Sveti Stefan

Because of the twists and turns of the Adriatic coastline, each mile as the crow flies, covers eight to ten miles of actual shore line, and there are 1,000 islands off the coast, in the Adriatic Sea.

The island of Sveti Stefan, a hundred yards or so off shore, is now a hotel. All the ancient buildings have been remodeled, and are now used as hotel rooms, restaurants, stores, or whatever. The island is reached over a small causeway or sand-bar, and once on the island, you will see the buildings are mainly stone with wooden shutters on the windows. A plaque at the little church says Sveti Stefan has been completely renovated since the 1979 earthquake.

When we visited it was not the “in-season,” so it wasn’t busy, but they charged $5 each, just to walk across the sand-bar and visit the island. The one-time stone fishing-houses hide apartments that satisfy all the requirements of a summer resort. Rooms would cost at least $100 a night (or maybe it was $100 “per person, per night”) to stay in the hotel. Highly rated is the legendary villa No. ‘118’, with a daily rent up to $1,500.