Cruise trip of Korčula archipelago

Hi there! My name is Toni Lozica. I was born and raised in the ancient city of Korčula on the island of the same name. I would love to show you both and share my love of them with you. My family has lived on this island for 20 generations. I spent most of my life here on the island, except for 20 years Netherlands where love took me. In 2008 I returned to my hometown. I was a guide since my earliest youth. My interest in history and ethnography drove me to learn & explore and I put that knowledge to good use guiding journalists and VIP visitors. Combining commercial knowledge gained in the Netherlands and my love for the island and experience in tourism I returned to take up the post of hotel manager, sales manager, concierge and guests relations at Lešić Dimitri Palace in Korčula. With my small but valuable team I helped to steer that property into joining Relais & Chateaux, the greatest family of hotels and restaurants. There I specialized in serving & guiding smaller groups with care & dedication. After 8 years at LD I itched for a new challenge so I started my own tourist business. My tours focus on history, culture & tradition combined with gourmet slow food & wine. Some of my favourite & most exclusive tours are boat cruises with my own wooden sailing boat of the traditional Mediterranean type locally called 'gajeta'. My wife and I restored this classic boat, built on the island in 1957, over two years under the guidance of 85 years old Marin Šale, the last living master shipbuilder of Korčula. Having completed the meticulous restoration in 2018, we are very proud to have contributed, even if just a little bit, to the preservation of the 10 centuries of traditional shipbuilding. As an accomplished amateur historian, I have a wide knowledge of the past events and the tradition of my Island and the neighboring Pelješac Peninsula on Croatian mainland. Being a classic Mediterranean hedonist and an accomplished chef, it is only natural that I am very well versed into local winemaking, traditional produce and cooking. I am also a buff of the activities that for centuries spread the name of Korčula across the world: stonemasonry, shipbuilding and folklore. For many years I performed in the challenging role of Red King in the Moreška sword dance that has been performed in Korčula for 400 years. My city belonged to no less that 7 different countries just in the last century , so it is only natural that I follow and know history of former Yugoslavia and South-Eastern Europe and that I can put local developments into a wider global context. I can answer your questions on all of these subjects in an easy way that befits a relaxed holiday. It goes without saying that I usually spice it with a healthy dose of humor and just a tiny bit of sarcasm that I can skip if you prefer. My goal is to have you remember Korčula & me with affection and a smile over long grey winter days back home. Croatian guiding license for Dubrovnik-Neretva County. I am licensed to guide only in Croatian, English and Dutch.