Susak

Susak is geologically unlike the rest of the Adriatic islands: a limestone base buried under a thick cap of fine wind-blown sand, up to about ninety metres of it, so the whole island is soft ground held together by vegetation. That made it possible to dig terraces and reed windbreaks for vineyards, which covered it densely when the population was near a thousand. Most of that population emigrated to the United States from the 1950s and the island now has well under two hundred permanent residents, though it fills in summer. The local speech is a distinct Chakavian variety that other Croatian speakers find hard to follow, and the women's traditional short pleated skirt is unusual.

What you actually see

• An island of sand - up to ninety metres of wind-blown deposit over rock.
• Reed-fenced vineyard terraces - dug into the soft ground.
• An emigration story - most of the population left for the United States.
• A dialect and dress of its own - both distinct from the mainland.

When to go

June to September, when ferries are frequent. A full day.

Honest expectations

Ferry schedules are limited and a day trip can be tight or impossible off season. There are no cars, and everything is carried. Services are a handful of seasonal places. Beaches are sand, which is rare here and busy for it.

Nearby

Unije is the next island; Mali Losinj is the ferry port.