Frequently asked questions

Hvar Away exclusively rents villas – that is, holiday homes or vacation houses. We do not currently offer any apartments or rooms.

We are full-time Hvar island locals and aficionados, and only offer villas on Hvar at this time.

All of our villas are rented on the basis of the entire villa, not based on occupancy. Therefore we don’t offer any standard discounts for groups. However, our Group Getaways villa collection features some neighbouring villas able to be booked together at a discounted price (compared to the standard rate when booking them separately). Feel free to get in touch with us and we can work with you to find a set of properties and a package that meets your goals.

Availability varies from property to property, as do cold weather amenities. We love the off-season on Hvar and would be happy to help you find a great rental for your needs. Just get in touch.

How we love our furry pals! When browsing our villas, keep a look out for villas marked as “Pet Friendly” in the Amenities section on each villa’s page. This is a selection of homes specially suited to animals. Before you book, please contact us with the details of your pet or pets. We will confirm that the property in question can accommodate them, and review any additional conditions and charges.

Please don’t try to smuggle Mr. Snuggles! That would constitute a breach of contract and result in a very bad experience for you and your four-legged companion.

If you are having trouble finding a villa that suits you, please just get in touch and tell us about your beloved companion. We can suggest some properties that would be a good fit.

Probably not. Each villa in our collection has its own house rules, which are listed on its individual page, and repeated in the confirmation email that you will receive when you book. These rules often include prohibitions on parties, because time and experience have shown that large social gatherings very frequently result in damage and unhappy neighbours.

If you have any questions or concerns about the rules for your rental, just reach out. We can provide clarity or find a property better suited to your needs. And if you know that you want to host a celebration or have other plans that might not work for all property rentals, please get in touch – there are a few villas in our collection in which parties are permitted under special circumstances.

Our team – they live on Hvar full-time, often visiting our villas and continuing to explore the new arrivals on Hvar – whether that be restaurants, bars, or activities. You'll always be able to speak to someone who knows your preferred villas like the back of their hand! Just write to hello@hvaraway.com or give us a call.

The maximum occupancy is clearly stated on each villa's page on our website and is broken down into a maximum adult capacity and a maximum child capacity. For example, a villa may have an overall maximum capacity of 12, but a maximum adult capacity of 10 – the extra two children may be accommodated on sofas only suitable for small children. This information will always be specified on the villa page – but if you’re unsure, just reach out to us.

Prices and availability for our villas are shown on each individual villa page. Simply use the calendar function on the right-hand side of the page to see which days are free. Select your desired stay period, add the number of guests and composition of your group, and the total price will be displayed. You can then either book the villa online, send a request or enquiry, or give us a call.

For complete information specific to your villa of interest, please refer to the individual villa’s page on our website: each has a full list of included amenities and the "What's Included" section outlines what is included in the cost of the villa, and what is not. Below we’ve provided a more general overview of what’s included in our villas.

Check out our How To Book page for full details.

Most of our villas have flexible arrival and departure days, i.e. you can check in and out on whichever day of the week you prefer (provided that you are meeting the minimum stay requirements during your stay period). However, there are some that during the summer months are only rented weekly from Saturday to Saturday. This will be specified on the individual villa page, and you will receive an error message on the calendar if you attempt to select check in or check out dates that do not adhere to these restrictions. There may be some flexibility for some properties, so if you have a special request, please let us know and we will do our best to accommodate you.

The vast majority of our villas are perfect for families with children. When we feel they are not, we make sure to include it in the Helpful Notes section at the on each villa page. The villas we recommend as family villas in our Away With Loved Ones collection have been tried and tested by numerous families with children. We will, of course, give you as much guidance as possible in this regard should it be a concern for you - just let us know your requirements.

We take accessibility very seriously and believe that limited mobility or disability should not be a restriction when on holiday. However, every villa in our portfolio is different and some are better suited for guests with mobility impairments than others. Please contact us with your individual concerns and requirements.

No, we are also happy to arrange a series of add-on services for you. We call these Experiences and they include in-villa chefs and masseurs, private drivers and boat transfers from the mainland, rock climbing excursions, boat tours and charters, private sunset dinners, and much more. These Experiences include practical assistance with your trip. Need to rent a car? Just tell us which ferry port you want to collect it from. Want us to stock your villa with groceries before you arrive? Just send us the shopping list.

The sooner that you can notify us about your ideas, the better we can help you. We work with the very best service providers on the island, and their availability dwindles as the season approaches.

It is a condition of booking with Hvar Away that you take out sufficient travel insurance. Many credit card companies include holiday insurance as do other more general insurance policies, so you should first check these. Please see our villa rental term and conditions for more information.

Please check your spam folder. If a written confirmation of your booking is not there, contact us as soon as possible so that we can ensure your payment went through correctly. As soon as pay your booking deposit (or the full amount if your stay is less than 60 days away), your dates are immediately reserved and you should receive an email confirmation right away, followed shortly by an email with your unique Reservation Confirmation document.

Please contact us right away. If you do not notify us of any issues or simply do not check your written Reservation Confirmation, we may not be able to make all necessary amendments in time.

Yes. As always, earlier is better. With sufficient notice you may cancel your reservation for a partial refund. Please see our full villa rental terms and conditions for our full cancellation policy. We understand that vacation plans can fall apart, sometimes due to very difficult circumstances. However, given the brevity and intensity of Hvar’s summer season, we unfortunately cannot offer any exceptions to this policy.

In most cases, yes. Simply write to us with full details of your substitute, and we will provide written confirmation of the switch. Full details of our amendment policy can be found in our villa rental terms and conditions.

Whenever possible, we will work with you to amend the dates of your reservation. Just contact us. If pre-existing reservations and minimum stay requirements make it impossible to find another set of dates that suits you and your party, you can transfer your reservation to someone else or you may need to cancel your booking. Full details of our amendment policy in relation to changing dates can be found in our villa rental terms and conditions.

Yes, just send us an email with your new total party size. Of course, the number of guests cannot exceed the maximum capacity of the property. This maximum includes babies, kids, and last-minute drop-ins. Property capacities are set by law, so we enforce them quite strictly. Please don’t test the rules and ruin your holiday! Full details of our amendment policy in relation to party size can be found in our villa rental terms and conditions.

The closest airport to Hvar is Split (SPU) on Croatia’s mainland. From there, it’s a 30-minute drive down to Split Ferry Port where you can board a ferry or catamaran to Hvar. Alternatively, you can fly into Dubrovnik (DBV), where you can take a longer (passenger-only) catamaran to Hvar – or rent a car and drive up the coast to reach a different small ferry port that connects with Hvar. We’re always at your disposal to assist with travel planning, so please don’t hesitate to reach out to us for detailed information and tailored advice.

For our villas that are located outside of the main towns of Hvar, Stari Grad, and Jelsa – and are therefore not easily accessible by any other means – we strongly advise you to rent a car. Even if you staying in a villa in town, renting a car affords you the greatest flexibility to explore this beautiful island on your own terms. Public transport in the form of the island’s bus network is often not readily available or reliable. If you prefer not to drive throughout your stay, we’re more than happy to arrange a private driver for you, just let us know.

We will be glad to assist you with arranging your rental car on the island. Simply inform us of your vehicle requirements and preferences, where and when you would like to collect it, and we’ll sort out the rest.

Well in advance of your stay, you will receive your villa guidebook that contains detailed directions of how to get to your villa. If you are having problems on the day, you can always call us and we will assist you with navigation. There will be someone waiting for you at your villa - either a member of the Hvar Away team or the property owner/manager. For our more remote villas, we will arrange with you a meeting spot on the road and drive with you to the villa. Once you arrive, you will get a complete introduction to the house and be provided with a set of keys.

Check-in at your villa is possible either from 4:00pm or 5.00pm onwards – depending on your villa, please check the villa’s web page – on the first day of your stay. On receiving your flight and/or ferry details, we will inform you of your estimated check in time at the villa, taking into consideration the normal time required to pick up your rental car (if applicable) and drive to the villa. We would be most grateful if you could confirm this estimated check in time (or let us know a different time if you plan to do some grocery shopping or stop for a meal on the way) so that we can ensure someone will be at the villa to welcome you at an agreed time. Should you be delayed on the day of arrival, please let us know at your earliest convenience.

Travel schedules can be challenging on a number of levels. If you need or would prefer an altered check in or out time, please let us know as soon as possible. Due to the intensity of the season, we unfortunately cannot guarantee our ability to fulfil such requests, but we will do everything we can to accommodate you. If there are no other guests arriving on the day that you are checking out, and the owner does not need the house for their own purposes, it may be possible to extend your check out time by a couple of hours.

Special check-in/check-out times may incur an additional fee. If that is the case, we will notify you, and you will have the opportunity to accept the charge and move forward, or refuse it and stick with your original schedule.

If you are unsure of your check-in/check-out times, please refer to your written Reservation Confirmation, which you received immediately after making your booking.

We offer a pre-stocked groceries service so you can arrive to your villa with a full fridge and pantry! Just let us know if that’s something you’d like and we’ll send you the ordering form so you can specify what we should pick up from the supermarket for you.

Washing machine won’t start? Oven on the fritz? Shower problems? Please call us as soon as you’re aware of any issues at your villa. We will follow up with you immediately. Matt (our co-founder and expert tradesman) oversees property maintenance and is available 24/7 to deal with any issues.

We personally choose and inspect all of our properties to guarantee that they meet our standards and so that we can craft meticulous and accurate descriptions. If we haven’t taken the photos ourselves, we ensure that they are an accurate portrayal of the property in its current state. So with us, what you see and read is precisely what you'll experience, without embellishments or errors.

Spilled a glass of wine on the sofa? Dropped a plate? Knocked over a lamp? It happens to the best of us. Please notify us by phone or email as soon as you are able. We will send someone over if needed or advise you as to what it will cost to repair or replace the damaged item in the case of significant damages.

Because accidents are part of life, all guests are required to provide authorisation of a Damages Deposit at least 48 hours before check-in, which will be used to cover the costs of any such damage. If damages exceed the value of the deposit, you will be expected to cover the difference.

Almost all of our guests receive a full refund of their Damages Deposit, however each property undergoes a thorough inspection within 24 hours of a guest’s departure so we can ensure that everything is in place for future visitors. If something is missing or not as it should be, we will notice! So please just keep us in the loop. Intentional property damage or removal of items from the property is another matter and will result in an unpleasant series of repercussions outlined in our villa rental terms and conditions.

Your satisfaction is our first priority at Hvar Away. If you have any concerns whatsoever with your villa such as insufficient cleaning, damage, or other irregularities, please bring it to our attention as soon as possible by phone or email. We will immediately work to resolve the issue.