Day 1: Fly to Dubrovnik and tour of the Old City


The plan is to fly from Gatwick early on the Wednesday with British Airways to Dubrovnik where we will arrive soon after lunch. We will stay the night close to the Old City in quality accommodation. The afternoon will be spent with a short cycle along Croatia’s Dalmatian Coast and a guided tour of the Old City. We shall have free evening time in the Old City with a fabulous choice of restaurants.

Day 2: Dubrovnik via Ston to Lombardia on the island of Korcula. 72km (45mls)


This promises to be an exciting day’s ride with plenty of variety and endless changing scenery with views of the Peljesac Peninsular and neighbouring islands. The day commences with a transfer for one hour t to the pretty port of Mali Ston, where we shall have a final bike check and a coffee break before setting off on our bikes. Just up the road is the ancient village of Ston with the longest (5.5km) fortified wall in Europe built in 1333. It looks like a section of the Great Wall of China and hopefully there will be time to stop for a short walk along its parapets. We now enter the Peljesec Peninsular, a long strip of land which if not for the 1km section of land between Mali Ston and Ston, would be another island. This Peninsula is mountainous rising to 2000ft. For much of the way we ride along the ridge with views of the mountainous mainland and the island of Mljet. This is a sensational ride full of variety, mountains coastal scenery and of course some undulations. As we near the town of Orebic (121km) we have great views of the islands of Korcula to the West and Hvar to the East. Both will be visited. From Orebic we take the 20 minute ferry onto the island of Korcula. We will visit Korcula town for afternoon tea. This is another walled city which has been dubbed Little Dubrovnik and was the birthplace of Marco Polo. Its marble pedestrianised streets date back to the 13th century and are dotted with Renaissance and Gothic architecture. There are just 5km to the finish of the days ride to the lovely small resort of Lombardia where we will stay together in a mix of apartments and guest house lodgings of good quality overlooking the sea. The restaurant on site serves excellent fresh home-made cooking and is certainly a treat.

Day 3: Lombardia on Korcula to Hvar Town on Hvar Island 67km (42mls)
 

Another exciting day of cycling. We leave Lombardia and will cycle along the spine of the island to Smokvica (35km) where we drop to the coast at Brna (39km) and we follow a scenic coastal road for 8km finally turning back inland to Blato (53km). It’s then a relatively flat ride to the port of Vera Luka (64km). After a tea stop we will take the 90 minute ferry to Hvar town on the island of Hvar. This is an attractive upmarket resort and we will have plenty time to explore its atmospheric harbour and squares. It is here we will meet with the walkers who would have been on a walk along the ridge further down this beautiful island. We will all stay together in a good quality boutique type hotel. We shall eat out in one of the many fashionable restaurants.

Day 4: Hvar Town via Jelsa to Makarska 90km (56mls)
 

The day starts with short transfer to Jelsa. This bus ride passes through a small mountain range with once again grand sea views towards Stari Grad (82km) and finally close to some fascinating mountain villages, in particular Pitve and finally descending into Jelsa. This is a quaint port nestled close to the foot of the highest peak on the island. We now mount our bikes for the traverse of most of the length of Hvar island –one of the narrowest and longest islands off the Dalmation Coast, passing through remote villages. We are never more than 2mls from the sea on either side. Views as ever are stunning but luckily there is not too much climbing to do. We reach the southern tip of the island at Sucurai (54km) for lunch and take the short ferry to Drvenik on the mainland. There now follows a spectacular coastal run, admittedly along the main road to start but with a substantial diversion on a local road through a procession of almost untouched coastal villages until we reach the main road again at Podgora (80km) for the final run into Makarska (90km). We will stay 2 nights at the brand new 4* Hotel Osejava in an imposing position overlooking the bay and the 5800ft Mt Biokovo which soars above Makarska. Dinner will be either in the attractive hotel restaurant where last summer we ate the best food of our tour or in one of the many restaurants along the sea front. This is a bustling ‘young set’ resort with many busy bars, particularly at night.

Day 5 The ascent and descent of Mount Biokovo  up to 64km (40mls ) return

Here is Croatia’s Mount Ventoux. A 5800ft and 32 km long climb from sea level initially through forestation and then open rock and scrub on a complex plateau with dramatic views of the islands and peninsula previously visited. But do not worry, there will be a transfer to take you half way up which will still leave you the most spectacular part to cycle and of course the pleasure of cycling all the way down back to the hotel. The mountain road is narrow and quiet –almost devoid of traffic and has some thrilling ascents and descents. You could of course cycle all the way up if you so wished! From the summit you can see far into the interior and to Bosnia. On the way down from the summit we will be treated to a special lunch in a private lodge managed by the ‘park’ warden who you can see in the photo. We should return to the hotel during mid-afternoon allowing time to use the spa, swimming pool and various other facilities. We will stay a second night in Hotel Osejava and either eat in the hotel or in one of the many restaurants in the town.

Day 6 Return to London

The early flight from Split will mean an early rise for the 90 minute transfer to the airport. The flight is scheduled to arrive back at Gatwick in enough time for you to ‘enjoy’ an afternoon’s work if you so wish.