Dubrovnik
Old Town
We landed in Dubrovnik in the evening. Arriving at our Airbnb, we freshened up and hurriedly made our way to the heart of the city, the Old Town. We wandered aimlessly among the alleyways, just simply getting lost and soaking in the city for the first time. Dubrovnik has a multitude of alleyways to explore. There is no particular structure to these alleyways. If you get lost, just keep walking until you hear voices.
Building up an appetite we made our way to Tabasco Pizzeria, which was recommended to us by our host. This place was affordable and delicious. If you like pizza, then this place is a must. With our bellies full, we made our way back to our Airbnb and settled down for the night.
The following morning we took it slow, soaking in the views from our apartment. Sitting in the window nook we enjoyed fresh fruit whilst looking over the Adriatic Sea. After breakfast, we made our way down to the local market and bought an assortment of bread, cheeses, and fruit for lunch.
Tip: If you want to save money while traveling, then consider buying food at a grocery store. We typically prepare our breakfast and lunch meals and eat out for dinner. Eating out three meals a day will start to add up.
We then made our way to the Old Town and found a bench on the outskirts of town overlooking the sea and Lokrum Island. We took our time soaking in the views and munching on our lunch. People watching is one of my favorite activities to do while traveling. I want to know how the locals live and see what lessons I can garner from them. Croatians are relaxed, carefree, and love the sun. We watched as they swam, laughed, and sunbathed.
Tip: If you are not accustomed to nudity on beaches, then Croatia will be a shock for you. Be prepared to see nudity. It is not a big deal to Mediterranean and Adriatic Europeans and it is considered the norm.
After lunch, we made our way down the Stradun, the main street in the Old Town, window shopping while we walked. We lounged on the steps of the Onophrian Fountain, wandered around Ploce and Pile gates, and admired the architecture of palaces, churches, and monasteries. While walking around the perimeter of the Old Town, we stumbled upon Buza Bar. What makes this bar rather unique is that you can cliff jump at the base of the bar right into the sea, and you don’t even have to order a drink to enjoy the cliffs. There are many rocks to jump off of and the sea is calm enough to swim in without fear of being tumbled into the rocks. We then made our way back to the Stradun and obtained some orange cheesecake gelato. This was the first of many gelato pit stops in our travels.
Tip: There is so much to soak in while walking around Dubrovnik. It would be wise to consider a city walking tour to better know the city. Book your walking tour HERE
As evening was approaching, we bought some city wall tickets, which also included admission to Fort Lovrijenac. First, we explored the fort, noting the garden area where many famous Game of Thrones scenes were shot. After exploring the fort a bit, we made our way back to the city walls. It is best walk the city walls in the evening as the sun is setting during golden hour. The city wall walk was the highlight of Dubrovnik for me. Be ready for some breathtaking views of the Old Town and the sea. Make sure you have a good camera and be prepared to stop a lot to take photos.
Book your City Wall Walking Tour HERE
Tip: I recommend starting at Pile Gate. This route will have you ending your walk at the highest point of the city during peak golden hour. It is important you do the city walk during the evening. It would be brutal during the heat of the day.
As night was upon us, we made our way to Prijeko street. We settled on a quaint restaurant and ordered a delicious pasta meal. With our bellies full we took time to enjoy the city at night and wandered down more alleys before endeavoring back to our Airbnb to settling down.
Lokrum Island
The next morning, we went back to the local market to buy some brunch food, and then made our way to the Old Town port to buy some ferry tickets to Lokrum Island. Lokrum Island is supposedly haunted and is the shooting location of the Quarth garden party and various other scenes in Game of Thrones. Lokrum is a botanical garden and has many beautiful beaches to swim at. Upon landing at the port, we made our way to a park bench overlooking the sea and the Old Town walls of Dubrovnik and enjoyed our brunch. With some much needed sustenance we began to explore the island. There are many old ruins, gardens, and hiking trails for you to explore here. There is also a museum that is free and has the famous Iron Throne from the Game of Thrones series. We then made our way to the Napoleonic Fort at the top of the island for some incredible views. Rushed for time, we made our way back to the port for a ferry back to the mainland and gathered our bags for another ferry ride to Korcula. This would not be the end of Dubrovnik for us … we would be back in a couple weeks eager to explore more of the city.
Book your tickets for a Lokrum Island Game of Thrones tour HERE
Dubrovnik Round Two
At the the tail end of our month long Balkan road trip, we spent two more days in Dubrovnik, and saved some of the best for last.
First, we decided to go on a kayaking tour around the city walls and Lokrum island with some side excursions along the way. We met our tour guide just outside the city walls in a tiny cove where we loaded our kayaks and eventually set sail. Our tour took us along the city walls and to the blue cave where we spent some time snorkeling with the Adriatic sea life. Next, we made our way to and around Lokrum island with some cliff jumping pit stops along the way. We ended the tour by returning to the cove from where we departed.
Book your Kayak Tour HERE
Being caked in salt and sweat, we went back to our accommodation and showered before heading out for the evening. After freshening up we made our way to the point of departure for the cable car up the mountain.
Tip: Do the cable ride in the evening during golden hour. It will produce the best views and pictures. There is also a restaurant at the top if you wish to have dinner with an amazing view.
After soaking in the amazing sunset and views, we made our way into the Old City for dinner. After dinner we lay our heads down to get some much needed rest for our last day in Croatia the following day.
Book your Cable Car and City Wall Walking Tour with a Local HERE
Our last day consisted of packing up our belongings and walking about the town one last time. First we visited the old Franciscan monastery and apothecary. This apothecary was founded in 1317, making it one of the oldest in all of Europe. This place will not require much of your time, but it is pretty and worth checking out. Next we meandered over to the war photo exhibition in Dubrovnik. If you are not familiar with the Yugoslav Civil War, then you should definitely research it a bit before you come to do the Balkans. Dubrovnik was held under siege by the Yugoslav People’s Army and suffered a brutal bombing campaign as the Croat people were fighting for their independence. It memorializes the events and people who died fighting for Croatian independence.
After the war photo exhibition we made our way back to our accommodation and hired transport to the Airport, thus ending our month long Balkan road trip.
Links:
Book your Flight and Car Rental HERE
Book your accommodation HERE
