Review: Little Green Bay, Hvar — The Curious Travel

This sunny coastline of aquamarine water & dry pine-scented heat was our slice of paradise after we were married in July, 2018.Five days defined by a secluded bay, fresh squid & cold white wine. We packed books-a-plenty, donned dark glasses, and basked in the Adriatic sun

BOUTIQUE RELAXTION

It's fair to say that Little Green Bay, Lozna Bay on Hvar, is an absolute gem. With just 15 rooms - each interior unique, an outside spa, beach-lounger drinks-service, and a beautifully styled restaurant serving local produce, you'd be hard pressed to find anywhere on the Dalmatian Coast that encourages more total relaxation.

We were fortunate enough to spend 5 days here straight after getting married. It was the perfect place to recuperate, relax & get a strong dose of vitaminsea.

best bits

Champagne on arrival (long may the newlywed Champagne-train continue)
The water in the bay can reach a glorious 26 degrees by 4pm
All beach equipment is free to use for guests: Paddle-boards, kayaks, inflatables, jet-ski(!), giant beanbags that FLOAT (guess where we could be found 98% of the time...)
Complimentary Havianna flip-flops to save your feet on the pebble beach
The crockery (it's gorgeous)
Little rooftop spa & hot-tub
Secret restaurant in a different bay (make sure you book a table + the speedboat to get there)
Free shuttles to Hvar town 3x a day

GETTING THERE

From Split International Airport (currently under much-needed refurbishment), getting to Hvar is pretty straightforward. As with anything, the more money you throw at the problem, the more straightforward it gets.

Having just paid to get 120 of our closest friends and family drunk the weekend before we decided to behave ourselves, save some cash, and flagged a local taxi to Split Port (UBER also available), before jumping on the Catamaran to Hvar. There was a mojito stand opposite the ticket booth, the journey took about an hour and there was plenty of seating on board = minimal stress.

Other options include a new UBER-Boat service (fun) straight from Split Airport Harbour to the Islands, private taxi-boat from Split Port to Hvar or, if you really hate organising your own logistics, Little Green Bay can also sort your transfer from the airport via their own speedboat (nice if you're feeling flush).

Once in Hvar we then had a short 10 minute drive over pine-clad hills, along gravel switch-backs, & down dappled slopes to Lozna Bay. It smelt like hot pine-needles & sea-salt. Add some sun-cream & deet to the mix and i'm not sure you could find a more evocative scent of 'holiday'.

Feeling impulsive…? Surely it can’t hurt to have a little look at what flights are looking like on Skyscanner

The Little Green Car of the Little Green Bay

The Bay itself is totally vehicle free, meaning we were dropped at the end of a long pebble drive-way. The hotel manager (an outrageously tanned woman called Nina) met us on arrival and led us down, giving the standard check-in briefing along the way. Nick, a huge fan of efficiency, appreciated this approach though Nina insisted it was less about being efficient and more about the fact that people totally fail to pay attention once they see the water. Not wanting to disappoint, I can confirm that I can't remember a single thing she said once the shore-line came into view. All of the greens and blues. Heaven.

DESIGN

A huge part of the draw of Little Green Bay is the gorgeous design & aesthetic. French siblings Julie & Mathieu, a former Parisian designer & restauranteur respectively, bought the buildings almost 6 years ago. A 3 year project of love to create something really quite unique on the Island has paid off beautifully. They are just completing their 3rd successful & fully booked season.

An old restored farmhouse forms the central hotel building with warm cream exterior walls, helping it blend into the surrounding exposed rock of the bay. From there there are several self-contained rooms with private terraces, mostly built from the original stone dwellings dotted around the shore-line. Unity between buildings is cleverly created by using plenty of natural & grey-linens, smooth wooden furniture & minimalist gold and black metal styling. Elegant storm lanterns light the pathways in the evenings; they helped us stumble safely from bar to bed.

FOOD

As you'd expect from a Hotel part-founded by a Parisian restaurant owner, the food was as delightful as the setting. Breakfast kicked off everyday with fresh orange juice (actual ORANGE orange juice, not the wishy-washy yellow juice so prevalent at hotel breakfasts...) followed quickly by strong coffee, eggs any way, pancakes, pastries, jams and island honey. Naturally this meant we were faced with a high risk of over-eating; being health conscious and blessed with self-control we only fell into that trap every. single. morning.

The bistrot terrace re-opens from 1pm for lunch, only if you can be bothered to walk up the short flight of steps. Otherwise there is always the option of ordering ceviche, octopus salad or Croatian sheep's cheese & roasted peppers straight from your rattan sun-lounger to arrive at your rattan sun-lounger. A cold glass of Croat rosé goes nicely.

The menu extends for dinner should you choose to stay at the Bay for the evening. Long-cooked lamb, black lobster ravioli, fresh fish (of course), and handmade taglioni proved plenty temptation for us, especially on our first night. Helped in no uncertain terms by the sound of the sea as a backing track, most of Croatia's supply of candles and a 45 second walk to sleep.