Dubrovnik is a walled city on the Adriatic coast of southern Croatia, the former capital of the Republic of Ragusa. Its limestone streets, churches and palaces sit inside almost two kilometres of medieval walls that run unbroken around the Old Town, which has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979. About 40,000 people live in the city, which stretches from the old harbour west to the port of Gruž and the Lapad peninsula.
Visitors come to walk the walls, swim off rocks below them, sail to green islands and use the city as a base for southern Dalmatia. It suits couples, history lovers and families who want a beach holiday with culture close at hand. Vacation rentals range from stone apartments inside the walls to homes with sea views on the slopes of Ploče and Lapad and quieter houses on the nearby islands and along the Konavle coast.
Staying inside the Old Town means stepping out among the sights, but many apartments sit up long flights of stairs, no cars are allowed and daytime crowds are heavy in summer. Ploče, just east of the walls, and Pile, just west, keep you within a short walk of the gates with more space and sea or wall views, though both climb steeply.
Lapad and Babin Kuk, on the green peninsula west of the centre, are the easiest base for families: flatter streets, a long pedestrian promenade, pebble coves and frequent buses to Pile. Gruž, around the ferry and bus port, is practical for island hopping and good value. For a calmer stay, look at the Elafiti islands, the town of Cavtat near the airport or village houses in Konavle.
The walls run for about 1,940 m around the Old Town and reach up to 25 m in height. Most were built between the 13th and 17th centuries, with the round Minčeta Tower, completed in 1464, guarding the landward side. Walking the full circuit takes a couple of hours and gives views over terracotta roofs and the sea; go early or late in summer to avoid the midday heat.
You enter through the Pile Gate in the west or the Ploče Gate in the east, guarded by the Revelin fortress. Between them runs the Stradun, the polished main street, past the Franciscan monastery, whose pharmacy dates from 1317, the Sponza Palace and the Rector's Palace. Fort Lovrijenac stands on its own rock outside the western walls.
Dubrovnik's beaches are mostly pebble or rock, with ladders into clear water. There are swimming spots just outside the walls, in Ploče east of the Old Town and around Lapad Bay, where the promenade leads to sheltered coves.
Lokrum, a wooded island about 600 m offshore, is a nature reserve reached by boat from the old port. It has a former Benedictine monastery, a botanical garden founded in 1959, peacocks brought by Archduke Maximilian of Habsburg in the 19th century and a small salt lake known as the Dead Sea. Further out, the Elafiti islands of Koločep, Lopud and Šipan are easy day trips by ferry from Gruž. On the mainland, the Trsteno Arboretum and the cable car up Mount Srđ, with wide views over the city, are popular half-days.
For centuries Dubrovnik, then called Ragusa, was a self-governing merchant republic. The Peace of Zadar in 1358 gave it real independence, and its ships, diplomats and careful neutrality kept it free until Napoleon's forces abolished the republic in 1808. In 1699 it even gave the Ottomans two small strips of coast as a buffer; one of them, Neum, is still the short stretch of Bosnia and Herzegovina on the coast to the north.
A great earthquake in 1667 killed more than 5,000 people and destroyed most public buildings, so much of what you see today is 17th-century rebuilding. In October 1991 the Yugoslav People's Army besieged the city for seven months, and the Old Town was damaged by shelling. It was carefully restored, and UNESCO removed it from its list of World Heritage in Danger in 1998.
Dubrovnik Airport (DBV) is at Čilipi, south-east of the city, roughly 20 km and about half an hour by road from the Old Town. Since July 2022 the Pelješac Bridge has given the Dubrovnik area a road link to the rest of Croatia that avoids the short Bosnian coastal strip at Neum, though the coast road through Neum remains an option. Split is roughly three to four hours away by car.
In the city, local buses connect Pile with Lapad, Babin Kuk and Gruž, and walking is the way to see the Old Town, which is closed to traffic. Parking near the walls is scarce, so a car is only worth it for trips to Konavle, Pelješac or Montenegro. Ferries and catamarans from Gruž serve the Elafiti islands, Mljet and Korčula.
Dubrovnik has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate with the mildest winters of any Croatian city; snow is very rare. Summers are hot, dry and sunny, and the sea is warm enough for swimming from about June to October. Most rain falls between autumn and early spring, and the hill of Srđ behind the city shelters it from the cold north wind, the bura.
July and August bring the Dubrovnik Summer Festival, founded in 1950, with theatre and music in squares and forts, but also the biggest crowds and cruise-ship days. May, June and September are warm and calmer. On 3 February the city celebrates the Feast of St Blaise, its patron saint, and winter is a quiet time to see the walls and churches without queues.
The Old Town and the neighbourhoods of Ploče and Pile are best for walking to the sights. Lapad and Babin Kuk suit families who want flatter streets, coves and buses into town. Gruž is practical for ferries and good value, and the Elafiti islands or Cavtat suit a quieter stay.
May, June and September offer warm weather, swimmable sea and fewer crowds than July and August. Summer has the Dubrovnik Summer Festival but also the most visitors. Winter is mild and quiet, and the Feast of St Blaise on 3 February is a highlight.
Two or three days are enough for the walls, the Old Town, Lokrum and the cable car up Srđ. With five days to a week you can add the Elafiti islands, Cavtat and Konavle, or day trips to Pelješac, Mljet and the Bay of Kotor in Montenegro.
Dubrovnik Airport (DBV) at Čilipi is roughly 20 km south-east of the Old Town, usually about 30 minutes by road. Airport buses, taxis and transfers serve the city, and the town of Cavtat is closer to the airport than central Dubrovnik is.
Yes, though they are mostly pebble and rock rather than sand. You can swim just outside the walls, in Ploče and around Lapad Bay, and on Lokrum and the Elafiti islands. Water shoes help on rocky entries, and the sea is very clear.
In Croatia, accommodation providers, including private apartment hosts, must register every guest in eVisitor within 24 hours of arrival, the national system of the Croatian National Tourist Board, which also calculates the tourist tax owed for each stay. Hosts therefore ask for passport or ID details at check-in.
Croatia has used the euro since 1 January 2023. Cards are widely accepted in Dubrovnik, but a little cash is useful for markets, small cafés and some island boats.
Yes. Children enjoy the walls, Fort Lovrijenac, the peacocks on Lokrum and the cable car. Lapad and Babin Kuk are the easiest family base, with a promenade and gentle coves. In the Old Town, stairs and summer crowds make a stroller hard work.
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