Best of Bol · Things to visit
Seven things to visit in Bol
Our seven things to visit in Bol are the Dominican monastery and its museum on the Glavica headland, with an altarpiece from Tintoretto's workshop; the Branislav Dešković Art Gallery of 20th-century Croatian art on the harbour; the Baroque parish church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel; the House in a House, an unfinished palace built around a farmer's house; the Small Format Gallery in the old Reading Room; the thousand-year-old Church of St John and Theodore, known locally as the Templar chapel; and the Blaca hermitage, a 16th-century monastery built into a cliff west of Murvica.
Dominican Monastery and Museum
The Dominican monastery on the Glavica headland at the east end of Bol, founded in the 15th century on the site of a late Roman castle. Its church holds an altarpiece of Our Lady with saints from Tintoretto's workshop, and its museum, renovated in 2021, shows archaeological finds, rare ancient coins, Glagolitic books and Venetian paintings.
- Founded in the 15th century on the site of a late Roman castle and a bishop's palace
- An altarpiece of Our Lady with saints from Tintoretto's workshop, and ceiling paintings by the Baroque painter Tripo Kokolja
- A museum renovated in 2021: amphorae, rare ancient coins, Glagolitic books, church silver and Venetian paintings
Branislav Dešković Art Gallery
Bol's art gallery, in a Renaissance-Baroque palace from 1694 on the harbour. It holds more than 400 works, the finest collection of 20th-century Croatian painting and sculpture on any Adriatic island, from Meštrović and Rendić to Job, Vidović and Murtić.
- More than 400 works: the finest collection of 20th-century Croatian art on the Adriatic islands
- Sculpture by Ivan Meštrović, Ivan Rendić, Antun Augustinčić and Branislav Dešković himself
- Paintings by Ignjat Job, Emanuel Vidović, Juraj Plančić and Edo Murtić
Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel
Bol's Baroque parish church, Gospa od Karmela, built between 1668 and 1788 a few steps from the harbour. Look for the carved rose window and the stone angel holding Veronica's veil over the door, then step inside for the ornate Baroque altars and the marble pulpit.
- Built over 120 years, between 1668 and 1788
- A finely carved rose window and a stone angel holding Veronica's veil over the door
- Ornate Baroque altars and a delicate marble pulpit
House in a House (Paloc)
A 19th-century house in Bol whose walls were built around a poor farmer's house when he refused to sell. The brothers building it drowned on the way back from Venice, the house was never finished, and the little house still stands inside it.
- One of the oddest buildings in Dalmatia
- A protected cultural monument
- A five-minute stop with a good story
Small Format Gallery
About 350 works by 260 Croatian painters and sculptors, from Bukovac and Vidović to Murtić and Ana Opalić, on the first floor of the old Croatian Reading Room of 1897 on the waterfront in Bol.
- Modern and contemporary Croatian art in one place
- Bukovac, Vidović, Račko, Murtić and Ana Opalić among the 260 artists
- Paintings, sculpture and stained glass, and about 300 art books
Church of St John and Theodore
The oldest church in Bol, known locally as the Templar chapel: a tiny stone church about a thousand years old, beside the Dominican monastery on the Glavica headland. It was built over a late Roman building, and traces of early frescoes and an old water cistern lie at its foot.
- The oldest church in Bol, about a thousand years old
- Built over a late Roman building, with traces of early frescoes
- Right beside the Dominican monastery and its museum, at the end of the old town walk
Blaca Hermitage
A 16th-century monastery built into a cliff in a remote valley west of Murvica by Glagolitic priests fleeing the Ottomans. It is now a museum: the priests' rooms and kitchen, their library, clocks and weapons, and the instruments of its last priests, who were astronomers, left much as they were in 1963.
- Built into a cliff by Glagolitic priests in the 16th century; the first church dates from 1588
- A library, clocks, old weapons and the astronomy instruments of the Miličević priests
- Rooms kept much as the last priest left them in 1963
Side by side
| Pick | Where | Best for | Prices |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dominican Monastery and Museum | Glavica headland, east end of Bol | An hour of art and history, with sea views | Ask when you book |
| Branislav Dešković Art Gallery | Bol harbour | An hour out of the sun with Croatia's great painters | Ask when you book |
| Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel | Bol old town, near the harbour | A cool five minutes, or evening Mass with the town | Ask when you book |
| House in a House (Paloc) | Bol old town | A five-minute stop with a story | Ask when you book |
| Small Format Gallery | Bol waterfront | An hour out of the sun with Croatian art | Ask when you book |
| Church of St John and Theodore | Glavica, beside the Dominican monastery | A quiet stop on the walk to the monastery | Ask when you book |
| Blaca Hermitage | Blaca valley, west of Murvica | A half-day adventure off the beaten track | Ask when you book |
Six of them are an easy walk from the harbour: our old town walk takes you past them all and ends at the Dominican monastery. The Blaca hermitage is a half-day trip by sea or by road; our day trips guide explains both ways in.
How we chose
To be our pick for things to visit, a place must meet this test: worth the trip, with a story or a collection you will not find anywhere else, and free or cheap to see. It must also pass the checks every pick passes, set out in how we choose.
You will also find these picks in our guides: Old town and sights.