Sport
Maraton lađa
Hundreds of rowers race traditional wooden boats 22.5 km down the Neretva from Metković to Ploče, urged on by drummers. It's held on the second Saturday of August; the start at Metković bridge is the moment to see.
- When
- August 2027 (exact dates not announced)
- Where
- River Neretva, Metković to Ploče
- Official site
- www.maraton-ladja.hr
Dates checked 1 November 2026. Confirm with the organiser before you book.
The Neretva valley has its own kind of boat, the lađa, and once a year it gets its own race. About 400 rowers set off from the bridge at Metković and follow the river and its side channels past Opuzen to the finish at Ploče, a distance of 22.5 kilometres. It's an amateur contest, yet the organisers count more than fifty thousand spectators along the banks.
Each crew has ten rowers, a drummer and a helmsman, and up to six fresh rowers can swap in at Opuzen. To keep things fair, the organising association built a set of 33 identical wooden boats, first used at the tenth race in 2007, and lends them to the crews. Sprint races at Opuzen a few days before decide the order in which the boats are handed out.
The start is the thing to see: the boats packed tightly together, drums pounding, and every crew pulling as if the finish were a hundred metres away. The winners take home a 37-kilo bronze shield of Prince Domagoj, which a crew keeps for good after three wins in a row.