Bacvice beach by a pedestrian path and it is easy to bike here from the center of the city. Alternatively you can get to this place in Croatia by city bus or car. It is only 5 minutes drive from the center.
One part of the beach is always reserved for hotel guests, and the rest is intended for other people and is public. The former is equipped with sun loungers, umbrellas and booths where you can change clothes.
This beach is surrounded by a ring of dense, green vegetation. Outdoor activities are offered here by the water sports center.
Due to its located in the open part of the sea, the water keep circulating, keeping the beach and its waters very clean at all times.
Due to its sustainable management, Trstenik beach was awarded the Blue Flag.
People also come here for kayaking and yachting.
Sea urchins live in the water near the shore, so it is safer to enter the water with shoes on.
4. Kaštelet Beach
This recreation area forms a small bay, which is located to the west of Bacvice beach. It is another family-friendly beach with a gentle descent into the clear water which warms up quickly.
There is parking, cafes and restaurants nearby. One of the most popular establishments where you can taste Croatian cuisine is the eponymous restaurant.
You can walk here from Diocletian’s Palace in about 20-25 minutes. If you do not want to spend time on a walk, use the bus or rent a bicycle.
The beach is quite secluded and can be divided into four parts. The first part of the beach is rocky. In the second part, there is a playground and a platform for diving. Thereafter begins the pebble beach with numerous bars and cafes.
There are showers and changing stations on the shore.
5. Žnjan Beach
Žnjan is one of the pebble beaches near Trstenik beach where everyone can enjoy and have fun. It is located between Trstenik in the west and Duilovo in the east.
The beach is usually full and very loud throughout the day, especially in the afternoon. The main reason for the big crowd is because of the free parking spaces where you can leave your car free of charge. The parking lots are located right next to the beach.
Žnjan has many different stylish bars on the beach and with each bar/café playing its music. This beach is suitable for people with disabilities.
The beach additionally has an amusement park where you can play volleyball, badminton, roller skate, surf the sea with jet skies, ride pedal boats or jump on a trampoline on the sea surface.
You can get to the beach by bus, or by car which takes only ten minutes. Entrance to the beach is free.
Note that the number of sun loungers and umbrellas on the beach are not always enough, especially during the influx of vacationers.
Znjan beach is a real Mecca for fans of windsurfing and kitesurfing. You can rent equipment as well as learn how to kitesurf along the kilometer-long length of the beach.
6. Kašjuni Beach
Kasjuni Beach is an attractive bathing destination located in an idyllic environment of lush greenery, which is more peaceful than the previously mentioned beaches. It can be compared to the soothing ambience of Bene beach.
This beach is special because it is partly sandy, rocky and pebbly beach on the south-west side of the coast. It is popular with locals, tourists, families and young people.
A series of several trees provides a little shade, but we recommend everyone to take parasols and an umbrella if you don’t like too much sunlight.
There is also a coffee bar on the beach of the same name, parking, showers, locker rooms, toilet and a rescue service.
Sea urchins are found in the water, and the coast is covered with pebbles, so it’s better to have shoes with you for relaxation and foot safety. But there are no jellyfish here.
The beach is located in southwestern part of Marjan Park, so many tourists combine sightseeing and relaxation on the seashore.
You can reach Kasjuni Beach on the city bus number 12 or by car. Please note that cars are not allowed in the park. The road from the center of Split to the beach takes 15 minutes.
You can also get to Kasjuni by a boat trip which takes about half an hour. The fare for the boat ride will cost 40 kunas. Boats depart from the city port every hour.
In addition to a beach trip, here you can go climbing and diving here. There are rocks of different heights – from 2 to 10 meters, which are easy to climb without special equipment, and jump into the water without risk.
These climbing rocks are concentrated on the undeveloped part of the beach.
7. Bene Beach
Bene is a great beach surrounded by pine trees, located at the foot of a hill in Marjan Park.
It is also a recreational destination, due to the many additional facilities such as the restaurant, tennis courts, small football fields, playground for children and pony riding for the youngest.
Some of its distinctive features are:
- You can get there by bus, which leaves from the Republic Square every half hour
- its not touristy as the beach is far from the historical center of the city
- pine trees grow on the shore, there is plenty of shade and so there is no need for umbrellas
- bring along slippers for comfort on the shore
- there are toilets, changing rooms and showers on the shore
- You can have a meal in the cafe here
The coast is quite rocky and covered with pebbles. Concrete slabs are laid for going into the water. You can find sandy areas if you walk along the coast.
8. Zlatni Rat on the island of Brac
One of the most picturesque beaches not only in Split, but also in Croatia is Zlatni Rat.
It is a bathing paradise formed by wind and waves and is located about 50 km from Split on the south coast of the island of Brac, near Bol.
It gets its name from the crescent-shaped headland that protrudes about 500m into the sea.
A direct connection by catamaran from Split to Bol is offered once a day, with the journey taking about an hour. A full-day excursion is also possible with the catamaran. From here it only takes 1 km on foot to reach Zlatni Rat.
The conditions on this beach are perfect, both for a beach holiday and for windsurfing. For an adrenaline rush, we recommend hang gliding from the 780 m high mountain Vidova Gora to enjoy the impressive view of the island.
Bol is the oldest resort on the island of Brac, and it has excellent hotels.
9. Punta Rata Beach in Brela
About 50 km from Split, Punta Rata is not only a highlight of Croatia, but of the whole of Europe. In July 2004, this white pebble beach was voted the most beautiful beach in Europe and one of the top 10 in the world by Forbes magazine, and was named a dream destination by the Huffington Post in 2014.
Brela is surrounded by green pine forests, characterized by small whirlpools on the water surface due to numerous underwater springs and has its landmark on the western side of the beach: a light-colored limestone rock near the shore, which is considered the symbol of Brela and is the most-sent motif on postcards throughout Croatia.
Here, too, the blue flag once again testifies to the impeccable water quality.
10. Stoncica Beach in Vis
In the north of the 90km² island of Vis you can find the fine sandy beach Stoncica, which is ideal for families with children due to the shallow water.
About 60 km away from Split, Stoncica offers not only typical Croatian cuisine with Mediterranean delicacies, but also a perfect place to relax. Its densely overgrown mountain slopes stand for pure nature.
The nearby lighthouse is one of the largest on the Adriatic coast and is another highlight of this idyllic island with around 4000 inhabitants.
The beautiful Stoncica beach can also be explored during an island hopping tour. The day trip by speedboat departs from Split. Some of the most beautiful beaches in Split and the surrounding area on five different islands will be visited. A special highlight during the excursion is the Blue Grotto.
11. Beaches in Hvar
Another visited island near Split is Hvar, located south from the island of Brac. The best bays here are in the southwestern part of Hvar. And the most famous among tourists is the lagoon of Milna, where there are four shallow bays.
In the east direction from Milna there is Dubrovitsa beach that you can reach by boat.
1.5 kms from the resort of Trogir is the 1.5 kms long Pantan Beach along the Pantan River. The coast here is covered with sand and pebbles, the entrance to the water is gentle and convenient for children.
From Split you can go to Trogir via buses and cars. The shore has sunbeds with umbrellas, bars, cafes and restaurants. The eastern part of the beach is covered with pine forest.
The 6 km long Duce beach is a 30-minute drive from Split. The entrance to the water is gentle, and there is a cafe on the shore, you can rent sun loungers and umbrellas for 20 kunas.
On Duce, there are many old fishing villages where you can admire the unique rural architecture.
