To leave the country you then have to check out with the authorities and on the route to Montenegro the port of Cavtat is the most southerly option. It has a reputation as a busy place and a focus for ‘Super-Yachts’ so we set off to arrive in the early afternoon and we found there was space on the quay as we entered the bay. A first attempt at the stern–to mooring with the new crew members went well and we were secured just along from a couple of monster ‘motorized wedding-cakes’ (lots of layers). We expected it to be a bit pricey and at around £123 for berthing it was. We were then told we had to pay another £32 for power and water! I questioned if he thought we were a super-yacht, as we couldn’t use that much power in a week, but of course that was the price and you don’t argue.

It’s a very pleasant quay and the town is good to wander around. We managed some shopping for stores and had dinner in a place on the bay on the other side of the town which was good. When we returned to the boat the power was off and our batteries declining fast. After some hassle we got a phone number and an hour or so later the power was back on........we went to bed, setting up a light that would go out if the power did so we could easily monitor it. Within an hour the power was off again and stayed that way for the rest of the visit. I guess we used about £0.30p in real terms. My texted request for a refund went unanswered!

Even though we were moored 20m from the ‘customs quay’ they insist that you leave the berth and re-moor on their quay before they will check you out. As the office opens at 08.00hrs we left the berth shortly before to find 5 other boats milling around waiting their turn. This whole farce took up another hour and a half with a very rude woman in the office giving me a ‘telling off’ for not having gone to the Harbour Master first despite me simply following the directions of the officer on the quay – who incidentally charges another K100 (£12.50) for ’mooring assistance’. No other country has played this game, we think it’s probably only so they can add one more charge before you go.

The only bright spot in this interlude was a quick chat as we drifted around awaiting our turn on the quay with the crew of another cat ‘Cattiva’ a one-off built boat under an Australian flag. We ended up following them down the Croatian coast as we both motored along in very light winds.

We were happy to leave Croatia. It’s a very pretty country but the people have generally been either dour or outright rude and grumpy. On both this visit and the last time here we felt their focus was only on how much money they could get out of you whilst providing as little service as possible. The only exceptions were our experiences on the island of Mljet, in the bay at Polace and the restaurant in Prozura.

We won’t be going back again.

Main Photo: The quay at Cavtat