Dubrovnik Walking tour – Tram ride – Croatian Fireside Lunch with Wine & Beer
10:00am-2:00pm

Tender in from the ship to meet our English-speaking guide for a walking tour of historic medieval Old Town Dubrovnik. Then ride a cable car tram up to the mountain ridge for the most spectacular view of the craggy Dalmatian Coast walled villas and calm Adriatic Sea. An authentic Croatian lunch of local specialties with roasted meats and potatoes “under the dome” follows at our favorite Croatian countryside firehouse. Regional wine, beer and brandy will be served. We’ll then take a private bus back to Old Town Dubrovnik around 2:00pm where you may continue exploring on your own, walk the perimeter wall, or return to the ship.

Tour includes: Private guide & group transfer, walking tour of Old Town Dubrovnik, cable car ride, and an authentic Croatian lunch.

*Times are subject to change due to ship’s arrival & departure times. Advance reservation and prepayment is required and pricing is subject to final number of guests. Venues are subject to change based on availability.

Hvar Market, Olives and Local Specialties
11:00am – 2:45pm

Tour Description:  This four hour excursion begins with a guided walking tour of Hvar through the city center to the green market, where you will experience the abundance of fruits and vegetables grown in the area. Year round, the sun shines brightly on the splendid island of Hvar, making its limestone towns sparkle amid the fertile green hills, rocky terrain, and the surrounding sea of clear cobalt blue. Weather conditions have been reflected in the food produced in the area, giving it a special taste, sunbathed while growing on the small fertile areas.

Guests will enjoy the scenic ride toward the village of Vrisnik. Here, a local host, welcomes each guest into his olive grove, where they will hear interesting stories about olive trees, oil and produce. Guests will then partake in an olive oil tasting. The extra virgin here is known as island green gold, and it’s famed for its subtle flavor and distinct piquant taste. All of the herbs and vegetables used in the preparation of the meal are just as special.  Each is planted and cultivated on sustainable and environmentally responsible principles. The setting offers an amazing view of Hvar’s old Ager field, the oldest preserved agriculture plain in the world, a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Guests can enjoy authentic specialties, prepared according to traditional recipes.  Their meal will consist of an assortment of pates (fish pate, fish pate with vegetables, and olive pate), seafood risotto and fresh grilled fish with vegetables, and the traditional sweet of fried dough. There will be time available for shopping in Hvar after the tour before their thirty-minute return drive back to the pier.

*Times are subject to change due to ship’s arrival & departure times. Advance reservation and prepayment is required and pricing is subject to final number of guests. Venues are subject to change based on availability.

From Rovinj: Karlic Estate Truffle Tasting & Cooking Demo
10:30am – 3:30pm

Tour Description: Begin this approximately four hour and fifteen-minute with a scenic drive to Paladini, a small village hidden in inland Istria.  Upon arrival at the estate, guests will meet the Karlic Family, now in its third generation of the truffle hunting business. Friendly hosts will share information about the estate, truffles, the tradition of truffle hunting, and the family’s truffle hunting dogs.

The guests will then taste delicious products made of truffles all prepared by the family, including Istrian cheese with truffles, sausages with truffles, and truffle pate. The highlight of the tasting is a live interactive presentation of making famous Istrian “fritaja” scrambled eggs with truffles.

After the tasting, the hosts will take guests to on a truffle hunt in their own woods where they grow and harvest black truffle. Both white and black truffles found in that area are considered to be among the best quality truffles in Istria.  The rush of adrenaline that they will experience together during the truffle hunt will certainly be memorable because truffles are this family’s love and way of life.

*Times are subject to change due to ship’s arrival & departure times. Advance reservation and prepayment is required and pricing is subject to final number of guests. Venues are subject to change based on availability.

From Sibenik, Croatia: Family Farm Lunch & Sibenik Walking Tour
1:30pm – 5:15pm

Tour Description:  On this approximately three-hour and forty-five minute excursion, guests embark on a scenic journey through the Dalmatian hinterland to the Roca family farm, where, as the family describes it, “the salty air is filled with scents of pine, rosemary, laurel and lavender, once experienced, never forgotten.”

A hearty welcome awaits each guest as their host, Mr. Ante Roca, introduces them to the family and serves a delicious, home-cooked lunch consisting of prosciutto, various salamis and cold cuts, lamb rooster baked under the iron bell with potatoes, salad, dessert and locally produced wine. As they will discover, the farm produces prosciutto, sausages and cold cuts from their own pigs. The guests will be treated to a tour of the estate, complete with a look at its interesting items and gadgets that are integral to the functioning of a working farm and its traditions.

Afterward, guests will bid farewell to their gracious host in order to partake in a walking tour of Sibenik including leisure time in the city center before an independent return to their ship.

*Times are subject to change due to ship’s arrival & departure times. Advance reservation and prepayment is required and pricing is subject to final number of guests. Venues are subject to change based on availability.