Losinj Croatia: the quiet island, the journey from Pula and a hosted week

Lošinj is a pine-wooded island in Croatia's northern Adriatic, about three hours from Pula airport by road and ferry, and one of the country's less known corners. Spice Escapes takes a hosted group there on Croatian Chillout, a half-board week at Hotel Punta beside the harbour town of Veli Lošinj, with the journey, the meals and the company arranged.

Read on for the island, the journey, the two towns and the week. Croatian Chillout is 7 nights, 1 May 2027 – 8 May 2027. See the dates and book online on the Croatian Chillout page.

Why Lošinj is the quiet choice: pine woods, clear coves and a health resort past

The Mali Lošinj Tourist Board calls Lošinj the island of vitality, and says health tourism has been offered here for more than 125 years. It counts more than 200 days of sunshine and 1,018 plant species, and says the pine forests and medicinal herbs make an open-air aromatherapy. That is what the week is for: time to unwind.

The coast is deeply indented, with low, easily reached shores. The water is clear and often tinted emerald by the pines that grow right down to the sea.

Getting there from Pula: about three hours by road and ferry, arranged for you

You land at Pula, in Istria. The transfer is long, but the scenery changes as you go, and a ferry crossing breaks it with a chance to stretch your legs and get a drink.

The tourist board's route from Pula takes the ferry from Brestova to Porozina on the island of Cres, then 83km by road to Mali Lošinj. Lošinj is joined to Cres at Osor, where the drawbridge lifts twice a day to let boats through.

Mali Lošinj and Veli Lošinj: a bronze athlete from the seabed and a tower against pirates

Mali Lošinj is about 3km from the hotel, a walk or cycle away. On its waterfront, the Museum of Apoxyomenos is built around one exhibit: a bronze statue of a young Greek athlete that lay on the seabed for nearly two thousand years, until a Belgian tourist found it 45 metres down. The museum tells its story through sound, scent and taste as well as sight.

Veli Lošinj is right beside the hotel. Its round Tower went up in the 15th century, in the first decades of Venetian rule, to protect the town from pirate raids, and now tells the story of the island's seafaring past.

The week at Hotel Punta: half board, a seawater pool and a host with the group

Hotel Punta calls itself a health and fitness hotel, with a spa, an infinity seawater pool, a gym with a panoramic view and a tennis academy. Breakfast and dinner are included, so there is no hunting for a restaurant each evening.

The itinerary is a suggested plan rather than a timetable:

• Rovenska and Punta beaches, then the coastal path to quieter coves.
• The boat day round the archipelago.
• Mali Lošinj and its museum, then a swim at Čikat Bay, with paddleboards and kayaks to hire.
• Pine woods up Saint Ivan Hill for views over the Adriatic, then Balvanida and Javorna bays.
• A local ferry to another island, or swimming, reading and a long lunch.
• Veli Lošinj and a little souvenir shopping before the early start home.

Jackie Whyte hosts the week and travels with the group. Most people on a Spice holiday book on their own. Groups are around fifteen people, and some reach twenty.

Croatian Chillout is from £869, and a room to yourself carries a single supplement. New to group travel? Read our guide for first-time solo travellers, or see our solo holidays for the over 50s.

Two days on the water: a boat round the archipelago and a ferry to a neighbouring island

One full day goes to a small boat trip round the Lošinj archipelago, stopping to swim in secluded coves and to snorkel. These waters are known for bottlenose dolphins, so there is a chance of seeing some, never a promise.

The island-hopping day is looser: you catch a local ferry from Mali Lošinj and keep an eye on the last boat back. The tourist board lists sailings to the neighbouring islands of Ilovik, Susak and Unije.

If the Lošinj dates do not suit: a week in Crete, or a reading house in Cantabria

Crete Discovery is a Greek island week: 7 nights, 5 Oct 2027 – 12 Oct 2027, from £1,499, hosted by Lauren Fawkes. It has two bases only, Aghios Nikolaos then Rethymno, half board throughout, and a home-cooked lunch at a family taverna on the Lasithi Plateau.

For a quiet house and a good book, Read, Relax & Restore: A Week in Spain's Green North is 7 nights in Cantabria, 6 Jun 2027 – 13 Jun 2027, from £969, hosted by Jackie Whyte. Every room is sole occupancy, and breakfast, a light lunch and dinner are provided.

See all our holidays in Croatia and chillout and relaxation holidays, or read about spa weeks with a host.

Questions people ask

How do you get to Lošinj from the UK?

On Croatian Chillout you fly into Pula, and an arranged transfer of about three hours, with a ferry crossing, takes you to the hotel. Lošinj has its own airport 6km from Mali Lošinj, but the tourist board lists panoramic and taxi flights there, plus weekly flights to Germany.

Is Lošinj a quiet island?

We chose it as one of the less known parts of Croatia, for a week that is a true chance to unwind. The days go on walks through the pine woods, swims in coves and a boat round the archipelago.

Are the beaches on Lošinj sandy?

Mostly not. The tourist board describes them as rocky, with patches of white pebbles, and a seabed that gradually turns to sand. Our itinerary suggests packing water shoes.

Do you need a car on Lošinj?

Not for this week. Mali Lošinj is about 3km from Hotel Punta, a walk or cycle away, and the coastal path and Saint Ivan Hill are walks. The island-hopping day uses the local ferry from Mali Lošinj.

See the dates and book Croatian Chillout online

See the dates and book online on the Croatian Chillout page, which carries the live price and the Book button. Availability: 13 places left.

Jackie Whyte hosts the week. To ask about the transfer, the hotel or coming on your own before you book, use our contact page or Rosie, the chat on the holiday page.