This week's beach of the week on Total Korčula is Three Ports, not one beach, but a wonderful, beach-goer friendly set of coves near Vela Luka. 

It's name in Croatian is Tri Luke, but you'll also often hear the Italian name (appropriatelly similar to the English name) Tre Porte. It's a series of - and I know this is going to be hard to believe - of three coves, located several kilometres due South-West of Vela Luka, facing south and located in one of the most amazing wooded areas of Korčula Island.

The road to get to the Three Ports from Vela Luka is quite nice, easy to find (go towards Potirna and then it's really simple to find the Ports), and once you get to your destination, you shouldn't have too much problems finding a parking spot for your car, as the area is quite wide, there are houses and apartments in the ports and several smaller roads in the forest which accomodate parking - and in the shade. 

There are several smaller pebble beaches in each of the coves (and even hidden sandy gems!), and numerous rocky slabs around the coves where you can put your stuff and enjoy a bit more isolation, both in the sun or in the shade. If you're visiting for the first time, the best advice we can give you is to walk around a bit, explore the area, enjoy the different options, take a swim here or there before you decide where you want to spend most of your time. As we said already, there are several houses located in the area, and most of them are renting apartments, so if you want to keep away from busy Vela Luka, but still be close, maybe you can consider renting here. 

At almost any given time during summer, there will be boats, small or larger, docked in or just in front of the coves, as the water is perfectly clear and quite shallow there, there are several charming little islets in front of the Tre Porte, which are very intersting to the nautical tourists. Plus, there's a diving centre located in the area, so there will be divers - and you can also be one! 

There is only one konoba, restaurant called Škanja Rat is located very close to the coves, but works only in the afternoons (such was the situation last time I visited; I don't know if things have changed since, as there isn't much information about the place online), so you can have a drink and a meal there. 

This week's beach of the week on Total Korčula is Rasohatica, another one of the gems located at the southern shores of the Korčula island. 

At first glance, one might say that all beaches on the so-called defora (facing south) side of Korčula are the same: mostly quite narrow, difficult to get to from Žrnovo, steep approach, a lot of sun and usually not inhabited, or at least not heavily inhabited. Well, Rasohatica is somewhat different. Yes, it's on the south side and yes, there is a lot of sun on it during the day, because it's facing south. 

But, there are houses in Rasohatica. There aren't many, just about a dozen, but you can rent an apartment there if you want, and people spend their summers there and it feels somehow bit less secluded than other neighboring beaches. Also, the road to Rasohatica is actually quite OK, and the parking is basically right next to the beach - there will be cars there during the summer, of course, and you might not be able to find one of the closest spots, but you will be able to leave your car somewhere quite close to the beach, in the shade of the dense woods that grow there. There are two sides of the pebble beach, the one to the east is smaller, with more people on it (usually), that's where you can rent the beach chairs and parasols.

The one to the west is a bit bigger and tends to be less populated, and in the afternoon it will be in the shade much sooner, which is important to those trying to stay out of the sun. In between those two are the rocks, where the people who are staying in some of the houses will be swimming, and you can also find a place for yourself on the rocks on the sides of the bay where the beaches are located (if you prefer rocks to the pebbles). There aren't any bars or restaurants in the Rasohatica bay, so make sure to bring some water with you if you're coming here for a day. 

Whenever Lumbarda and Vela Pržina beach are mentioned, Bilin Žal also makes an appearance, and it's most certainly worth a visit.

Once you get passed Samograd and Vaje bays on the northern side of the island, going west, away from Korčula towards Vela Luka, it will take a while before you stumble upon a nice beach. 

We return to our series of articles about the beaches on Korčula island

Some days spent at the beach on Korčula are just ordinary

OK, I get it, it's not a beach, it's an entire islet.

Often we write about the beaches that are not easily accessible, and that take some effort to get to.

Today, we'll just take you through the beaches of Korčula Town, the ones you'd visit for a quick dip and a cool-off if you're waiting for a catamaran or a bus, don't have a lot of time or just need to go for a swim within walking distance of the Korčula Old Town