Into the Blue: Wreck Diving Around Vis Island, Croatia
There is something different about diving around Vis. The island sits well out in the Adriatic, beyond the busier Croatian coast, and the boat ride from Komiža feels like a journey away from the everyday. Above water, you see pale cliffs, old stone houses and vineyards. Below it, ships from very different eras rest within a surprisingly small area.
Vis is not a destination where every wreck feels the same. The Teti is open, approachable and full of light. Fortunal is compact, deep and strangely personal. Vassilios T is enormous—the kind of wreck that makes a diver pause simply to understand its scale. Together, they form a natural progression from relaxed exploration to serious deep diving.
Teti: the welcoming wreck
The Teti is a wonderful introduction to Vis wreck diving. Built in the United States in 1883, the 72-metre Italian steel steamship ran onto the rocks near Mali Barjak in May 1930. Quick action by Komiža’s harbourmaster helped save the entire crew; winter seas later broke the stranded vessel apart.
Today, the wreck stretches from roughly 10 to 33 metres. Its shallower sections give less experienced certified divers time to settle, check their buoyancy and enjoy the structure without immediately dropping into deep water. The stern is the highlight: recognisable, atmospheric and often surrounded by fish. Conger eels have also made the wreck their home. The deeper sections still demand the appropriate certification and careful gas management—“accessible” should never be confused with “effortless.”
Fortunal: a working boat frozen in time
Fortunal tells a much more recent story. The 19-metre fishing trawler struck the coast because of a navigational error on 10 April 1997 and sank within minutes. It now stands upright, with its highest section around 35 metres and the bottom close to 51 metres.
The wreck is small enough to understand in one view, yet the fishing equipment and crew belongings make it feel unusually intimate. This was a working boat, not a grand steamer, and traces of ordinary life remain part of the dive. Large scorpionfish blend into the structure, rewarding anyone who slows down and looks carefully.
Depth is the real challenge. Fortunal is a dive for suitably trained and experienced divers, with a plan that respects gas reserves, decompression exposure and the conditions on the day. Some local profiles finish near a shallow coastal tunnel, but any overhead section requires the right training, guide and judgement; it is not an automatic part of the dive.
Vassilios T: the giant of Vis
The Vassilios T is the wreck that stays in your mind. This Greek merchant steamer was carrying coal from Swansea to Venice when rudder trouble sent her onto Cape Stupišće on 19 March 1939. She now lies on her port side between approximately 22 and 55 metres.
At 104 metres long and just over 15 metres wide, Vassilios cannot be properly explored in a single dive. The bow appears first, then the deck seems to continue endlessly into blue water. Masts, superstructure and open cargo holds create bold shapes, while spilled coal remains visible below. Yellow sponges, scorpionfish and conger eels have softened the steel without hiding the ship’s identity.
The upper bow can give advanced divers a sense of the wreck, but the propeller and lower hull descend into technical depths. Penetration adds another level of risk and should never be improvised. The smartest dive is not the one that sees everything; it is the one that leaves a reason to return.
Planning your Vis wreck-diving trip
Base yourself in Komiža or Vis Town and book with a licensed local diving centre. Teti is protected underwater heritage and may only be visited through licensed operators. Share your certification, recent experience and preferred gas before arrival so the centre can recommend realistic profiles.
Bring good buoyancy, a reliable computer, a surface marker buoy and thermal protection suitable for depth—not only the warm surface temperature. Most importantly, arrive without a checklist mentality. Vis rewards patient divers. Give these wrecks time, respect their history and let each one reveal itself at its own pace.