Split to Hvar Ferry Guide: Routes, Times & Booking Tips

There are two ways to reach Hvar from Split, and choosing the wrong one is the most common mistake first-time visitors make. Here is the whole decision in one paragraph: if you are travelling on foot and staying in or near Hvar Town, take the fast catamaran; if you are bringing a car, take the Stari Grad car ferry — no exceptions, because vehicles cannot board the catamaran and Hvar Town has no car ferry dock.

The Fast Catamaran (Split → Hvar Town)

The passenger-only catamaran covers the crossing in under an hour and lands you directly on Hvar Town’s Riva, five minutes’ walk from most boutique hotels. In July and August these sailings sell out days ahead — treat the ticket like a flight and book as soon as your dates are fixed.

The Car Ferry (Split → Stari Grad)

The car ferry takes around two hours and docks a few kilometres outside Stari Grad. It is the workhorse route: cheaper, roomier, and rarely sold out for foot passengers. If your villa is on the Stari Grad Plain or the island’s quieter north side, this is the better landing even without a car.

Three Timing Rules

1. Book morning boats. The afternoon maestral wind builds chop; morning crossings are calmer and less likely to be disrupted.
2. Shoulder season is freedom. May–June and September–October, you can usually book a day ahead and choose your sailing.
3. Sunday evenings are the crunch. Weekenders returning to Split fill the last catamarans — if you must travel Sunday, book the earliest departure you can tolerate.

There is a third way across that the timetable does not show: a private boat transfer, which leaves when you do, lands you on the Hvar Town riva, and costs several times the catamaran fare. It is worth knowing about for a late flight arrival, a group splitting the cost, or a day when the sailings simply do not fit — our sister site Adriatic Yacht Guide covers what that runs to.

One more thing about the vehicle deck: it is a separate allocation from the passenger seats and it fills first, so foot-passenger availability tells you nothing about whether there is room for your car. Three to four weeks out for August. Every other lead time on the trip — villas, hire cars, boat tours, charters — is set out in when to book everything for Hvar.

For what to do once you land, start with our Coastal & Maritime guide — the Blue Cave tours also sell out, and for the same reasons.