Croatia's most famous cave is not a stalactite cave at all. It is the Blue Cave (Modra špilja) on Biševo, a small island off Vis, and you go in sitting low in a rowing boat belonging to the concessionaire, through a gap in the rock about 1.5 m high. The colour comes from sunlight entering through a second, submerged opening and bouncing off a pale sand floor, which is why it needs a high sun and a flat sea, and why the cave closes whenever there is swell at the entrance. Inland, Croatia has roughly a dozen show caves that do not care about the sea at all: Baredine near Poreč with its olms, the Cerovac caves under the Velebit, Vranjača half an hour from Split. This page compares the ten sites that were open to visitors in September 2026, using the operators' own prices.
- TicketsBlue Cave: there is no online sale for individual visitors and no skip-the-line ticket, whatever a reseller may call it.
- Price€24 (about $27.50) – Blue Cave – adult, 13 and over, high season 20 June to 10 September
- OpenBlue Cave: the concessionaire's price list runs the season from 1 April to 31 October, with high season 20 June to 10 September.
- Best timeFor the Blue Cave, June or the first half of September, on a sunny day with no wind, and inside the cave between roughly 11:00 and 12:00.
- ClaustrophobiaThe Blue Cave itself is a bright chamber about 24 m long; the only tight part is the short entrance passage, roughly 1.5 m high, and you are through it in seconds.
The ten caves compared
Blue Cave (Modra špilja), Biševo
A sea cave on the east side of Biševo, about 24 m long, 10–12 m wide and up to 15 m high. You go in through a tunnel roughly 1.5 m high, in the concessionaire's rowing boat. In sun the water turns a hard electric blue and anything below the surface looks silver.
Entry is allowed only in the concessionaire's boat. Swimming, bathing and diving inside the cave are banned and rangers from JU More i krš can fine you on the spot. A protected natural monument since 1951. The ticket also covers the exhibition at the Biševo visitor centre on the same day.
Adults €24 (about $27.50) from 20 June to 10 September, €18 (about $20.63) from 1 April to 19 June and 11 September to 31 October; children 6–12 €12 / €9; under 6 free (price list from 06/2025, checked 09/2026)
Green Cave (Zelena špilja), Ravnik
A sea cave on the uninhabited islet of Ravnik off the south coast of Vis. It has two large entrances and a hole in the dome that drops a shaft of light onto the sea floor like a spotlight.
Unlike the Blue Cave, swimming here is allowed, and so is going in under your own power in an unpowered boat. Tickets can be bought in advance by email from the concessionaire, Gradina Vis, which shortens the wait. A protected natural monument since 1967; Emperor Franz Joseph I called in during 1875.
Adults €15 (about $17.19) from 15 June to 15 September, €10 (about $11.46) from 1 March to 14 June and 16 September to 31 October; children 6–12 €7 / €5; under 6 free (price list 2026)
Baredine Cave (Jama Baredine), near Poreč, Istria
A stalactite cave in the hills behind Poreč: a guided route of 300 m through five chambers down to an underground lake 60 m below the surface, where olms live.
Guided in English, German, Italian and Croatian. From one chamber you look down a further 66 m shaft; total depth is 132 m. Open to visitors since 1995. Between mid-June and mid-September, and above all on rainy days, expect a wait – you are given a group number with an approximate entry time.
Adults €14 (about $16.04); children 5–15 €10 (about $11.46); students €11 (about $12.61); over-65s €12 (about $13.75); under 5 free (price list 2026)
Mramornica Cave, Brtonigla, Istria
A single-chamber stalactite cave near Brtonigla in north-west Istria: one hall 93 m long and 51 m wide, up to 20 m deep, with flowstone running from dark red to white.
A steady 14 °C, which is why the farm ages barrique barrels of wine in the entrance chamber. The oldest visitor's inscription dates from 1775. Guided in English and German as well as Croatian.
Adults €10 (about $11.46); children €7 (about $8.02); students and seniors €8 (about $9.17) (operator's site, retrieved 09/2026)
Biserujka Cave, Krk
A small, shallow stalactite cave near Rudine in the north of Krk. It reaches only 13 m below the surface and is dense with columns and stalactites.
About 15 °C at 95 per cent humidity. Cave bear bones have been found here. Six animal species live only in this area and three were first described from this cave.
Adults €7 (about $8.02); children 3–12 €5 (about $5.73); under 3 free (operator's site, retrieved 09/2026)
Vrelo Cave, Fužine, Gorski kotar
A cave about 300 m long beside the Bajer reservoir, found in 1950 when the rock was being quarried for the dam and the road. The path is completely level and has no steps; inside there is a spring, a lake and a swallow hole.
Described by the tourist board as wheelchair accessible, with more than 25,000 visitors a year. Heavy rain can flood the cave, which is the one thing that closes it.
Adults €7 (about $8.02) from 1 July 2026, €6.50 (about $7.45) before that; children 4–18 €5.50 (about $6.30); seniors and students €6.50 (price decision 2026)
Lokvarka Cave, Lokve, Gorski kotar
A large stalactite cave on six levels, four of which can be walked; 1,179 m of passage have been surveyed, reaching 275 m deep.
7–9 °C inside. Found by accident in 1911 during limestone quarrying; the geologist Josip Poljak called it one of the finest caves in the Croatian karst.
Adults €12 (about $13.75); children €10 (about $11.46) (operator's site, retrieved 09/2026)
Cerovac Caves (Cerovačke špilje), Gračac
Two caves in Velebit Nature Park, the Lower and the Upper, each with about 700 m open to visitors – the largest cave complex in Croatia, according to the operator.
Only 7 °C, in August as much as in February. From the visitor centre at 553 m it is a 15-minute walk up to the Lower Cave at 620 m and another 10 to 15 minutes to the Upper at 671 m. Guiding is included and cards are accepted.
One cave: adults €13 (about $14.90) September to June, €16 (about $18.34) in July and August; both caves €17 (about $19.48) / €20 (about $22.92); children 7–18 €9 / €11 and €13 / €15; under 7 free (operator's site, retrieved 09/2026)
Manita peć, Paklenica National Park
The only cave developed for visitors inside Paklenica National Park, open since 1937. The entrance sits at 570 m and the climb from the Velika Paklenica car park takes about 1.5 hours.
9 °C, with formations named the Helmet, the Organ and the Witch. Visits only with a guide.
A €5 (about $5.73) supplement, children 7–18 €2.50 (about $2.87), on top of the park entry of €10 (about $11.46) from May to September (park price page 2026); the supplement is cash only, paid at the cave
Vranjača Cave, Kotlenice near Split
A stalactite cave on the north slope of Mosor, half an hour by car from Split. Behind a plain antechamber lies a hall of nine sections packed with flowstone.
Open to visitors since 1929 and run for generations by the Punda family, who found the inner part in 1903. Reachable on Split city bus 67.
Adults €10 (about $11.46); children €5 (about $5.73); cash only (Dugopolje tourist board, retrieved 09/2026)
Tickets and prices
Blue Cave: there is no online sale for individual visitors and no skip-the-line ticket, whatever a reseller may call it. You buy at the reception desk in Mezuporat bay on Biševo, or at Nautički centar Komiža on the waterfront in Komiža. Only the private VIP transfer has to be arranged with the concessionaire at least one working day ahead by phone or email; in July and August no more than two VIP transfers run at the same time between 10:00 and 14:00. The inland show caves sell at the door: Baredine and Mramornica start a guided group roughly every 30 minutes from April to October, Cerovac runs fixed entry times, and the winter months everywhere need a phone call the day before.
Official prices
- Blue Cave – adult, 13 and over, high season 20 June to 10 September€24 (about $27.50)
- Blue Cave – adult, 13 and over, shoulder season 1 April to 19 June and 11 September to 31 October€18 (about $20.63)
- Blue Cave – child aged 6 to 12, high / shoulder season€12 (about $13.75) / €9 (about $10.31)
- Blue Cave – child under 6free
- Blue Cave – private VIP transfer from Mezuporat, tickets included, 2 to 12 people, up to 15 minutes inside the cave€660 (about $756) high season / €460 (about $527) shoulder season, per group
- Modra špilja visitor centre on Biševo (exhibition), adult€6 (about $6.88), free with a cave ticket from the same day
- State ferry line 612 Komiža–Biševo, one way€4.38 (about $5.02) from 29 May to 27 Sept 2026, €3.19 (about $3.66) otherwise; children 3 to 12 €1.99 (about $2.28)
- Green Cave (Ravnik) – adult, 13 and over€15 (about $17.19) from 15 June to 15 September, €10 (about $11.46) from 1 March to 14 June and 16 September to 31 October
- Baredine Cave – adult€14 (about $16.04)
- Cerovac Caves – adult, one cave / both caves, September to June€13 (about $14.90) / €17 (about $19.48); in July and August €16 (about $18.34) / €20 (about $22.92)
As of price list valid from 01/06/2025, still the one linked by the operator in 09/2026 · source and direct booking: bluecave-bisevo.com/en
When everything is sold out
The Blue Cave does not sell out, but it queues. The transfer boats go through the narrow entrance one at a time and visitors wait ashore in Mezuporat. Boat operators quote 45 to 60 minutes, and up to 90 in the second half of August. The concessionaire shows the queue live at modraspilja.hr, which is worth a look before you commit to a day.
Boat trips and tickets for the Croatian caves
Read the inclusions before you book, because on this page a tour price and a ticket price are two different things. The Blue Cave charges €24 (about $27.50) per adult until 10 September and €18 (about $20.63) after it, collected at the desk in Mezuporat on Biševo, and the operators themselves say it is not part of the fare - one puts it in writing: "The entrance fee for the ticket is not included in the tour price." The Green Cave on Ravnik is a second ticket again, €15 or €10. What a booking actually buys you is the crossing, and on Biševo that is worth paying for: without a tour it is a ferry to Vis, a bus to Komiža and the 08:00 scheduled boat to Mezuporat. Two things to check in any listing. Which cave it enters - "Blue Cave" trips from Dubrovnik go to Koločep and trips from Krk go to Plavnik, neither of them Biševo. And the cancellation terms, because this is a weather-dependent trip: an offer you can cancel free of charge 24 hours ahead is worth more here than a few euros off. For Baredine, Mramornica, Cerovac and Vranjača inland, you can simply turn up and pay at the door.
Blue Cave, Mamma Mia, Hvar and 5-Island Small-Group Tour
From Split: Blue Cave, Mamma Mia, Vis & Hvar 5-Island Tour
Dubrovnik: Blue Cave & Sunj Beach Boat Tour with Drinks
Split: Blue Cave, Mamma Mia & 5 islands Small Group Tour
Show all 11 offers
From Split: Blue Cave, Hvar, Mamma Mia, 5 Islands boat Tour
Split: Blue Cave, Vis & Hvar Full-Day Trip by Speedboat
From Hvar: Blue Cave, Green Cave & 5 Islands Speedboat Tour
Dubrovnik: Blue Cave & 7 Caves Tour (4h) + Drinks & Snorkel
From Hvar: Blue and Green Cave Day Tour
Split: 5 Islands Full-Day Tour to Blue Cave, Vis & Hvar
From Vis: Speedboat tour - Vis, Biševo & Blue Cave (shared)
Booked through GetYourGuide (affiliate link, advertising). Most offers can be cancelled free of charge up to 24 hours ahead. Prices as of 20 September 2026.
Opening hours and best time
Blue Cave: the concessionaire's price list runs the season from 1 April to 31 October, with high season 20 June to 10 September. Boats go in only when the sea is calm. Swell at the entrance, usually on a southerly wind, closes the cave, and the call is often made only on the morning itself. The light is best from late morning to midday – the Split tourist board gives a window of 09:00 to 13:00 depending on the season. The operator publishes the live queue and the weather at modraspilja.hr. Every other cave keeps its own hours, listed below: most of the inland show caves open daily from April to October and take bookings only in winter.
When it is quietest
For the Blue Cave, June or the first half of September, on a sunny day with no wind, and inside the cave between roughly 11:00 and 12:00. The blue is not a reflection off the walls: sunlight enters through a submerged opening, strikes the pale sand on the floor and lights the chamber from below, so the sun has to be high and the sea has to be calm enough for the boats to get in at all. The Split tourist board gives 09:00 to 13:00 depending on the season. From 11 September the shoulder-season price of €18 (about $20.63) applies again and the queues shorten noticeably. The inland caves are weather-proof and are the obvious move on a wet day – though that is exactly when Baredine is busiest, because the whole of Istria has the same idea.
Who it suits
With children
Blue Cave: fine for children, who stay seated in the boat throughout, and free under 6. What is hard on them is the day around it – about 10 hours from Split, most of it in a speedboat with no shade. Inland: Baredine takes small children if an adult carries them but bans pushchairs, and the Vrelo cave at Fužine has no steps at all.
Minimum age
No minimum age published for any of these sites.
Wheelchair
Blue Cave: an electric vehicle on Biševo takes visitors with reduced mobility from Mezuporat up to the step-free visitor centre. Whether the transfer into the small cave boat is possible is not stated by the operator, so ask before you travel. Of the inland caves only Vrelo at Fužine is step-free and described by the tourist board as wheelchair accessible; Baredine says plainly that it is not suitable.
Pushchair
Not possible in the Blue Cave – it is a small rowing boat. Not allowed at Baredine, which suggests a baby carrier instead. Fine at Vrelo, where the path is level.
Dogs
Dogs must be kept on a lead at all times on Biševo, under the visitor centre's code of conduct. Pets travel free on state ferry line 612 but not in the enclosed passenger cabins. Whether dogs are allowed into the cave boat itself is not published.
Claustrophobia
The Blue Cave itself is a bright chamber about 24 m long; the only tight part is the short entrance passage, roughly 1.5 m high, and you are through it in seconds. The inland show caves are lit throughout, though Baredine goes 60 m below the surface and Cerovac and Lokvarka are properly cold and dark caves rather than corridors.
What to wear
For the sea caves, sun and wind protection for the boat. If you plan to swim in the Green Cave, bring swimwear but no sunscreen – the nature protection authority asks visitors to keep sun cream out of the sea caves. For the inland caves, a jacket and firm shoes even in August: Cerovac is 7 °C, Lokvarka 7–9 °C, Manita peć 9 °C and Baredine 14 °C.
Photography
Blue Cave: no restriction is published for private photographs, but commercial filming needs permission from JU More i krš. Baredine allows photography and video without flash, for private use only.
Getting there
By public transport
Split airport (SPU) is the gateway for the Blue Cave: about 25 km from the ferry port, 30 to 40 minutes by shuttle bus or taxi. From the port, Jadrolinija line 602 is the car ferry to Vis, roughly 2 hours 20 minutes; the faster catamaran, line 9602, runs Split–Bol–Hvar–Vis from mid-June to mid-September and also lets you start from Hvar town. On Vis a bus timed to the ferries covers the 13 km to Komiža in about 15 minutes. From Komiža the state ferry line 612, the Sv. Silvestar, crosses to Biševo: in season it leaves at 08:00 and reaches Mezuporat at 08:45, which puts you ashore before the speedboats from Split and well before the best light. One way in 2026 is €4.38 (about $5.02) in season, €3.19 (about $3.66) otherwise. Outside the season the boat does not run every day – check with the concessionaire. For Istria, Pula airport (PUY) is about 56 km and 45 minutes from Poreč by road; the inland caves have no useful bus service.
By car
Biševo is car-free for visitors. If you drive, the car goes on the ferry to Vis and stays in Komiža. Everything inland is a driving destination and a hire car is the honest answer: Baredine, Mramornica and Cerovac all have parking at the entrance, Lokvarka and Vrelo sit within a couple of kilometres of the Zagreb–Rijeka motorway, and Vranjača is half an hour from central Split, also reachable on city bus 67.
From the nearest city
From Split, the standard five-islands speedboat day trip runs 10 to 10.5 hours and usually combines Biševo with Vis (Komiža, Stiniva), Budikovac and Hvar with the Pakleni islands. From Hvar town it is about 7.5 hours. From Komiža, Biševo is only about 5 km away: the scheduled boat takes 45 minutes to Mezuporat, water taxis are quicker. For the inland caves, reckon on about 45 minutes from Pula or Poreč to Baredine, about an hour from Zadar to the Cerovac caves, 25 km from Rijeka to Lokvarka and 30 minutes from Split to Vranjača. One warning that costs people a day: tours sold as "Blue Cave" from Dubrovnik or from Krk go to different caves with the same name – Koločep and Plavnik respectively – not to Biševo.
Tips for your visit
- Budget the cave ticket separately from the tour. It is €24 (about $27.50) per adult until 10 September and €18 (about $20.63) after that, it is paid on Biševo, and almost no speedboat tour includes it.
- Carry small euro notes. The official price list says cards are taken, several operators say cash only, and there is no cash machine anywhere on Biševo. This is not the place to find out who is right.
- Doing it without a tour: take the 08:00 scheduled boat from Komiža for €4.38 (about $5.02), be in Mezuporat at 08:45 and buy your ticket there. You will be ahead of the speedboats from Split and Hvar and still inside the good light window.
- Check modraspilja.hr on the morning. The concessionaire publishes the live queue and the sea state, which is the only honest way to know whether today is a Blue Cave day.
- Keep your cave ticket. It gets you into the Biševo visitor centre exhibition the same day, otherwise €6 (about $6.88), and an electric shuttle runs up there from Mezuporat.
- Watch where a "Blue Cave" tour departs from. Trips from Dubrovnik go to Koločep and trips from Krk go to Plavnik – both real caves, neither of them Biševo, and the Koločep one you can swim in.
- Pack a jacket for the inland caves even in August: Cerovac is 7 °C, Lokvarka 7–9 °C, Manita peć 9 °C, Baredine 14 °C. A 30 °C morning in Poreč has no bearing on what it feels like 60 m down.
- Rainy day in Istria? So is everyone else's. Baredine fills up, so drive the 30 minutes to Mramornica instead, or make it a Cerovac day if you are further south.
What the internet gets wrong
The kuna has not been money since 1 January 2023, when Croatia joined the euro, so those numbers cannot be paid at all – and at the old fixed rate of 7.5345 kuna they came to roughly €10 and €13 anyway. The concessionaire's price list charges adults from 13 years €24 (about $27.50) from 20 June to 10 September and €18 (about $20.63) from 1 April to 19 June and from 11 September to 31 October, children 6 to 12 €12 or €9. The second half of that sentence is the costlier error: the entrance fee is not included in the standard tours from Split, and there is no way to skip the queue, because the boats go through the entrance one at a time.
both halves are wrong. The operators who actually run the boats say the opposite about inclusion – hvar.com, blue-cave-tours.com and toto.hr all state that the ticket is bought on Biševo, and toto.hr's own terms read "The entrance fee for the ticket is not included in the tour price." The only product that does include it is the concessionaire's private VIP transfer at €660 (about $756) or €460 (about $527) for up to twelve people. And the fee is €24 or €18 for adults, €12 or €9 for children aged 6 to 12 – roughly double the figures quoted.
This is the single most expensive misunderstanding an English-speaking visitor can arrive with, and a tour agency is repeating it. Work on the assumption that a five-islands day trip covers the boat and nothing else. A family of four on a €100-per-head tour in August should have €96 in cash ready for the Blue Cave and another €60 if the itinerary also stops at the Green Cave. If a listing genuinely includes admission it will say so in the inclusions; ask before you book rather than at the ticket desk.
The cove faces east, but the light does not come in through the cove. It enters through a second opening below the waterline, hits the pale sand on the floor and lights the chamber from underneath, so what matters is how high the sun is, not which way the bay points. The Split tourist board gives a window of 09:00 to 13:00 depending on the season, and the strongest colour is around 11:00 to 12:00. Go early by all means – the queue is shorter and the sea is usually flatter before midday – but go early for the queue, not for the blue.
The cave with a hole in its dome is the Green Cave on Ravnik, 20 km away, where a shaft of light drops through the roof and where you are allowed to swim. In the Blue Cave the roof is solid; there is a submerged second opening, which is precisely why the water glows and the rocks look silver rather than being lit like a stage. The two are separate caves with separate concessionaires, separate tickets and separate rules, and anything after about 13:00 is past the useful light at Biševo.
That page is honest about which cave it sells, but it is where a lot of the English-language confusion starts. There are at least three Croatian sea caves marketed in English as the Blue Cave: Biševo off Vis, Koločep near Dubrovnik and Plavnik near Krk. You can swim in the Koločep one. You cannot swim, bathe or dive in the Biševo one – the visitor centre's code of conduct forbids it and rangers from the nature authority JU More i krš can issue fines on the spot. If someone has sold you swimming in "the Blue Cave", check which island it is on before you pack your mask.
Outdated since the Green Cave got its own published price list, valid from 1 January 2026. The concessionaire Gradina Vis charges adults from 13 years €15 (about $17.19) between 15 June and 15 September and €10 (about $11.46) from 1 March to 14 June and 16 September to 31 October, with children aged 6 to 12 at €7 or €5. It is a completely separate ticket from the Blue Cave, paid at a desk in front of the entrance, and you get ten minutes inside.
The 2026 price list from the operator gives €14 (about $16.04) for adults, €10 (about $11.46) for children aged 5 to 15, €11 for students and €12 for over-65s, with under-5s free. Groups set off roughly every 30 minutes, not every 10, and between mid-June and mid-September you are handed a group number with an approximate entry time rather than walking straight in. In winter the cave runs one tour a day at 11:00 and only if you book the day before.
History in brief
- 1875: Emperor Franz Joseph I stopped at the Green Cave on Ravnik on his way from Vis to Komiža, according to the Vis Archipelago Geopark.
- 1884: the Viennese painter Baron Eugen von Ransonnet made the Blue Cave on Biševo known to the wider world. He compared its light to the Blue Grotto on Capri, and it was on his suggestion that the entrance was cut wider so that rowing boats could get in. Before that, the only way in was by diving.
- 1929 and 1937: Vranjača near Split and then Manita peć in Paklenica opened to visitors – two of the oldest show caves in the country.
- 1951: the Blue Cave was protected as a geomorphological natural monument; the Green Cave followed in 1967.
- 1995: Baredine near Poreč became the first show cave in Istria, after speleologists from Proteus Poreč began surveying it in 1973.
- 2003: a forest fire burned roughly two thirds of the island of Biševo.
- 2019: a survey counted 119 marine species inside the Blue Cave, five of them strictly protected. The same study set out where the blue comes from – morning light passing through the submerged entrance onto pale sand, lighting the chamber from below rather than from the roof.
- Today the concessionaire Nautički centar Komiža organises the visits, while the town of Komiža runs a visitor centre on Biševo with an exhibition, a restaurant and a geological trail.
Frequent questions
How much does it cost to visit the Blue Cave in Croatia in 2026?
Adults aged 13 and over pay €24 (about $27.50) from 20 June to 10 September and €18 (about $20.63) from 1 April to 19 June and from 11 September to 31 October, according to the concessionaire's price list. Children aged 6 to 12 pay €12 or €9, and under-6s go free. The ticket covers one passage through the cave and, on the same day, the exhibition at the Biševo visitor centre.
Is the Blue Cave entrance fee included in the tour price?
Almost never. The speedboat day trips from Split, Trogir and Hvar sell you the boat; the cave ticket is bought by each passenger at the desk in Mezuporat. The operators say so themselves – toto.hr's terms state plainly that the entrance fee is not included. The one exception is the concessionaire's own private VIP transfer, €660 (about $756) in high season and €460 (about $527) in the shoulder season for up to twelve people, which has the tickets built in. Ask before you book, and carry cash either way.
Can you swim inside the Blue Cave?
No. Swimming, bathing and diving are all banned inside the Biševo cave under the visitor centre's code of conduct, and rangers from the nature protection authority can fine you. You stay in the boat for the few minutes you are inside. The swimming you may have read about belongs to two other places: the Green Cave on Ravnik, where it is allowed, and the Blue Cave on Koločep near Dubrovnik, which is a different cave entirely.
What is the best time of day to see the Blue Cave?
Late morning to midday, roughly 11:00 to 12:00, on a sunny day with a calm sea. The Split tourist board gives a broader window of 09:00 to 13:00 depending on the season. The light comes in through an opening below the waterline and reflects off the pale sand floor, so the sun needs to be high; under cloud the blue is much weaker. There is no colour worth seeing in the late afternoon.
What happens if the Blue Cave is closed because of waves? Do you get a refund?
It depends on whether the sea is too rough for the whole trip or only for the cave. If the day is unsailable, operators generally offer a full refund or another date. If the boat can run but the entrance is still working in swell, the usual practice is that the tour goes ahead without the cave: toto.hr, for example, promises an alternative route "with reduced price" and a partial refund, while some operators refund nothing because the other four islands were delivered. One Vis-based operator says it tells guests the night before and lets them choose between rescheduling, rerouting and their money back. Read the cancellation terms before you book, and prefer an offer with free cancellation 24 hours ahead.
Can you visit the Blue Cave without a tour?
Yes, and it is cheaper. Take the ferry or catamaran from Split to Vis, the connecting bus 13 km to Komiža, then the state ferry line 612 to Biševo – €4.38 (about $5.02) one way in season, leaving Komiža at 08:00 and reaching Mezuporat at 08:45. You buy the cave ticket at the desk there. What is compulsory is only the last stretch, in the concessionaire's rowing boat; no tour booking is required, and English-language pages claiming there is no ferry to Biševo are simply wrong.
How long do you have to queue at the Blue Cave?
Boat operators quote 45 to 60 minutes, rising to about 90 in the second half of August, because the transfer boats pass through the narrow entrance one at a time and everyone waits ashore in Mezuporat. The concessionaire shows the live queue at modraspilja.hr. Arriving on the 08:45 scheduled boat, or travelling in June or September, usually cuts the wait sharply. You cannot buy your way past it – there is no skip-the-line ticket for this cave.
How long does a Blue Cave day trip from Split take?
About 10 to 10.5 hours, most of it in a speedboat. The standard itinerary pairs Biševo with Vis – Komiža and the Stiniva cove – plus Budikovac and Hvar with the Pakleni islands. From Hvar town the same circuit takes about 7.5 hours. From Komiža it is a different proposition entirely: Biševo is 5 km away, 45 minutes on the scheduled boat, and you can be back for lunch.
Is the Blue Cave worth it?
If the weather plays along, the light is genuinely unlike anything else on the Adriatic. What you should know going in is the ratio: a few minutes inside the cave at the end of a ten-hour day, most of which is spent travelling or queuing, at €24 for the ticket on top of whatever the boat cost. That is why the tours bundle in Stiniva, Budikovac and Hvar – the rest of the day is what you are really buying. On a grey or windy forecast, rebook.
Is the Blue Cave in Croatia the same as the Blue Grotto on Capri?
No, though they work the same way: in both, daylight enters through a submerged opening and turns the water blue. Ransonnet, who made the Biševo cave known in 1884, made the Capri comparison himself. The differences are practical. Capri's grotto is about 60 m long and sits minutes from a busy island town; Biševo's is 24 m long and needs the better part of a day. And Croatia has several caves called the Blue Cave – Biševo, Koločep near Dubrovnik and Plavnik near Krk – so check the island before you book.
What is the difference between the Blue Cave and the Green Cave?
Different islands, different operators, different rules. The Blue Cave is on Biševo, lit from below through a submerged opening, entered only in the concessionaire's rowing boat, no swimming, €24 or €18. The Green Cave is on Ravnik off the south coast of Vis, has two large entrances and a hole in its dome that drops a shaft of light onto the sea floor, allows swimming, and costs €15 (about $17.19) or €10 (about $11.46) for a ten-minute visit. Many tours take in both – as two separate tickets.
Which Croatian caves can you visit when the weather is bad?
All the inland ones, and that is the real argument for them. Baredine near Poreč and Mramornica near Brtonigla are open daily from April to October and run guided groups every 30 minutes; the Cerovac caves near Gračac run to fixed entry times and hold 7 °C whatever the sky is doing; Vranjača is half an hour from Split and makes a decent substitute on a day too windy for Biševo. The catch is that everyone else has the same idea: Baredine is at its busiest in the rain, so Mramornica, 30 minutes away, is often the better call.
What should you wear in Croatian caves?
For the inland caves, a jacket and firm shoes even in August: Cerovac is 7 °C, Lokvarka 7–9 °C, Manita peć 9 °C, Baredine 14 °C, and Baredine alone has 270 steps. For the Blue Cave, summer clothes plus a windproof layer for the speedboat and something for the sun during the queue. If you plan to swim in the Green Cave, bring swimwear but skip the sunscreen – the nature authority asks visitors to keep it out of the sea caves.
Sources
Show 58 sources – every figure on this page is sourced
- bluecave-bisevo.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Cjenik-usluga-Mo… – Official Blue Cave price list (valid from 01/06/2025): €24 / €18, children €12 / €9, season dates, VIP transfer, payment methods, ticket desks in Mezuporat and Komiža, note on the live queue
- bluecave-bisevo.com/en/cjenici/ – Visitor centre price list overview, linking the 2025 cave price list and the 2026 ferry timetable
- bluecave-bisevo.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/2025-Cjenik-uslu… – Biševo visitor centre: €6 admission, free with a cave ticket, guided tours, Cape Gatula tour
- bluecave-bisevo.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/B-612-Komiza-Bis… – Timetable and fares for state ferry line 612 Komiža–Biševo 2026 (€4.38 / €3.19, departure 08:00, Mezuporat 08:45, pets)
- bluecave-bisevo.com/en/visit-the-blue-cave/ – Ransonnet 1884, protected since 1951, how the blue light is formed, 119 species in 2019, entry only with the concessionaire, about 40 minutes from Mezuporat
- bluecave-bisevo.com/en/code-of-conduct/ – Ban on swimming, bathing and diving in the Blue Cave, rangers of JU More i krš, dogs on leads, no sunscreen, forest fire of 2003
- bluecave-bisevo.com/en/how-to-reach-us/ – Getting there Split–Vis (Jadrolinija 602 / 9602), bus Vis–Komiža 13 km in 15 minutes, line 612, electric vehicle for visitors with reduced mobility
- bluecave-bisevo.com/en/visit-the-monk-seal-cave/ – Monk Seal Cave: 160 m, entrance 27 m, visiting rules (species count given as 123)
- bluecave-bisevo.com/en/about-the-centre/ – Visitor centre, Stražbenica 239 m, coastal battery at Cape Gatula
- www.modraspilja.hr/ – Live display of the queue and the weather, published by Nautički centar Komiža
- www.komiza.hr/nauticki-centar-komiza-d-o-o-cjenik-usluga-modra-… – Town of Komiža: official publication of the 2025 cave price lists
- www.visitsplit.com/hr/228/bisevo-modra-spilja – Split tourist board: dimensions (24 m long, 10–12 m wide, up to 15 m high, up to 16 m deep), entrance 1.5 × 2.5 m, best light 09:00–13:00
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Grotto_(Bi%C5%A1evo) – Discovery in 1884, artificially enlarged entrance, dimensions, coordinates
- hr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modra_%C5%A1pilja – Two openings, light around midday in a calm sea, coordinates
- hr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bi%C5%A1evo – Biševo: 5 km south-west of Komiža, year-round boat connection
- www.hvar.com/blue-cave-guide/ – Operator view: queue of 45–60 or 90 minutes, closure on a southerly wind, ticket not included in tour prices
- www.blue-cave-tours.com/blog/blue-cave-entry-fee-2026 – Operator: entry fee 2026, no cash machine on Biševo, ticket not included in tour prices
- toto.hr/split/service/blue-cave-islands-boat-tour/ – Operator terms quoted in the corrections and FAQ: "The entrance fee for the ticket is not included in the tour price", alternative route with reduced price and partial refund if the cave is closed, full refund or another day if the sea is unsailable
- dalmatia-express.com/blog/blue-cave-croatia/ – Operator: €24 / €18 entry usually not included, queue of 10 minutes in April and 60–90 in late August, light window 10:30–13:00, choice of reschedule, reroute or refund when the cave is shut; also the outdated Green Cave figure of €8–12
- sea-explore.com/de/blog/blue-cave-croatia-guide – Operator: entry tickets charged separately, day trip from Split 9–10 hours
- www.visit-croatia.co.uk/croatia-destinations/croatian-islands/b… – Journey time Komiža–Mezuporat 45 minutes, year-round boat service, differing depth figure of 12 m
- www.zentravelcroatia.com/blog/blue-cave-croatia/ – English error: kuna prices (75 / 100 kn), claim that tour bookings include the entrance and skip the queue
- www.weseektravel.com/blue-cave-croatia/ – English errors: €13 / €10 entry, "all the best Blue Cave day tours will include the entrance fee", "east-facing, the ideal moment to visit is early in the morning"
- www.camping-simuni.hr/en/blog/blue-cave-croatia/ – English error: "The entry fee is typically included in the overall tour cost"
- split-tours.com/tourist-info/blue-cave/ – English error from an agency: "These speedboat excursions usually include transport, the cave entry ticket, and visits to nearby attractions"
- www.tickets-split.com/blue-cave-tours/how-to-get-to-blue-cave-c… – English error: "you can't access the Blue Cave independently" and "there isn't a direct ferry" to Biševo
- www.blueshark.tours/blue-shark-split-blog/croatian-blue-grotto-… – English error: light "peeks through the vault opening", best time "between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m."
- www.bluecave-dubrovnik.com/ – Name collision: a Dubrovnik operator selling "Swim Inside the Cave" at the Koločep blue cave and calling Biševo "the Hvar cave"
- bbqboy.net/blue-cave-dubrovnik-tour-2026-our-recommendation/ – Confirms the name collision: the Dubrovnik tour goes to Koločep, has no entry fee, and the €12–€24 cave ticket applies to Biševo only
- rentaboathvar.com/blue-cave-tour-from-hvar-with-updated-prices-… – Operator: tour price does not include Blue Cave and Green Cave entry; English error: Green Cave "from 8 to 12 euros"
- www.polskieszlaki.pl/en/baredine-cave-in-croatia/ – English error: Baredine "€12 (2024)" and "entries every 10 minutes"
- rewinddubrovnik.com/blog/blue-cave-green-cave-from-dubrovnik-yo… – The Blue Cave reached from Dubrovnik is on Koločep, not Biševo
- www.mare-vrbnik.com/en/excursions/blue-cave-and-golden-beach – "Blue Cave" trips from Krk go to the island of Plavnik
- gradinavis.hr/zelena-spilja/ – Green Cave: concessionaire Gradina Vis, 09:00–17:00, swimming allowed, 10 minutes, payment at the entrance, protected since 1967
- gradinavis.hr/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/CJENIK-ZELENA-SPILJA.xlsx – Green Cave price list 2026: €15 / €10, children €7 / €5, season dates, payment methods
- www.geopark-vis.com/tko-zeli-znati-vise/ravnik-i-zelena-spilja – Green Cave: two entrances, opening in the dome, Franz Joseph I in 1875, Ransonnet
- hr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ravnik_(otok) – Ravnik: 500 m off Rukavac, coordinates
- baredine.com/en/visit-us/prices/ – Baredine prices 2026
- baredine.com/en/visit-us/visiting-hours/ – Baredine opening hours, winter rules, waiting times 15 June to 15 September
- baredine.com/en/visit-us/cave-sightseeing-tour/ – Baredine: 40 minutes, 300 m, 60 m deep, 132 m total depth, 270 steps, 14 °C, languages, olms
- baredine.com/en/visit-us/useful-and-important-information/ – Baredine: guide compulsory in Croatian show caves, payment, photography without flash, wheelchairs and pushchairs, health advice
- baredine.com/en/baredine-cave/history/ – Baredine: research from 1973, protected 1986, opened 1995
- www.mramornica.eu/hr/spilja-hr.html – Mramornica: dimensions, 14 °C, 30 minutes, opening hours, prices, languages, wine barrels, inscription of 1775
- www.spilja-biserujka.com.hr/spilja_biserujka_hr.html – Biserujka: location, −13 m, 15 °C, cave bear, endemic species, prices, opening hours
- www.tz-fuzine.hr/hr/spilja_vrelo/148/14 – Vrelo: discovery, 300 m, step-free, wheelchair accessible, 25–30 minutes, 8 °C, 25,000 visitors, 2026 tour schedule
- ktd-fuzine.hr/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/ODLUKA-O-CIJENAMA-TURI… – Vrelo: 2026 price decision (€7 / €5.50 from 1 July 2026)
- lokvarka.hr/spilja-lokvarka – Lokvarka: opening hours, prices, 1,179 m, 275 m, 7–9 °C, discovery in 1911
- hr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lokvarka_(%C5%A1pilja) – Lokvarka: position on the motorway, 25 km from Rijeka, coordinates
- cerovacke-spilje.hr/plan-visit/more/90/price-list – Cerovac: prices for one cave and both caves, seasons, payment methods
- cerovacke-spilje.hr/planiraj-posjet/info/raspored-ulazaka-radno… – Cerovac: entry times and opening hours by month
- cerovacke-spilje.hr/plan-visit/more/91/basic-information-about-… – Cerovac: about 700 m each, 50 minutes underground, 7 °C, altitudes, 4 km from Gračac, guiding in English
- www.np-paklenica.hr/hr/novosti-paklenica-hr/item/2151-radno-vri… – Manita peć: July to September daily 10:00–13:00, 570 m, 1.5 hour climb, 9 °C, open since 1937
- np-paklenica.hr/hr/cjenik – Paklenica National Park: park admission 2026, Manita peć supplement €5 / €2.50
- visitdugopolje.com/en/vranjaca-cave – Vranjača: opening hours, prices €10 / €5 cash only, 60 minutes, 365 m, 15 °C, 1903 and 1929, bus 67, coordinates
- www.pakostane.eu/hr/izleti-pakostane/jeskyne-modric – Modrič: 836 m, guided caving trips of 1.5–2 hours, 15 °C
- www.riva-rafting-centar.hr/aktivnosti/Spiljarenje?lang=hr – Modrič: 829 m, no built paths, minimum age 5, price on request
- www.jadrolinija.hr/en/travel/split_%E2%80%93_vis – Jadrolinija line 602 Split–Vis, crossing of about 2 hours 20 minutes; catamaran 9602 Split–Bol–Hvar–Vis in summer
- www.ecb.europa.eu/stats/policy_and_exchange_rates/euro_referenc… – European Central Bank euro reference exchange rate used for every dollar figure on this page: €1 = $1.1460 on 18 September 2026