VIS ISLAND
VIS, CROATIA
During WWII, Vis Island served as a military base for Allied troops, as well as a hideout for resistance leader and future Yugoslav President Josip Broz Tito. The island was given to Yugoslavia after the war ended, and it was converted into a secret naval base. As a paranoid Tito feared being attacked, Vis was closed to all foreigners for the next four decades, and numerous military facilities such as tunnel networks, submarine pens, barracks, and bunkers were built all over the isolated island. Tito’s Cave, rumoured to be his personal headquarters, is one of the island’s most well-known attractions. After the armed forces abandoned Vis in 1989 it was reopened to tourists, before becoming part of independent Croatia in 1991. Today, Vis’ former Cold War sites are a major tourist attraction, with a variety of dedicated tours.
Various organised military tours of Vis Island are available