Veli Budikovac, sometimes referred to as Budihovac by locals, is a small, almost uninhabited island located in the Croatian part of the Adriatic Sea. Veli Budikovac (Veli means great) lies northeast of Ravnik island and is located about 3 km southeast of Rukavac – a settlement on the island of Vis. In the vicinity of Veli Budikovac, lies Mali Budikovac (Mali – small), whose surface area is 0.317 km², the length of the coastline is 3.46 km and it takes around 15 minutes from island Vis to the island of Veli Budikovac by boat.

According to the latest population census, there is only one resident living during the whole year on Veli Budikovac, Mr. Andro, the ex-ship captain, known by many on the Adriatic.
His home on Veli Budikovac is a quaint house made of stone, a typical Dalmatian stone house that can be seen in almost every historical dalmatian town. Andro runs a small restaurant on the island during the season, where you can buy the best of traditional Dalmatian cuisine.
He also has a small animal farm and vegetable fields on the island which he tends to – so you can be sure that the food served in the restaurant is fresh. You can see domestic animals such as donkeys and chickens roaming around and they are very friendly. He often laughs, saying so far, he has raised four generations of chickens.

Andro is a character himself but is also writing a book about the people he meets on the island – if he finds them interesting enough to write about. Andro claims that he would never like to return to a city again; now, he has the opportunity to do all the things he couldn’t do while he was living in a city, such as reading books and just sitting, enjoying in the nice view and doing nothing (fjaka). He spends at least 11 months on the island of Veli Budikovac and is easily recognisable by his little straw hat.

This incredible place is often called the Blue Lagoon. When you see the pictures, I am sure you will understand why. On the bottom of this both blue and green sea you can see many sea urchins. But, do not be afraid of them. Croatians love sea urchins because according to our ancestors, sea urchins are proof that the sea is extremely clean, so clean that you can almost drink it.