Viška Regatta
Croatia's biggest offshore weekend — and an island that stays up for it.
Three days, three races, and a fleet that fills the harbour at Vis until there is nowhere left to raft up. Croatian sailing has been organising its autumn around this weekend for more than eight decades.
What the race actually is
It runs over three days. Friday is the offshore leg from Split to Vis, out through the Split, Brač, Hvar and Vis channels. Saturday is a triangle course off Vis. Sunday brings the fleet back to Split. Boats race in ORC and Open divisions, and the ORC result decides the overall winner.
Why it matters in Croatia
Croatian media routinely describe it as the largest and most prestigious offshore regatta on the Croatian Adriatic, and it closes the Split Sailing Festival. Recent editions have drawn more than 170 boats and over a thousand sailors, with crews arriving from Italy, Slovenia, Montenegro and Austria.
It can be genuinely fast
The course record stands at 2 hours 14 minutes, set in 2021 by the TP52 Generali in a storm bura — an average of over 15 knots with peaks above 20. Most years are gentler than that, but the bura is part of the deal in October.
The race at a glance
- Route
- Split → Vis (Friday), triangle course off Vis (Saturday), Vis → Split (Sunday)
- Distance
- Roughly 30 nautical miles per offshore leg, around 60 over the weekend
- Format
- Three races over three days; ORC and Open divisions
- Typically held
- A Friday-to-Sunday weekend in mid to late October
- Fleet
- 170+ boats, over 1,000 sailors
- Organiser
- JK Labud, Split, with JK Vis and the City of Vis
- Our boat
- Elan E6 Performance
- Experience needed
- Helpful but not required — the legs are coastal and daylight
Dates move from year to year and are set by the organiser, jklabud.hr. Ask us for the dates of the current season.
You sail the boat. You don't just ride on it.
A small crew, real jobs
We keep the crew small enough that everyone steers, trims and stands a watch. Nobody spends the race sitting on the rail wondering what is going on.
Coached, not just chartered
Michal has sailed 30,000 nautical miles and raced at world-championship level. You get a skipper who explains what he is doing and why, before and during the race.
The paperwork is ours
Entry, rating, berth, briefings and the logistics around the event are organised for you. You arrive, you sail, you go to the prizegiving.
Price and exactly what is included depend on the season and the boat. Tell us which race you are interested in and we will send the current details.
Ask about Viška Regatta
Places are limited and go early. Send us a line and we will come back with dates, price and what is on the boat.
Questions we get asked
Is this a hard race for a first-timer?
It is one of the friendlier ways into offshore racing. The legs are sailed in daylight along a well-known coast, and there is a night in Vis in the middle of it. The weather in October is the variable — a bura can make it a serious day.
What is Vis like?
It was a closed military island until 1989, which is why it stayed unspoiled. For one weekend a year the harbour is solid with masts and the whole town is out.
Do we sleep on board?
Yes — the boat is the accommodation for the weekend, in Split before the start and in Vis on Saturday night.