Originally Posted by
sinfonia
a) How do you find a reputable sobe or apartment (Zadar and peninsula are)? I see many listed on booking.com and other websites but know nothing about many of them so don't know how to discern what would be good Some tour guides say sobes are regulated and listed on certain websites (though I don't know what those official websites are) and other tour guides say they are unregulated. Should we feel comfortable with something on booking.com or not necessarily? Also, Rick Steve's guides say to book directly with the sobe instead of through a site, but we have no idea how to do such a thing as most are only listed on third party sites.
It is regulated, but I'm not sure if there is a central registry. If I were you, I would go for the booking sites. Look at airbnb as well - in general, any community-driven site where you can see reviews of actual people who stayed there will be a good starting point.
Also, every village/town has a Tourist Board office, where you can simply walk in and ask for available accommodation. They have a pool of non-occupied places to direct you to. However, there is no screening for these places, so you may end up in a less nice a place than if you looked upfront.
Furthermore, in some places you will simply see people with a board "sobe" standing roadside. Those are the most unreliable as far as accommodation and host quality goes.
d) Any recommendations for restaurants in Mali Ston and also on the way back from Kotor Bay near Cavtat or Konavle area? We love the idea of local farmhouses and whatnot.
Konavoski Dvori for the way back
e) We were unsuccessful renting sailboat in Split or Makarska or Zadar because they tend to rent longer (minimum one day but usually minimum of a week) so found a charter company that does rent for half-days but don't have skippers available the day we are there. Is there a trick to hiring a local sailor outside of using a charter company?
Boka Kotorska is quite a boring place to sail, actually. If you're planning on going sailing, do it from Split or Zadar.
Do you have a EU-issued skipper / boat leader license? Some of them are recognized by Croatian authorities as being valid. For Italians, that would be Patente per imbarcazione da diporto issued by the port authority, I'm guessing you're both Italian cizitens?
EDIT: I see that you are Amtrak basic, so you may be a US citizen. These are recognized by Croatian authorities:
- Basic Coastal Cruising (American Sailing Associaton)
- Basic Keelboat (US Sailing Association)
- Bareboat Chartering (ASA)
- Basic Cruising (USSA)
- Bareboat Cruising (USSA)
- Advanced Coastal Cruising (ASA)
- Coastal Navigation (USSA)
- Coastal Passagemaking (USSA)
Along with the US licenses, you need to have a radio operators license, since any sailboats you rent will have a VHF radio. I'm not sure if you get it along with your sailing certification in the US...
f) Will we find roadside goodies for sale when we pass through Metkovic?
Actually, mandarines picking season starts in October, so you might be in luck!