Drvenik Veli Island

Drvenik Veli, also called Drvenik Veliki, is a Croatian island administered as part of the City of Trogir, in Split-Dalmatia County. It lies in the central Dalmatian archipelago, northwest of the island of Šolta, separated from the Trogir mainland by a narrow channel. The island should not be confused with the mainland town of Drvenik near Makarska, further south along the coast — despite sharing a name, the two places have no administrative connection.

The island covers roughly 12 square kilometers, making it one of the larger islands in the Trogir group, though its population has fallen sharply over the past century. The 2021 census recorded 170 permanent residents in the island's only settlement, also called Drvenik Veli, down from over a thousand inhabitants in the early 20th century — a decline typical of small Adriatic islands as younger generations moved to the mainland for work.

Local and tourist-history sources trace the island's first settlement to the 15th and 16th centuries, when shepherds and other migrants — some from the Trogir hinterland, others from the mainland town of Drvenik near Makarska — are said to have arrived after Ottoman incursions disrupted life on the coast. A further wave of settlers from mainland Drvenik is recorded in the 17th century. These accounts rest mainly on local tradition rather than formal archival documentation, so they are worth reading as inherited history rather than settled fact.

The island's best-known feature is the Krknjaši Blue Lagoon, a shallow bay of turquoise water on the island's eastern side, sheltered by two small islets, Krknjaš Veli and Krknjaš Mali. The sandy seabed and pebble beach at Krknjaši draw day-trippers throughout the summer and rank among the most photographed spots in the Trogir area. Nearby Kokošinje beach offers a quieter alternative along the same stretch of coast.

There is no bridge to Drvenik Veli. The island is reached by Jadrolinija's car ferry line 606, which connects Trogir's Soline port to Drvenik Mali and Drvenik Veli several times a day, or by private boat. For visitors without their own vessel, the lagoon is best reached during a Trogir gulet cruise, which can combine a stop at Krknjaši with other islands in the archipelago in a single day on the water.

Fishing, small-scale agriculture, and tourism remain the main sources of income for the island's remaining residents, most of whom live clustered around the harbor of the Drvenik Veli settlement.