Hvar Island Forum: Hvar Tours

I just enjoyed the Island Culinary Picnic with them. It was an amazing night. We had booked it for my wife's 50th birthday and it actually rendered her speechless (no small feat)! I really think you can't go wrong with the Hvar Tours. They were totally professional and always got back to me within minutes--something I found pretty rare in my dealings with different hotels and tour operators in Croatia. Definitely legit.

Thanks for your help! Arriving in Croatia tomorrow, I can't wait!

I’m not quite sure where to start on this review, so I may as well say up front that I cannot give Hvar Tours enough thanks for giving my girlfriend and I the most memorable evening of our lives (I’m not even exaggerating!). Let me elaborate...

A few months ago I was looking for inspiration as to how (or where) in Hvar to ask my girlfriend to marry me and in doing so stumbled across Hvar Tours. Amongst other things they offered a package called “Some Enchanted Evening”, which involved a private speedboat ride to a restaurant, a meal on top of a cliff on a private table and a boat trip back to the hotel. Unlike other trips offered, this particular one was certainly not cheap, but for the one-off special occasion that it was it sounded like exactly what I was looking for (and in the end was well justified).

Clearly I wanted the evening to be ‘just right’ for us, and so I asked lots of questions regarding the evening and Ante Lacman (the founder of the company) answered every one promptly. It quickly became clear that he was very knowledgeable about what he sells and incredibly passionate about Hvar (a trait which we discovered many Croatians to have).

Given the lack of feedback on the internet and the cost of the trip, I was understandably a little bit sceptical when it came to booking and paying for the trip. However, following all the emails, speaking to Ante on the phone, the secure payment process and the presence that the company apparently had in Croatia I decided to take the plunge. I’m so glad I did.

Ante had arranged the whole trip to the finest detail. His colleague picked us up from the hotel at 5.50pm and escorted us to a speedboat waiting for us at a pier. The ‘captain’ of the speedboat then took us for a completely unexpected guided tour of the coastline on the way to the restaurant. He even offered to take our photo with Hvar Town in the background, which was a lovely touch. About 20-30 minutes later we arrived at a tiny, beautiful fishing village, where our waiter for the evening was stood to help us off the boat.

He led us up through the family run restaurant up to the most romantic table I could imagine. It stood alone on top of a cliff, with a 180 degree view of the sea. It actually took our breath away – I had not for one moment expected it to be as incredible as it was! We were then given plenty of time just to soak up the view before our food arrived (and catch our breath a bit).

The food was extraordinary (mostly fresh fish/shellfish cooked to traditional Croatian recipes), and the wine was to die for. Seriously, we are quite ‘experienced’ wine drinkers, but this wine was just bonkers. We’ve actually been trying to get hold of some since we got home but apparently there’s only 2,000 bottles produced a year (on Hvar) so it’s quite tricky (and pricey)!

After watching the sun set I popped the question and the setting certainly did the trick. We soaked up the atmosphere for a bit longer and then got the speedboat back to our hotel in the moonlight under the stars, with our (engraved) wine glasses in a wooden case to keep as a memento.

In short, any expectations I had were exceeded in all aspects of the evening. We cannot thank Hvar Tours more for the incredible trip that they arranged. From start to finish they offered a highly professional, friendly and accommodating service. Their website advertises lots of things to do on the island, but in reality they will literally organise anything you want during your stay and it’s probably cheaper than going through a hotel concierge too!

Message from the ‘bride’:

I had no idea that Nick was planning any of this, and I was astounded that he managed to arrange such an awesome evening without knowing anyone in Hvar, or the area, at all!

As Nick said it all ran so smoothly and I was well and truly swept off my feet. I’ve been to some amazing places, but that little spot on top of the cliff is something else. I will never forget it. It’s absolutely beautiful. The food, wine and service at the restaurant was impeccable and the whole experience was just magical.

If you want to make someone feel very special and give them an evening to remember, this is the one!!!

Whow, that's such a great story! I am gonna ask to my husband to renew our vows in the island... hehehe.

Thanks so much for the review, I made the payment already and I'm pretty sure we will have a fantastic day at the sea!