Experience the best of Brač

Brač lies off the Dalmatian coast about an hour by ferry from Split, which arrives at Supetar on the island's north side. The island is rocky and dry, covered in pine and scrub, olive groves and vineyards, and Vidova Gora, its summit, is the highest point on any Adriatic island, with a wide view over the neighbouring islands. Its pale limestone has been quarried since Roman times.

Bol on the south coast has Zlatni Rat, a long pebble spit that curves into the sea and changes shape with the wind and currents, and its steady breeze makes it a windsurfing spot. Inland, the stone-carvers' village of Pučišća has a school of stonemasonry, and the Blaca Hermitage is a monastery tucked into a cliff above the sea. Škrip, with its ancient walls, is one of the oldest settlements on the island.

Lamb roasted over embers and vitalac, spit-roasted lamb offal, are island specialities, with olive oil, local cheese and red plavac mali wine alongside. Summer is hot and dry, the sea stays warm enough to swim in well into autumn, and winters are mild and quiet.