Jerolim beachPakleni Islands

Jerolim is the islet directly opposite the Hvar Town waterfront, the first of the Pakleni Islands and barely half a nautical mile out, so close that from the riva you can see people on its rocks. It is the classic first stop and the easiest escape from town: five minutes by boat, and you are on a pine-covered island with clear water on every side and nothing to do but swim.

The island has been a naturist beach since the 1950s, one of the oldest in the Adriatic, and part of it still is. Nobody minds either way. The eastern bays are the naturist side, the rest is mixed, and the whole island has the same relaxed, slightly bohemian feel: rocky shores shaded by pines, flat slabs of stone for sunbathing, and water that stays clear because there is no sand to stir up. Snorkelling along the rocks is good, and the sheltered western side stays calm when the afternoon Maestral picks up.

Kordovon is the reason to walk beyond the first bay. It is a beach bar, an art project and a hideaway at once: driftwood sculptures, painted stones and installations scattered through the pines, a bar that serves cold drinks and simple food, and a mood that has not changed since the 1970s. Have a drink there, wander the paths, and come back to the boat with sand in your shoes and no idea what time it is.

Because it is so close, Jerolim is where our Pakleni days begin. The Pakleni Islands Half-Day tour starts here before moving west to Stipanska, Ždrilca and Mlini, and the Romantic Sunset Cruise passes its western tip on the way out to open water in the evening light. If you rent a boat yourself, it is the obvious first swim out of the harbour and the last one before you hand the boat back.

One tip: the island is small and popular, and the taxi boats from the riva bring a steady crowd from mid-morning in summer. Come early for the quiet, or come late in the afternoon when the day boats have left and the light on the water turns gold.