Discover Drasnice

Drasnice brings together climbing and local history in many different ways. When looking for hotels, a simple question can provide a starting point: would you like to focus your stay more on the climbing area’s routes or on archaeological and ecclesiastical heritage?

Climbing and landscape

The Drašnice climbing area has 22 routes of varying difficulty. The lowest route starts at an elevation of 300 m and offers a view over Klokun Bay. The number of routes indicates the size of the area; their grades show that they do not all pose the same challenge. These are two distinct points of reference for planning. The starting point of the lowest route adds a specific elevation and a view of the bay.

Early traces and local history

Drasnice is first mentioned in a Turkish document dating from 1523. The material cultural remains in the village are dated to more than 8,000 years ago. Medieval stećci and Roman sarcophagus remains in Drasnice also attest to earlier settlement. These dates relate to different kinds of evidence: the finds reach far back in time, while 1523 marks the first mention in a document. Together, they offer a glimpse into several eras of local history without claiming an unbroken chronology.

Churches and architectural history

The Church of St. George and the Immaculate Conception in Kraj was built between 1971 and 1976 on the foundations of an older church. It contains an 18th-century oil painting on wood depicting the Madonna and Child, which was restored in 2002. The cemetery around the church includes a medieval stećci necropolis and Roman sarcophagi; these remains are protected by the state. Architectural history, painting, and archaeological heritage are brought together here in one place.

The old parish Church of St. George in Selo is a single-nave stone building dating from 1891. Its roof and bell gable were restored in 2001. On Kolednik, the Chapel of St. Stephen was built in 1466; today it survives as a ruin. The three buildings therefore represent distinctly different periods: a medieval chapel, a late-19th-century parish church, and the church in Kraj, built on older foundations in the 1970s. This comparison makes Drasnice’s different architectural histories tangible rather than assigning all the evidence to a single era.

Općina Podgora as the wider regional setting

In the wider destination of Općina Podgora, the municipality of Podgora lies at the foot of the Biokovo Mountains and stretches partly along the Makarska coast. Among the region’s distinct points of interest is Troje gomile above Podgora: this prehistoric site comprises four burial mounds that also served as observation posts. The Baroque Church of Sv. Tekle in Podgora was built in 1626 on Cape Sv. Tekle. In the wider destination of Općina Podgora, the Ijak chapel-lighthouse stands on Cape Ijak in Podgora and formerly served as a lighthouse. These examples add heritage sites, each with its own history, to the picture of the wider destination.

Discover more destinations: Gornje Igrane, Igrane, Podgora, Zivogosce

Return to the wider travel overview: Općina Podgora.