Zadar: Speedboat Island Tour with Snorkeling & Drinks

4.94

(194 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

I nearly lost my hat before we’d even left Foša harbor in Zadar — that first blast of sea wind caught me off guard. Our guide Luka just grinned and said it meant good luck for the trip (I’m not sure if he made that up). The boat felt small but quick, skimming over the water while the city faded behind us and the air started to smell more like salt than sunscreen. There was this weird mix of excitement and calm as we headed out toward Ošljak, which Luka told us is the smallest inhabited island in the Adriatic. I could actually see every house from the boat — it’s that tiny.

We dropped anchor near Ošljak and I hesitated before jumping in (the water looked colder than it was). There’s something about snorkeling here that feels different — maybe it’s how clear everything is, or just knowing you’re floating above a place where people have lived for centuries. I remember a local fisherman waving at us from his old wooden boat; he shouted something I didn’t catch, but Luka laughed and waved back. After swimming, walking through Ošljak’s narrow paths felt like stepping into someone’s backyard — fig trees everywhere, cats dozing in patches of sun. I tried to order coffee at a little café but ended up with something closer to rakija. Not complaining.

The next stop was Galevac island for more snorkeling (and yes, I finally managed to put on the mask without fogging it up). There’s a 13th-century monastery tucked among gardens here — you can hear church bells if you listen between splashes. The sun got stronger by then and someone passed around ice-cold Prosecco while we dried off on deck. Honestly, I didn’t expect to feel so relaxed on a “speedboat tour” — but there was this slow rhythm to everything, like nobody cared about time except maybe the captain keeping half an eye on clouds rolling in.