An odd story about our one night in Sveti Petar on the Dalmatian Coast.
After our hot, sweaty day of hiking at the beautiful Plitvice Lakes National Park, we are happily on our way to Zadar, a city on the Dalmatian coast. We were looking forward to a much needed refreshing shower and a little sightseeing, but as luck would have it, everything is booked out. Not a single room available in the entire city!
So we calmly (not really!) sat in the bar drinking a beer we did not want in order to have internet to book a room which apparently did not exist. Croatia wake up! Open your houses! Make money! Ok, so, we widened our search and bingo! Finally we find a spot Sveti Petar also known as Sv. Petar and book it.
We drive the 30 minutes to the beach town, do the usual lost drive around looking for the place and finally find a lovely looking guesthouse on a hill overlooking the beach. Ring the bell and a very friendly couple come out – and inform us that regrettably, there must have been an error, the place is full. By now it is 7:30 at night, we stink, are hungry and have no idea where we will sleep.
Needing to stop, breathe and find internet, we decided to go for dinner. Directly on the beach (water is calming) is a dog friendly restaurant with a patio called Autokamp Filko Pizza Grill advertising wifi and, of course, pizza. We sit down and order some drinks and a pizza. Guess what? No pizza.? So we ordered a plate of grilled meat and some beers. Surprise surprise, the internet did not work (if it ever existed) either!
The good news? The cevapcici and the pork chop were good; the sausage was greasy, the chicken dry. The Vegetables were delicious, as was the beer.
Our total bill came to: 232 kuna / €31.30 – expensive, but a great view.
It is now 9 pm. We woke up early, drove, waited in a huge line, hiked – on the hottest day on record in Croatia – drove more, tried to get internet, tried to get accommodation…
We paid our bill, went to the car, paid to go online and booked another place, Apartmani Jelekovac also in Sveti Petar. But once again, when we arrived, it was booked out as well as is everything along the coast in both directions under €150.??.
Enter Miha & Iris and Zlatko ? Thank goodness for these wonderful people. They were the hosts at Apartmani Jelikovac. Because it was getting so late, they felt bad for us and offered a storage room with a bed to spend the night in. We very thankfully agreed and immediately had a shower to wash away our day of hiking.?
Following our shower, we joined our host family on the patio “for a beer” where they rolled out the red carpet for us. We brought some of our wine stash to the table, a Zinfandel, which originated from Croatia – and they offered beer and some Croatian specialties including:
– Prosciutto – House made, 3 year aged, coastal, Air dried in sea wind air Prosciutto – Amazing, melt in your mouth
– Sheep cheese named Juust (not a spelling error) which is very similar to parmigiano regiano – delicious
– Bread with fresh pressed homemade olive oil
The food was delicious and the company was good! We shared stories, laughed and eventually went to our storage room for a good night of sleep!
In the morning, they graciously offered us coffee and some fruit. They charged us €40; we were just happy to have had a place to sleep.
Thank you once again to Miha, Iris and Apartmani Jelikovac for finding space for us!
Following these nasty experiences, we came to a few conclusions:
– avoid Croatia in the summer / high season
– beware of accommodation bookings – we think possibly places purposely overbook and then operate on a first come first serve basis – Thoughts on this welcome!
Next destination: Split – Dalmation coast, cruise port
Info:
Stay: Apartmani Jelekovac Guesthouse – TravelFoodDrink recommended!
Address: Sv. Petar na moru, Sv. Petar br.26 (Tustica), 23207, Sv. Filip i Jakov, Croatia
Contact: Tel: +385 98 418 749
Eat: Autokamp Filko Pizza Grill
Address: Sveti Petar na moru 96, 23207, Sveti Petar na Moru, Croatia
The food is ok at this place albeit pricey, but the view is very nice, it is relaxing and it is dog friendly, so a thumbs up. Also, if you are looking for a camping spot, they also have rv, tent and trailer spots as well as cabins. Book ahead 😉
