Boat Rental Mljet — 2027 Guide: National Park Lakes, Odysseus Cave, Saplunara and Prices

Mljet is a narrow island between Korčula and Dubrovnik, about 37 km long and mostly only a few kilometres wide, covered in Aleppo pine and holm oak forest. In the west lies Mljet National Park with its saltwater lakes and the islet of St Mary (Sveta Marija), in the southeast the sandy beaches of Saplunara, and between them a steep south coast with a sea cave that legend links to Odysseus. By road the island is slow to cross, while by boat you can join both ends in a single day. This guide explains where to go by boat around Mljet, what is worth knowing about the park and how much a boat costs.

Mljet National Park: Veliko and Malo jezero

The western part of the island is a national park. At its heart are Veliko and Malo jezero (the Great and Small Lake), two saltwater inlets surrounded by forest and connected to the open sea by a narrow channel. Their water is calm and in summer warmer than the sea along the coast.

• St Mary (Sveta Marija): an islet in the middle of Veliko jezero with a Benedictine monastery and church. The park's own small boat takes visitors there.
• Pomena and Polače: two bays on the north coast, the main entrances to the park from the sea. In Polače, right by the shore, stand the remains of a large Roman palace.
• Walking paths and bikes: trails and a road run around the lakes, and by Malo jezero there is a small bridge over the channel between the two lakes.

Entry to the park requires a ticket. Special rules apply to navigation, anchoring and staying with a boat in national park waters, and the lakes are not explored by your own boat but on foot, by bike or on the park's boat. Leave the boat in Pomena or Polače and set aside a few hours for the lakes.

The south coast and Odysseus Cave

The south side of Mljet faces the open sea. The coast is steep, with cliffs, few villages and little access from land.

• Odysseus Cave near Babino Polje: a sea cave with a collapsed roof and an opening to the sea, through which swimmers swim inside. According to legend, Mljet is the island of the nymph Calypso, who kept Odysseus there for seven years.
• Sutmiholjska: a bay with a beach on the south coast.
• Cliffs and smaller coves between Babino Polje and the southeastern cape are good for swimming from the boat when the sea is calm.

Saplunara and the sandy southeast

At the southeastern tip of the island are Velika and Mala Saplunara, sandy beaches with pine forest right down to the sea, a rarity in this part of the Adriatic, about 20 NM by sea from Pomena. The water is shallow and light, so it is best to leave the boat at anchor further from the beach. Nearby is Blace, a shallow sandy bay near Korita.

In the northeast is Okuklje, a bay well sheltered from the open sea, with a few houses and konobas (taverns) along the shore.

Longer trips: Korčula and Lastovo

Distances are approximate:

• Korčula (about 12–15 NM from western Mljet across the Mljet Channel): Korčula town, Lumbarda and the islets in front of them. For Badija, Lumbarda and the Korčula coves, see our nautical guide to the Korčula archipelago.
• Lastovo (about 20–25 NM from western Mljet, open sea): the island and the Lastovo Archipelago Nature Park. This is a route for the Navaris 7M and for a day with a calm sea.
• Pelješac lies across the Mljet Channel, about 4–5 NM from Mljet's north coast.

For the Elaphiti Islands, Cavtat and sailing around Dubrovnik itself, see our nautical guide to Dubrovnik.

Our boats on Mljet

Both boats are new Navaris speedboats from 2026, with GPS and a Simrad chartplotter, a fridge and a Bluetooth speaker. They can be hired to drive yourself or with a skipper.

• Navaris 5M: 5 m, 60 hp engine, up to six people, €220 a day. View listing.
• Navaris 7M: 7 m, 150 hp engine, up to ten people, €340 a day. View listing.

The Navaris 5M is enough for Pomena and Polače, Odysseus Cave and the coves around the island. For Saplunara and back in the same day, for Korčula and for Lastovo the Navaris 7M is the better choice, as its stronger engine and longer hull handle the waves of the open sea more easily.

To drive either boat yourself you need a boat licence.

Booking works like this: you send an inquiry, we check the date with the owner, you pay us the reservation, and you pay the rest to the owner on the day of the rental.

How to get to Mljet

• The ferry from Prapratno on Pelješac runs to Sobra on the north coast, in about 45 minutes.
• Catamarans from Dubrovnik run to Sobra and Polače, and in summer also to Pomena.
• On the island, the main road connects Pomena in the west with Saplunara in the southeast.

Season and wind

• June–September is the main season, with the most boats in July and August.
• May and October bring fewer boats in the bays and quieter anchorages.
• The maestral blows from the northwest from around midday in summer, so the morning is best for a longer run, for example to Saplunara or Korčula.
• The jugo raises waves on the south, open side of the island. The north coast and the Mljet Channel are then calmer.

Boat rental on Mljet with Crystalium Booker

See both boats on the Mljet location page or send us your dates and number of people via the contact page, and we will suggest a boat. Do you rent out a boat on Mljet? List it with us.