The walled Old Town of Dubrovnik with its red roofs and harbour on a blue sea, seen from a rocky hillside above

Dalmatia, Croatia

Dubrovnik

Dubrovnik's Old Town and its walls seen from Mount Srđ. (Martin Falbisoner / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0)

A walled city on the southern Dalmatian coast, probably founded as Ragusa in the 7th century and for centuries the capital of a merchant republic that balanced Venice against the Ottomans. Rebuilt after the 1667 earthquake and repaired after the siege of 1991–92, its Old Town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the most visited places on the Mediterranean.

Neighbourhoods

  • Old Town
    • First-time visitors
    • Historic district

    The car-free walled city, about 2 kilometres round, where Stradun runs 300 metres from the Pile Gate to the Ploče Gate between uniform stone houses rebuilt after 1667. Churches, palaces, museums, steep stepped lanes and the old harbour are all inside, and it is crowded with visitors through the summer.

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  • Pile and Ploče
    • Close to the Old Town
    • Views

    The districts just outside the two main gates. Pile, to the west, has the main bus stop for the Old Town and the fortress of Lovrijenac on its rock; Ploče, to the east, has the old quarantine buildings, Banje beach and views back across the old harbour.

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  • Lapad and Babin Kuk
    • Beaches
    • Families
    • Quiet and residential

    A green peninsula a few kilometres west of the Old Town, with a long pedestrian street of cafés and restaurants leading to pebble beaches, pine woods, and many of the city's larger holiday hotels. Frequent buses link it with Pile.

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  • Gruž
    • Close to public transport
    • Local life
    • Markets

    A neighbourhood of about 15,000 people about 3 kilometres north-west of the Old Town, once a separate summer retreat of the Ragusan nobility. It has the main port, the city's largest market and the bus station, and is one of the main residential areas.

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Things to do

The walled city

  • Walls of Dubrovniklandmark

    A circuit of ramparts, towers and bastions running almost 2 kilometres around the Old Town, walkable all the way round and used as King's Landing in Game of Thrones.

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  • Stradunlandmark

    The limestone-paved main street, laid over a reclaimed channel in the 13th century and lined with matching houses built to a set pattern after the 1667 earthquake.

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  • Rector's Palacemuseum

    The Gothic-Renaissance seat of the republic's government, with finely carved capitals and an ornate staircase, now a museum.

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  • Sponza Palacelandmark

    A 16th-century palace and the finest Renaissance building to survive the earthquake, now housing the archives.

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  • Dubrovnik Cathedrallandmark

    The baroque cathedral of the 18th century, which houses relics of St Blaise.

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  • St Blaise's Churchlandmark

    The 18th-century baroque church built in honour of the city's patron saint.

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  • Franciscan friarymuseum

    A friary in the Old Town with a pharmacy founded in 1317, the oldest still in operation in Europe, and a library of manuscripts and early printed books.

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  • War Photo Limitedmuseum

    A gallery of war photography in the Old Town.

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Forts, views and the coast

  • Lovrijenaclandmark

    A fortress just west of the walls, whose entrance bears the motto 'Liberty cannot be sold for all the gold in the world', with views back over the walled city.

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  • Mount Srđ and the cable carviewpoint

    The 412-metre mountain behind the city, reached by cable car or a steep footpath, with a stone cross, a view over the Old Town and Lokrum, and Fort Imperial, which houses a museum of the 1991–95 war.

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  • Lazzarettos of Dubrovniklandmark

    A row of connected buildings 300 metres outside the walls that served as the quarantine station of the Republic of Ragusa.

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  • Lokrumpark

    A wooded 72-hectare island a short boat ride from the old harbour, with a fortress, a botanical garden, a monastery and a naturist beach.

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  • Banje and Lapad beachesbeach

    Banje, just east of the Ploče Gate, is the main public beach, with the walls in view; the pebble beaches of Lapad bay are quieter and shaded by trees.

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Short trips from the city

  • Cavtatneighborhood

    A small harbour town to the south-east, on the site of ancient Epidaurum, whose refugees are said to have founded Dubrovnik.

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  • Trsteno Arboretumpark

    An arboretum north-west of the city, dating from before 1492 and described as the oldest in the world.

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  • Elaphiti Islandspark

    The chain of islands off the city, including Koločep, Lopud and Šipan, reached by ferry from Gruž.

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  • Stonneighborhood

    A town on the Pelješac peninsula known for its long medieval walls, salt pans still in use and the oysters of Mali Ston bay.

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Seasonal events

  • Festivity of St Blaise3 February

    The feast of the city's patron saint, celebrated every year since 972 with Mass, a procession along Stradun and several days of festivities.

  • Dubrovnik Summer FestivalJuly and August

    A festival of plays, concerts and other performances held from 10 July to 25 August, founded in 1950, with works by Marin Držić, Ivan Gundulić and Shakespeare at its core.

  • New Year's Eve on Stradun31 December

    The main street is regularly the scene of the city's New Year celebrations.

Eat and drink

Long-standing places and food districts in Dubrovnik. Hours, ratings and directions come from your maps app, always current.

Markets and food districts

  • Gruž marketmarket

    The city's largest market, in the port district of Gruž.

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  • Old Town side streetsneighborhood

    Restaurants and wine bars fill the lanes running off Stradun, most of them serving Dalmatian seafood.

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  • Lapad's pedestrian streetneighborhood

    A long car-free street of café-bars and restaurants on the Lapad peninsula, leading down to the beaches.

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Experience Dubrovnik

History

Dubrovnik is believed to have been founded in the 7th century as Ragusa, by refugees from the Roman town of Epidaurum, today's Cavtat, on a rocky island called Lausa; the channel that separated it from the Slavic settlement of Dubrava under Mount Srđ was filled in to become Stradun. Under Byzantine protection and then Venetian rule from 1205, it grew into an oligarchic republic, and after 1358 it governed itself as a free state, a tributary of Hungary and, from 1382, of the Ottoman sultan.

The Republic of Ragusa lived by trade and diplomacy, sailing under a white flag bearing the word Libertas. It wrote its statutes in 1272, opened a pharmacy in 1317 that still operates, set up an almshouse in 1347 and a quarantine hospital in 1377, abolished the slave trade in 1418 and built an aqueduct in 1438. Its 15th and 16th centuries were a golden age of shipping and of Croatian literature. The earthquake of 1667 killed more than 5,000 people and levelled most public buildings. French forces occupied the city in 1806, Marshal Marmont abolished the republic in 1808, and after 1815 Austria ruled it as part of Dalmatia.

Dubrovnik joined Yugoslavia in 1918, and tourism grew after 1945, especially after the Old Town became a World Heritage Site in 1979. Croatia's independence brought the siege of the city from October 1991: shelling killed civilians and damaged more than half its buildings, and the siege was lifted in May 1992. Repairs in the original style were mostly done by 1999, and the city became one of the Mediterranean's leading destinations and a film location again.

Culture & Customs

The city's identity is bound up with the vanished republic and with St Blaise, its patron, whose feast on 3 February has been celebrated since 972 with Mass, processions along Stradun and days of festivities. Dubrovnik was a cradle of Croatian literature: Marin Držić's comedies and Ivan Gundulić's epic Osman are still performed and read, and in 1564 the poet Ivan Vidalić called it the crown of Croatian cities. The Dubrovnik Summer Festival, founded in 1950, fills the city with plays and concerts from 10 July to 25 August each year.

Sport centres on water: VK Jug is one of the most successful water polo clubs in Croatian history, and many of its players have represented the national team. Film and television have given the city a second fame — it stood in for King's Landing in Game of Thrones and appeared in Star Wars: The Last Jedi and Robin Hood.

The 1991–92 siege remains part of the city's memory: a chart near the city gate maps every artillery hit, and the brighter new roofs that replaced damaged ones can be picked out from the heights. In the Old Town, manners are shaped by the crowds — there are rules aimed at noise.

Daily Life

The city had about 41,500 residents in 2021, down from almost 50,000 in 1991. Gruž, the port district, is home to about 15,000 people, the main market and the bus station.

Tourism dominates the economy. Dubrovnik Airport, the third busiest in Croatia, handled a record number of passengers in 2024, the walls drew 1.3 million visitors in 2018, and Gruž receives more cruise ship calls than any other passenger port in Croatia. To manage crowding, the city staggers cruise arrivals through the week, and in 2023 the mayor closed a disruptive bar terrace on Stradun and announced a ban on wheeled luggage in the Old Town. The University of Dubrovnik and several other higher education institutions add students and some year-round life.

The rhythm follows the season: a summer of crowds and heat, and a quiet, mild winter. The city co-hosted the European Water Polo Championship in 2024 and matches of the World Men's Handball Championship in 2025.

Food

Dubrovnik eats as southern Dalmatia does, from the sea and the olive grove. Grilled or poached fish with blitva, Swiss chard, alongside is a staple of the coast, and brudet is a fish stew usually served with polenta or toasted bread. Black risotto, coloured with cuttlefish ink, and pašticada, beef braised in a sweet and sour sauce with prunes and wine, appear on many menus. Mali Ston bay, up the coast, has a long history of oyster farming.

The city's own sweet is rožata, a caramel custard scented with rose liqueur, a relative of crème caramel. Fritule, small fried dough pastries, are a festive treat, particularly at Christmas, and Ston, the town of salt pans and walls, has its own cake, the Stonska torta.

Plavac Mali is the main red grape of the Dalmatian coast, grown in the Dingač and Postup vineyards on the nearby Pelješac peninsula, and prošek is the sweet dessert wine of southern Dalmatia. Gruž market is the place for fresh produce and fish, and the restaurants of the Old Town lanes and Lapad serve the seafood that dominates local cooking.

Planning tools

Budget

Dubrovnik is among the most expensive places in Croatia, especially from June to September, when rooms in and near the Old Town are at their dearest. The walls ticket is the largest single sightseeing cost. Rooms in Lapad, Gruž or the suburbs, and visits outside high summer, cost much less.

Daily Budget Midrange
USD 180–350 (apartment or mid-range hotel, konoba dinners, the walls ticket and a boat trip)
Daily Budget Shoestring
USD 75–120 (hostel or private room outside the walls, bakery and market food, city buses)

Walk the walls early in the morning or late in the afternoon in summer, and consider a city pass, which bundles the walls with several museums and city buses.

Best Time to Visit

May, June, September and early October offer warm weather and swimming with fewer people. July and August bring the Summer Festival but also heat, peak prices and the heaviest crowds, especially on days when several cruise ships are in port. Winter is mild and quiet, and the feast of St Blaise on 3 February is the city's own great day.

Suggested Number of Days

Two or three days cover the walled city and its immediate surroundings without hurrying. Four or five leave time for the islands and the coast in both directions. Summer heat and crowds make shorter, early or late outings sensible, which can stretch a visit.

First Visit
2–3 days
With Surroundings
4–5 days

Transportation

The Old Town is pedestrian only. City buses run by Libertas connect every district — Pile, Lapad, Babin Kuk, Gruž and the suburbs — and tickets are cheaper from kiosks than on board. Ferries and catamarans leave from Gruž for the Elaphiti islands, Mljet, Korčula, Split and Bari, and boats for Lokrum go from the old harbour. Driving and parking near the walls are difficult.

Leave a car outside the centre and use the buses; in summer the roads around Pile are congested, especially when cruise passengers arrive.

Airport & Station Connections

Dubrovnik Airport is near Čilipi, about 20 kilometres south-east of the centre, with year-round flights to Zagreb and many seasonal routes; airport shuttle buses stop near the Old Town and at the bus station in Gruž. There is no railway. Buses come from Split in about four and a half hours, and since 2022 the Pelješac Bridge has let road traffic avoid the Bosnian corridor at Neum.

Walkability

The Old Town is entirely on foot, on polished limestone that is slippery when wet, with Stradun flat and the side lanes rising in long flights of steps. The walls involve many steep steps. Pile and Ploče are a short walk from the gates; Lapad and Gruž are a few kilometres away and best reached by bus.

Safety

Croatia is a very safe country for visitors, with low levels of violent crime. In Dubrovnik the nuisance is pickpockets in the summer crowds; the hazards are heat, sun, slippery stone paving and the steep, sometimes low-walled sections of the ramparts.

Keep bags closed in the Old Town crowds, carry water on the walls, wear water shoes on rocky beaches, and dress beyond swimwear inside the walls. Check current official travel advice before travelling.

Climate

A hot-summer Mediterranean climate with the mildest winters of any Croatian city. Summers are hot, humid and fairly dry; winters are mild and wet, the bora blows in cold gusts between October and April, and snow is very rare.

Summer
hot — daytime highs typically around 28°C in July and August, falling to about 23°C at night
Winter
mild — daytime temperatures around 13°C in the coldest months, with rain and bora spells

Local Customs

St Blaise, Sveti Vlaho, is everywhere in Dubrovnik — in statues on the walls and gates and in the feast of 3 February. The city has tried to limit the impact of mass tourism: cruise ship arrivals are staggered through the week, and in 2023 the mayor announced a ban on wheeled luggage in the Old Town to reduce noise. Tipping is voluntary: rounding up for drinks, and 5–10 per cent for a meal with good service.

Cover up beyond swimwear in the Old Town and in churches, keep noise down in the residential lanes at night, and ask before photographing residents.

Common Payment Methods

The currency is the euro, adopted in 2023 in place of the kuna. Cards are accepted almost everywhere, including on city buses, and ATMs are easy to find; some cash is useful for market stalls and small kiosks.