Croatia · Dalmatia
Dubrovnik
A complete ring of medieval walls around a car-free stone city, with the seafaring republic that built them still legible in every street.
Dubrovnik is a walled limestone city on the Adriatic, and the unbroken circuit of its medieval City Walls, still complete and still walkable, is why almost everyone comes. Inside them one polished street runs between churches, palaces and a 14th-century pharmacy, all of it car-free and all of it rebuilt to a single design after a catastrophic earthquake. For four and a half centuries this was the Republic of Ragusa, a small maritime state that bought and negotiated its way clear of bigger powers. It is expensive, it is crowded in summer, and it is still extraordinary.
Suggested stay
2–4 days
Language
Croatian
Currency
EUR
Timezone
UTC+2
Why you'll love Dubrovnik
The walls a full circuit high above the roofs, the open sea on one side and the whole Old Town laid out on the other
One rebuild the 1667 earthquake forced the city back up in a single pale stone and a single century, which is why it reads as one piece
The Republic Ragusa outmanoeuvred Venice and the Ottomans for four hundred years, and its palaces, archives and rules are all still standing
The water you drop off the rocks straight below the ramparts, or cross to the wooded island of Lokrum in about ten minutes
Best time to visit
Jun-Aug
28-32° days
42.649° N, 18.094° E
UTC+2 · Europe/Zagreb
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Weather & when to go to Dubrovnik
Month by month: typical highs and lows, rainfall and rain days.
✓ Best Jun-Aug
Cards tinted by calculated verdict · big number = typical daily high, small = low · hover for conditions
When to avoid Dubrovnik
Summer is the crowded season rather than a bad one: through July and August the cruise calls, the prices and the crowds peak together, and the Old Town's marble lanes run shoulder to shoulder from mid-morning until late afternoon. Late autumn and winter are notably wet, and a good share of the restaurants, beach bars and island boats shut between November and March.
Top things to do in Dubrovnik
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City Walls - walk the full circuit
history scenic 👍 PopularThe walls run unbroken around the Old Town, 25 m up in places, with the round Minčeta tower at the landward high point and open sea below the seaward stretch. The circuit runs one way and takes an hour or two with stops for the rooftops and the harbour. There is almost no shade, so go at opening or in the last hours of the day.
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Stradun - the Old Town's one polished street
history scenic 👍 PopularThe single wide street through the walled city, paved in limestone worn to a shine, runs from Onofrio's Fountain at the Pile end to Orlando's Column and the bell tower at the other. It follows the channel that once separated the island settlement from the mainland, and it was rebuilt to one uniform design after the 1667 earthquake.
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Mount Srđ - ride the cable car for the view
scenic history 👍 PopularThe cable car climbs from above Ploče Gate to the ridge behind the city in a few minutes, and the whole walled town, Lokrum and the Elaphiti islands lay themselves out below. At the top are Fort Imperial, built under Napoleon and held through the 1991 siege, and a museum on the Homeland War. Sunset is the busy slot.
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Lokrum - the wooded island offshore
nature wildlife scenic ⭐ Highly recommendedBoats leave the Old Port through the day in season and the crossing takes about ten minutes. On the island are a ruined Benedictine monastery, a botanical garden begun by Archduke Maximilian, free-roaming peacocks, a small saltwater lake called the Dead Sea, and rock swimming right around the shore. Nobody is allowed to stay the night.
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Fort Lovrijenac - the rock fortress outside the walls
history scenic ⭐ Highly recommendedA fortress on its own crag just west of Pile, built separate from the walls, with the motto that liberty is not sold for all the gold in the world cut over the gate. It doubles as a stage during the summer festival, and it gives the best single view back at the ramparts.
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Franciscan Monastery - the pharmacy that never closed
history culture artsJust inside Pile Gate, the monastery keeps a Romanesque cloister of paired columns with every capital carved differently, and a dispensary founded in 1317 that is among the oldest still operating in Europe. The old apothecary jars, the manuscripts and the monastery library sit in the small museum off the cloister.
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Rector's Palace - inside the Republic's government
history culture artsThe Gothic and Renaissance palace where the Rector lived out his one-month term of office, forbidden to leave except on state business. Inside are the council chamber, the ground-floor cells and a cultural history museum of Ragusan furniture, portraits and clocks. The inscription over the door tells officials to forget their private affairs.
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War Photo Limited - the Yugoslav wars in photographs
culture arts historyAn unflinching gallery two minutes off Stradun, founded by a New Zealand photojournalist, with a permanent floor on the wars of the 1990s and changing exhibitions on other conflicts. It is the sharpest counterweight in town to the cruise-day version of Dubrovnik, and it closes over the winter.
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Sea kayaking under the walls
adventure scenicThe standard half-day paddle launches from the cove beside Fort Lovrijenac, crosses to Lokrum and comes back along the foot of the walls with a stop to swim at the Betina cave beach, often timed to finish at sunset. At water level you get the one view of the ramparts you cannot reach on foot.
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Game of Thrones locations - King's Landing on foot
culture artsMuch of King's Landing was shot in and around the Old Town: the Jesuit Staircase for the walk of shame, Lovrijenac and the walls for the Red Keep, Trsteno Arboretum up the coast for the palace gardens, and Lokrum for Qarth. Guided walks run daily and every site is easy enough to find on your own.
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Oysters, black risotto and Pelješac reds - eating in Dubrovnik
foodDalmatian cooking here means whole fish off the grill, squid-ink risotto, seafood buzara in garlic and white wine, and oysters from Mali Ston up the coast. The red to drink is Plavac Mali from the Pelješac slopes, and rozata, a custard scented with rose liqueur, is the local dessert.
Best areas to stay in Dubrovnik
$ Budget $$ Mid-range $$$ Premium
Old Town (Stari Grad)
First-time visitors $$$Marble lanes inside the medieval walls
Explore hotels in Old Town (Stari Grad) →
Ploče
Views & hotels $$$Cliffside hotels east of the walls
Explore hotels in Ploče →
Lapad
Families & beaches $$Leafy bay with a car-free promenade
Explore hotels in Lapad →
Babin Kuk
Resorts & pools $$Pine-covered resort headland
Explore hotels in Babin Kuk →
Gruž
Value & transport $Working port, ferries and the market
Explore hotels in Gruž →
Live nightly prices from Booking.com, Agoda and others, centred on Dubrovnik
Getting to & around Dubrovnik
Getting there
Fly into Dubrovnik (DBV); the shuttle bus reaches Pile Gate in around 40 minutes. There is no railway
Flight
Dubrovnik Airport (Čilipi) (DBV)
The airport is about 20 km southeast at Čilipi, beyond Cavtat. The airport shuttle meets arriving flights and runs the coast road to Gruž port and then Pile Gate, the Old Town's western entrance, in roughly 30 to 40 minutes. Taxis and pre-booked transfers take about half an hour. Nothing motorised goes inside the walls, so the last stretch is always on foot.
Coach
Dubrovnik bus station, Gruž
Buses run down the coast from Split in about four hours and overnight from Zagreb; the Pelješac Bridge now bypasses the old Bosnian corridor at Neum, and international services reach Kotor, Mostar and Sarajevo
Ferry
Gruž port
Fast catamarans link Split, Hvar, Korčula and Mljet in season, and an overnight car ferry crosses to Bari in Italy; local island boats also work out of Gruž
Cruise
Gruž cruise terminal
Ships berth at Gruž, a few kilometres from the walls, and passengers reach Pile by shuttle or city bus; arrivals are capped to limit how many ships call at once
Drive
The coastal road runs the length of Dalmatia and the Pelješac Bridge removed the border crossings at Neum; leave the car outside the walls, as the Old Town has no vehicle access at all
Train
Dubrovnik has no railway and never really had one, so every land approach is by road; the nearest useful rail heads are far up the coast or inland in Bosnia
Getting around
Walking
The Old Town is entirely car-free and crossable in ten minutes, though the side lanes are stepped and the polished limestone is slick in rain
Free
Libertas city bus
Orange buses link Pile, Gruž, Lapad, Babin Kuk and the airport road; frequent in summer, thinner in winter, and they stop outside the gates, never inside
TBC
Cable car
Runs from above Ploče Gate to the top of Srđ in a few minutes; it closes in high wind, and a switchback road and a steep old path also reach the summit
TBC
Taxi
Ranks at Pile, Ploče and Gruž, plus app-based rides; the practical option for luggage, since no vehicle can reach a door inside the walls
TBC
Boat to Lokrum
Small ferries shuttle from the Old Port through the day in season, about ten minutes each way, with the last boat back in the early evening
TBC
Car hire
A liability in the city and scarcely parkable near the walls, but worth a day for Pelješac, Ston or the drive south into Montenegro
TBC
Day trips from Dubrovnik
Elaphiti Islands
Full dayCar-free islands
A string of green islands just offshore, of which Koločep, Lopud and Šipan are inhabited and effectively car-free. Lopud has the sand at Šunj beach and a ruined fortified monastery, Šipan the biggest interior and old summer villas, Koločep the quietest walking. The three-island boat day is the standard version.
Getting there
ferry | tour
30 min to 1.5 hr by ferry from Gruž, or a full-day boat tour
Cavtat
Half dayHarbour town
The Roman Epidaurum that Dubrovnik's founders fled, now a low-key harbour town on a wooded double peninsula. There is a waterfront promenade, swimming off the rocks, the house of the painter Vlaho Bukovac, and Meštrović's domed Račić family mausoleum on the hill.
Getting there
ferry | bus | car
45 min by boat from the Old Port, or about 30 min by bus or car
Ston and the Pelješac peninsula
Full dayWalls, oysters and wine
Ston guards the neck of the peninsula behind the longest defensive wall in Europe after Hadrian's, climbing straight over the hill to Mali Ston, with medieval salt pans still worked below it. Mali Ston farms the oysters, and the steep Dingač and Postup vineyards further out make the country's best Plavac Mali reds.
Getting there
car | bus | tour
1 hr by car or bus, then the peninsula road
Mljet National Park
Full dayIsland lakes and forest
The western third of a long pine-covered island is a national park built around two connected saltwater lakes, with a Benedictine monastery on an islet in the larger one. You get around by bike, on foot or by park boat, and the swimming in the lakes is warm and calm.
Getting there
ferry | tour
1.5 hr by catamaran from Gruž to Polace or Sobra
Bay of Kotor, Montenegro
Full dayFjord-like bay
South over the border, drowned valleys make a bay ringed by mountains, with the walled town of Kotor at the head of it and a fortress stairway climbing the cliff behind. Perast and its two church islets sit on the way. Take a passport and expect queues at the crossing in summer.
Getting there
car | tour | bus
2 hr each way by car or coach tour, including a border crossing
A little history of Dubrovnik
Dubrovnik began as Ragusa, traditionally founded in the 7th century by refugees from Roman Epidaurum, today's Cavtat, on a rocky islet facing a Slav settlement on the slope behind. The channel between the two was filled in and became Stradun. Under Byzantine and then Venetian protection the town grew rich on shipping, and from 1358 it governed itself as the Republic of Ragusa: an aristocratic city-state that paid tribute to whichever power was strongest, ran a merchant fleet and consulates across the Mediterranean, and stayed out of the wars around it. It banned the slave trade in 1416 and built one of Europe's earliest quarantine systems.
The earthquake of 1667 flattened most of the city and killed thousands, the Rector among them, and forced the uniform rebuild you walk through now. The Republic ended in 1808 when Napoleon's marshal dissolved it, and the Congress of Vienna handed the city to Austria. It passed to Yugoslavia after 1918 and to independent Croatia in 1991, the year it was besieged and shelled for months from the ridge above. The Old Town was patched and re-roofed through the decade, and the brighter terracotta on the roofs, obvious from Srđ, still marks what was hit.
Refugees from Epidaurum settle the rocky islet of Laus, the seed of Ragusa
Venice takes control of the city and holds it for a century and a half
The Treaty of Zadar ends Venetian rule and the self-governing Republic of Ragusa begins
The Republic outlaws the slave trade, among the first states in Europe to do so
A great earthquake levels most of the city and forces the single-style rebuild
Napoleon's marshal abolishes the Republic after more than four centuries
The Congress of Vienna places Dubrovnik under Austrian rule
The Old Town is inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage site
The city is besieged and shelled from Srđ; repairs run through the decade
Know before you go
Payment
Cards & cash mixed
English
Widely spoken
Wifi
Reliable
Power
Type C / F
230 V, 50 Hz
Dialing
+385
Mobile network & SIM card
Get an eSIM before you fly
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FAQs about Dubrovnik
▸ When is the best time to visit Dubrovnik?
June to August brings the best weather and the heaviest crowds, prices and cruise calls all at once. September keeps a warm sea with quieter lanes, and May is comfortable for walking the walls though the water is still cool. Winter is mild by European standards but wet, and much of the seasonal town closes.
▸ How many days do you need in Dubrovnik?
Two nights cover the walls, the Old Town, Srđ and Lokrum without rushing. Three or four let you add Cavtat or the Elaphiti islands and a day on Pelješac or Mljet. The city itself is small, so anyone planning a week ends up using it as a base for the coast.
▸ Is Dubrovnik expensive?
It is the most expensive place in Croatia, and by a distance in high summer, when Old Town rooms and waterfront tables price for a captive audience. Costs fall sharply outside July and August. Staying in Lapad or Gruž, eating away from Stradun and shopping at the Gruž market all take the edge off.
▸ Should you stay inside the walls?
It is wonderful in the evening, once the day boats and cruise passengers have gone, and awkward the rest of the time: no cars, stairs everywhere, bags carried in by hand, and bar noise on some lanes. If that sounds like too much, Ploče is only minutes away on foot.
▸ Where can you swim in Dubrovnik?
Banje is the pebble beach just east of the walls with the postcard view back at them. There is rock swimming off the Old Town's seaward side and all around Lokrum, a small cove at Šulić beside Fort Lovrijenac, and bigger family bays over in Lapad and Babin Kuk.
▸ Do you need a car in Dubrovnik?
No, and it is a liability in the city: the Old Town is car-free, parking near the walls is scarce and tightly controlled, and buses cover Lapad, Gruž and the airport road. Hire one for a day if you want Pelješac, Ston or Montenegro on your own schedule.
▸ How do you avoid the cruise crowds?
Ships berth at Gruž and their passengers fill the Old Town from roughly mid-morning to mid-afternoon. Walk the walls at opening, spend the middle of the day on Lokrum, a beach or a museum, and come back into the lanes in the early evening when the town belongs to whoever stayed.
More in Croatia
Hvar
Croatia's sunniest island: a Venetian harbour town under a hilltop fortress, offshore islets by taxi boat, and vineyards and lavender the length of the ridge.
✓ best Mar-OctMakarska
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Sixteen lakes spilling into one another down a forested limestone valley, crossed on boardwalks laid just above the water, with the barriers between them still growing.
✓ best Apr, Jun-Aug