We spent a day in Dubrovnik as part of a Balkan Road Trip. Dubrovnik is very pretty, but extremely expensive and crowded. It is peppered with more cashpoints than a Vegas casino. In my opinion, Dubrovnik is somewhat overrated. This opinion wasn’t helped by having spent the previous day in the walled cities of Budva and Kotor, which are both nicer (and cheaper). The three main attractions in Dubrovnik; the walls, cable car and ferry to Lokrum will set you back a total of €87. We were happy just to wander the ancient streets and admire the view. So, here is my budget conscious itinerary for a day in Dubrovnik.

Getting There

We drove to Dubrovnik as part of a road trip, arriving from Montenegro and continuing the next day to Bosnia & Herzegovina. If you arrive in Dubrovnik by car, good luck! Parking is nigh on impossible and if you do find a space, it won’t be cheap.

Getting Around

The main attractions are in and around the old town, which is pedestrian.

Where We Stayed

We stayed in an apartment overlooking the city. Blue Lagune provides nice apartments with balconies in a lovely garden, but the main selling point is the view…

Itinerary

Day 1

Drive to Dubrovnik View Dubrovnik Accommodation – Blue Lagune Old Town Pile Gate City Walls and Fortresses Beach Lokrum

Attractions

1	City Viewpoint
2	Old Town
3	Pile Gate
4	City Walls and Fortresses
5	Beach
6	Lokrum

Dubrovnik Day 1

Drive to Dubrovnik

We only have a 57 mile drive today across the border to Croatia and the city of Dubrovnik. The first 30 miles hug the Bay of Kotor; a beautiful kind of figure of 8 kink in the Adriatic.

View Dubrovnik

Just before the city of Dubrovnik is a viewpoint giving you a spectacular panorama of the city, the Adriatic and Island of Lokrum. The viewpoint (and parking) is free. In my opinion, this was just as good as taking the cable car for a similar view at a cost of €27.

We reach Dubrovnik and try and find somewhere to park. It’s the hardest place I’ve ever tried to park and I’ve lived in 3 capital cities! We do a full circuit of the one way system. All the parking is for residents only. On our second circuit we find public parking but it’s 1000 Kuna. That’s £120! We stop by the ticket barrier while I Google if I’ve actually got the exchange rate right (I have), so we go round a third time. We finally find a hotel on the edge of town that will let non residents park for a mere £15.

Accommodation – Blue Lagune

From here, it’s a kilometre walk to our apartment; Blue Lagune, but it is all up steps. Hundreds of steps. In 31 degrees. With luggage. By the time we arrive, we are very sweaty. But the owner is there with very welcome glasses of cold orange juice. It’s a small apartment but it opens onto a balcony overlooking the old city.

Old Town

We sit for a while admiring Dubrovnik from above, then set forth to explore. Dubrovnik is a walled city sitting on the shores of the Adriatic. The main thoroughfare is the Stradun, from here, a labyrinth of streets head towards the sea.

Pile Gate

The main entrance to the old city is through the ancient Pile Gate, which dates from 1537. Once through the gate, you are in the pedestrian area of Stradun and can wander around admiring the quaint narrow streets and old buildings.

City Walls and Forts

The city walls are 1940 meters long with 6 fortresses. If you are prepared to fork out €33, you can walk round aforementioned walls. We walk round the city wall of Budva the previous day for €3, so made do with admiring this rather overpriced tourist attraction from below.

Beach

We take a cooling walk along the seafront. It’s not quite a beach, but there are steps where you can sit and dedicated bathing areas. We stop for a while for a paddle and to admire a surfing dog.

From here, you also get a great view back across the city and Mount Srd in the background.

Lokrum

Then it’s time to ascend the hundreds of steps to our accommodation a second time, stopping at the supermarket to purchase a healthy supper of sausage rolls and beer, which is consumed on the balcony watching the sun set over Dubrovnik and the forested island of Lokrum.

If you want to admire Lokrum from closer up, there are regular ferries to the island between April and November. Tickets (covering the ferry and entry to the island) cost €27 for a day trip (it is not possible to stay on Lokrum overnight).

• Trip taken: September 2018
• Updated: April 2023