How to book Small ship cruises with us- Discover Croatia AU

Q: What are your business hours?

Generally 11am–7pm Monday to Friday (Australian Eastern Standard Time). This overlap with both the Australian and Croatian business day means we can get your requests answered faster. We're happy to make an appointment outside these hours if needed — just let us know a time that works for you.

Q: How do I contact you from overseas?

Call or WhatsApp us on +61 2 9212 1507, or email res@discovercroatia.com.au. If you're in a different time zone, please include your email address and available contact times so we don't call at a bad hour. Please also include your full phone number with country code and let us know whether it's a mobile or landline. You can also use our Contact Us page.

How Booking Works

Browse our cruises, tours, and ships on the website. Prices for available departures are usually listed on each cruise and tour page. If no prices are shown, that departure is either sold out, availability is too limited to display, or next season’s pricing hasn’t been released yet.

Still deciding?

If you’re still working out which cruise suits your dates, budget or travel plans, we’re happy to help — that’s what we’re here for. Call, WhatsApp or email us and we’ll talk you through the options, suggest itineraries, and help you narrow things down. There’s no need to check availability on a specific cruise at this stage; we can do that once you’ve decided what you’d like to book.

A note on availability: We do not check exact cabin availability as a general enquiry, but we can usually tell you if something is fully sold out. A cabin isn’t simply “booked” or “available” — at any given moment, several cabins may be held on option for other clients, just as you might want one held for you. Those cabins aren’t sold, but they’re not available either. Until the entire cruise is listed as sold out, there is no true availability picture — only a snapshot that can change minutes later. The time difference with Croatia means that if we check without asking for the option to be held in your name, that cabin can be gone even 5 minutes later. Only once the option is held for you is the availability definite. Saying something is available without it already being on hold for you leads to disappointment more often than not, which is why we only “check availability” once you’re ready to proceed with booking something — see the booking steps below.

Ready to book? Here’s the process:

Step 1: Let us know what you’re looking for

Contact us with your preferred cruise or tour, your dates, and the full names of everyone travelling. If you’re not sure which cruise is right, we’ll help you narrow it down before we check anything.

Step 2: We request an option from the Croatian operator

When you’re ready, we contact the operator and request an option — a temporary hold on a specific cabin in your name. This is how we check availability. There is no way to check separately, because availability is only accurate at the exact moment the operator replies, which is overnight in Australia. Without an option in place, the cabin can be sold to another client anywhere in the world minutes after the operator confirms it’s available — before we’ve even seen the reply.

An option is not a booking. It is an obligation-free hold that costs nothing. We don’t ask for your credit card details, and we don’t take any payment at this stage. The option simply parks the cabin in your name so it can’t be sold out from under you while you decide. If you don’t proceed, the option lapses automatically. We sometimes request options on 2 or 3 different cruises for the same client so they can compare before choosing.

This process typically takes 1 business day. Croatian offices are closed on weekends and holidays, so requests made on a Friday may not get a response until Monday or Tuesday.

Step 3: We send you a Provisional Booking

Once the option is confirmed, we’ll send you a Provisional Booking email with all the details and an expiry date (usually within 5 days, sometimes shorter if the cruise is close to sold out or the departure date is near). This is where you review what’s on offer and decide if you’d like to go ahead. If you don’t proceed, the option simply lapses and the cabin goes back on sale. No cost, no penalty.

Step 4: Payment

If you’d like to go ahead, payment must be received before the expiry date on your Provisional Booking. You can pay by:

Credit card — securely online (details are in your Provisional Booking email)
EFT / direct deposit — into our bank account (allow up to 3 working days for funds to arrive, especially from smaller banks or overseas; keep the expiry date in mind)

If you pay after the option has expired and the cabin is no longer available, we will refund you in full.

Step 5: Booking Confirmation

After we receive your payment, we confirm the booking with the operator (this can take another 24 hours). We’ll then email you a final Booking Confirmation.

Please do not book flights or other travel until you receive your Booking Confirmation. Occasionally issues arise — an option may lapse, a payment may be delayed, or there may be a problem at the operator’s end. Wait for the Confirmation email before committing to other arrangements.

Please read our full Terms and Conditions.

Common Questions About Booking

Can I get a quote for a Croatia cruise?

Prices are usually on our website, unless there have been sudden changes or availability is so limited that a departure is very likely sold out. We don’t send separate quotes for cruises because availability changes so fast that a “quote” would be meaningless within hours. If prices are shown, those are the current prices; the only question is whether a cabin is still available on your preferred date. The best thing to do is tell us what you’d like, and we’ll check availability and hold it for you at no cost.

Should I check availability if I’m not ready to decide within a few days?

It’s best to wait. Requesting an option is how we check availability — they’re the same step. The option is free, obligation-free, and we don’t take any payment details at this stage, so there’s genuinely nothing to lose by having one placed. But options are typically held for a maximum of 5 days, and if you’re not in a position to make a decision within that window, the hold will lapse and the cabin goes back on sale. If that happens and you decide later that you do want it, we have to start the process again — and the cabin may no longer be available.

So if you’re still a few weeks or months out from deciding, the most useful thing is to talk to us about which cruises suit your plans, and come back to us when you’re ready to lock something in.

How much is the deposit?

Deposits are a minimum of 20–40% per person for land tours and small ship cruises. Some products require full payment on booking — for example, mini-cruises, charters, and private tours. Bookings made within 90 days of the start date or for special offers may also require full payment upfront. All deposits are non-refundable for client cancellation — if you need to cancel for a covered reason, your travel insurer handles the refund. Your Provisional Booking email will have the exact deposit amount for your booking.

What are your business hours?

Generally 11am–7pm Monday to Friday (Australian Eastern Standard Time). This overlap with both the Australian and Croatian business day means we can get your requests answered faster. We’re happy to make an appointment outside these hours if needed — just let us know a time that works for you.

How do I contact you from overseas?

Call or WhatsApp us on +61 2 9212 1507, or email res@discovercroatia.com.au. If you’re in a different time zone, please include your email address and available contact times so we don’t call at a bad hour. Please also include your full phone number with country code and let us know whether it’s a mobile or landline. You can also use our Contact Us page.

Discover Croatia (Sydney)
Phone/WhatsApp: +61 2 9212 1507
Email: res@discovercroatia.com.au