Cities & Culture

Dubrovnik

A fortified Adriatic city of maritime history, monumental walls and living streets.

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COUNTRY: Croatia
REGION: Southern Dalmatia
BEST TIME TO VISIT: Spring (May–June) and early autumn (September–October) for warm weather, clear light and fewer crowds
DURATION: 2–3 days

ABOUT THE DESTINATION

Dubrovnik is a historic fortified Adriatic city and former maritime republic known as Ragusa, its Old Town encircled by monumental stone walls and towers above the sea. This Dubrovnik travel guide covers the things to do in Dubrovnik — the Dubrovnik city walls, the marble Stradun, civic and religious buildings, the historic harbour, the living residential streets, Mount Srđ and nearby Lokrum. The Dubrovnik Old Town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the city also served as a Game of Thrones filming location, representing King’s Landing from seasons 2–8 — an important modern screen-tourism layer rather than the city’s main historical identity.

MAP & LOCATION

Dubrovnik

THROUGH THE LENS

From the road

HISTORY & CULTURE

The Story Behind the Place

Dubrovnik was the Republic of Ragusa, a maritime city-state that traded across the Mediterranean for centuries under Venetian, Ottoman and Habsburg influence, governing itself until Napoleon abolished the republic in 1808. Its walls, palaces and churches were built across the medieval, Renaissance and Baroque periods, with the golden age of the 15th–16th centuries producing much of the form seen today. The destructive 1667 earthquake levelled many of the city’s Gothic and Renaissance buildings, which were rebuilt in the Baroque style that now defines much of the Old Town. After the end of the republic in 1808 the city passed through French and Austrian rule, and it was damaged during the 1991 conflict, followed by a sustained restoration of the damaged roofs and monuments. The Old City of Dubrovnik was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1979.

TOP THINGS TO DO

Experiences Not to Miss

THINGS TO DO

Walk the City Walls

Walk the full circuit of the city walls — the signature Dubrovnik experience, with the red-roof panorama over the old town and the water.

THINGS TO DO

Cable Car up Mount Srđ

Take the cable car up Mount Srđ for the full panorama over the walled city, the water and the islands.

THINGS TO DO

Dubrovnik Republic of Ragusa Old Town Walk

A walking route through the Stradun, the Rector’s Palace, Sponza Palace, Orlando’s Column and Luža Square, the Franciscan Monastery, Dubrovnik Cathedral and the Old Port — the civic, religious and maritime heart of the Republic of Ragusa.

THINGS TO DO

Dubrovnik Game of Thrones Filming Locations Walk

A walking route connecting the real Dubrovnik landmarks used among the filming locations for King’s Landing in Game of Thrones — Fort Lovrijenac, the West Harbour and Pile Bay, the city walls and Minčeta area, the Stradun and the Jesuit Steps — read against the city’s genuine history.

THINGS TO DO

Lokrum Island Nature and Monastery Visit

A short boat crossing to the protected wooded island of Lokrum, with its Benedictine monastery complex, botanical garden, rocky coast and saltwater lake, and the views back towards Dubrovnik — the green counterpoint to the stone of the Old City.

THINGS TO DO

Sea Kayaking under the City Walls

Paddle sit-on-top kayaks along the base of the city walls and across to the caves and bathing coves beneath Fort Lovrijenac — Dubrovnik seen from the water side.

TOP ATTRACTIONS

Sights & Highlights of Dubrovnik

ATTRACTIONS

City Walls

A complete circuit of 2 km of medieval walls and towers around the old town, the signature Dubrovnik walk with views over the city and the water.

ATTRACTIONS

Stradun & Rector’s Palace

The marble main street and the Gothic-Renaissance Rector’s Palace, the seat of the Ragusan republic, now a museum.

ATTRACTIONS

Mount Srđ & Lokrum

The cable car up Mount Srđ for the panorama over the walled city, and the wooded island of Lokrum just offshore for swimming.

ATTRACTIONS

Fort Lovrijenac and West Harbour

The independent fortress of Lovrijenac on its rock outside the western walls, and the West Harbour it guarded — a real defensive landmark later used among the Dubrovnik locations representing King’s Landing in Game of Thrones.

ATTRACTIONS

Franciscan Monastery and Old Pharmacy

The Franciscan complex near Pile Gate, with its Romanesque-Gothic cloister, church, museum collection and a pharmacy tradition established in 1317 — one of Europe’s oldest surviving pharmacy traditions.

ATTRACTIONS

Dubrovnik Cathedral and Treasury

The present Baroque Cathedral of the Assumption, built after the 1667 earthquake on the site of earlier churches, with interior artworks and a treasury of historic gold and silver reliquaries connected with the veneration of Saint Blaise.

FOOD & DRINK

WHERE TO EAT

Proto — old-town seafood since 1886

Konobas in the lanes off the Stradun

HOTELS & STAYS

WHERE TO STAY

Hotel Excelsior — grand hotel above the old town

Old-town apartments inside the walls

ITINERARIES

Keep Driving

1 day

Dubrovnik in One Day

A realistic one-day walk through the walled Old Town — the Franciscan Monastery, the Stradun and Rector’s Palace, a Republic of Ragusa heritage walk, the city walls, Fort Lovrijenac and the Mount Srđ cable car.

View itinerary

2 days

Dubrovnik in Two Days

A two-day Dubrovnik route — the Republic of Ragusa Old Town, city walls and Fort Lovrijenac on Day 1, then Game of Thrones locations, the eastern Old City, Lokrum Island and the Mount Srđ cable car on Day 2.

View itinerary

NATURE & WILDLIFE

The Living Landscape

Dubrovnik’s nature is the sea and the karst. The Old Town sits between the Adriatic and Mount Srđ, the limestone hill behind it that gives the city its panorama and backdrop, covered in Mediterranean scrub and pines. Lokrum, the wooded island just off the Old Town, is a protected nature reserve of pine forest, a botanical garden of exotic species, peacocks, rocky swimming coves and the salt lake known as the Dead Sea. The Elaphite islands to the northwest hold the clearest swimming water within easy reach, and the whole Southern Dalmatian coast is the dolphin country of the Adriatic.

PLAN YOUR VISIT

Practical Information

Getting There

Dubrovnik has its own airport about 30 minutes from the city, with year-round and seasonal European flights. Buses run from major Croatian cities and the airport to the old-town gates, and seasonal ferries connect Dubrovnik to the Elaphite islands, Mljet, Korčula and the Italian coast; check current schedules, as services are reduced or weather-dependent outside the main season.

What to Wear & Bring

Water and sun protection for the walls and the exposed lanes, shoes with grip for the polished limestone and the steep steps, a light layer for the sea breeze and the Mount Srđ summit, and modest clothing for the active religious buildings inside the Old Town.

Accessibility & Mobility

The Old Town is car-free and paved with polished limestone, with steep lanes and many stairs that make much of it difficult for visitors with limited mobility; the city-wall circuit is highly restricted, with long flights of steps and no step-free route. The Stradun is comparatively easier and largely level, but current step-free access to specific sites, viewpoints and transport should be confirmed locally before visiting.

WEATHER