Morinjsand and fine pebble · 165 m · water ExcellentA 165-metre strip of sand and grey pebble at the corner of the bay where a cold stream comes out of the karst, with two campsites behind it and the mills restaurant above the road.Morinj or Risan?
Two beaches 4.5 km apart, measured the same way. Morinj and Risan side by side, on the nine things that decide which one your afternoon should go to.
Morinjsand and fine pebble · 165 m · water ExcellentA 165-metre strip of sand and grey pebble at the corner of the bay where a cold stream comes out of the karst, with two campsites behind it and the mills restaurant above the road.
Risanpebble · 200 m · water ExcellentPebble coves either side of the harbour of the oldest town on the bay, with the Orjen peaks reflected in the flat water and a Roman mosaic of the god of sleep 300 m from the shore.The short answer
Choose Morinj for
- sand underfoot rather than pebble
- water that stays shallow a long way out
- shade that is not rented
- arriving by road
Choose Risan for
- pebble, and the clearer water that comes with it
- real depth close to shore
- nothing built on it
Measure by measure
| Measure | Morinj | Risan |
|---|---|---|
| Surface | sand and fine pebble | pebble |
| Entry | gentle | moderate |
| Depth | shallow | deepens quickly |
| Shade | trees and umbrellas | none |
| Character | organised and free sections | wild |
| Length | 165 m | 200 m |
| Latest water | Excellent | Excellent |
| Crowd | quiet | quiet |
| Getting there | by road | on foot |
Bold marks a measure where the two differ.
Each in our own words
Morinj
Morinj is the one place in the Risan basin with something like a beach: OpenStreetMap tags it sand, the hub calls it grey pebbles in a shaded wooded bend, and both agree it is quiet and shallow — the family swim of this end of the bay. The springs under the surface keep the water cold at the stream mouths all summer, which is the point in August. Entry is free, loungers cost a few euros in season, Kamp Naluka is at the river mouth, and Ćatovića Mlini is in the mill gardens above the road.
The water is cold where the streams come in even in high summer, and the paid parking by the beach fills in July and August; we hold no toilet, shower or water-quality facts for the sector.
Risan
Risan is a swim between two other things: the Roman villa floors with their Hypnos mosaic, and a coffee on the shore road. The bathing is modest — pebble and concrete spots either side of the harbour rather than a beach — but the water at the head of the bay is calm, the mountains stand straight up out of it, and almost nobody else is in. Come in May, June or September, when the mosaics are yours alone.
The bathing spots are small and unmanaged, we hold no water-quality result for Risan, and the two sources we have disagree on the mosaic ticket (€2 or €5) — read the board.