Travel Guide: Dubrovnik old town.
Hello… We are fresh off the plane from Dubrovnik.. a beautiful historic town in Croatia, recognisable by its orange roof tiles, blue seas, shiney clean floors, millions of old steps all encaptured within old city walls… and most recently being part of the set where Game of Thrones was filmed… While we were there alot of people asked for recommendations so while it's fresh in my mind I thought we would jot them down now! I've tried not to share too many photos in this post so you don’t feel like you’ve seen it before you even get there, (not that they do it any justice anyway!) but let me tell you.. It was hard to narrow it down.. The place is gorgeous so the first tip is to make sure you take your camera!
Tips and tricks -
Book restaurants and bars ahead.. To make sure you can get in and also get the best seats. We had quite a few restaurants we wanted to try but couldn't get in because we tried to just get in on the day and they were fully booked!! Ah!
The Restaurant's Gradska kavana Arsenal Restaurant & Bar, panorama-restaurant-bar and Dubravka 1836 restaurant are sister restaurants and link up ( there is also restaurant nautika but I don’t know if this also applies there) and each time they give you a 10% off card to use in any of the three locations. So that's on top of the cable cart.. Which is a must do! .. one in the port with the big arches and one near the bus stop just outside the city walls where all the tours start
Pick your tour guide.. We noticed as we wandered around that some tour guides read what sounded like a script and some seemed very charismatic, funny and didn’t sound as staged which was fun to listen to. I would take note on your first day and then if you hear someone you like the sound of then ask where you can book.
We would say it’s best to go as adults.. It's very doable with a baby but there are so many steps its makes it harder to wonder and explore and stumble across places if you do go with a baby, take a sling and pram for depending on what your planning to do that day
Round the old town at the end of the allies they have red signs which tell you what restaurants and attractions are up that way which makes it easier to find places.
Our taxi driver told us that to get a great meal for better prices than the old town, then to head along the coast outside the city walls… particularly Cavtat.
Went In June outside of the school holidays, it was busy but not too busy.. a nice busy.
We stayed for a week in an apartment just outside the city walls. I think you can do old town in a couple of days really.. It look us a little longer as we had a baby in tow. So if you’re going for a week then it might be nice to look for accommodation slightly further away so you can explore other parts too. A lot of people we spoke to while we were there had a free shuttle bus with their accommodation to and from the old town.
There are loads of steps in to the sea around the outskirts of the old town and beaches about a 5 min walk away so even if you’re staying in a city centre apartment don’t forget your bikini and trunks so you can still take a tip to cool off in the ocean
What to wear: I absolutely loved looking at everyones fashion in dubrovnik. There were a lot of people wearing fabulous outfits and prints. Everyone seemed very well dressed. I got so much inspiration from people watching. As I said we went in June and it was 32 degrees on the warmest day. Take your coolest fabrics. your linen and cotton clothing to keep cool.
Bar DODO
This was absolutely my favorite place to swim in the ocean… And one of my favorite mornings from the trip. We found it towards the end but I wish we had found it sooner so I could have done it everyday… An early morning dip and then breakfast at bar dodo - we got there around 9 and basically had the place to ourselves.. The water was as warm as the pool.. It was an absolutely delicious way to start the day. It felt so invigorating, empowering and magical in our little cove.
Buza bar in the sunset - Don’t look over the wall and you’ll miss it… don’t look through the hole in the wall and you’ll miss it again. Buza Bar was the most recommended place and it didn’t disappoint. We weren’t sure if we could make it with a baby… a bar built into a cliff edge might not be the first place you’d go but a sleepy calm baby in a sling worked OK. We got there for 7:30.. there were still a few tables left and we got to watch the sunset.
If we were adults only we would have gone in our swimming stuff and gone for a dip to but it was fun to watch everyone else jumping in too. People were coming out and playing uno with a beer watching the sunset. It had good vibes.
Lokum island -
So easy to get to. Buy a ticket from the stand in the wall on Ribarnica street. They go every half an hour and the boat is just a few steps away from where you buy the ticket. We got the 9:30 boat and walking round the island was lovely and quiet. When you get to the island follow the crowd in and then go left.. Follow the signs for the dead sea and you will come to this amazing patch of water to swim in. It was so peaceful and calming…at the time we were there, there was only a few other people there.. When we went back earlier it was far busier which is why I recommend to do this first. I said to Tom it felt like it had magical manifesting powers. There was something so lovely about this place. I could have sat by the water all day. Make sure you take some shoes for swimming or you can buy some when you get off the boat at a stall on the left - lots of rocks and sea enemies about. People were also jumping off the rock at the back but I didn't dare take that plunge haha.
If you’re in to yoga it’s also worth noting that a large group of yogis all headed to the island on our boat for a class over there so might be worth looking in to.. I think they did a sound bath too from what I could see.
We took Olive in a sling as we weren’t sure what the island would be like but taking a pram would have been fine
Walk the walls - SO worth it and so beautiful. Make sure you take it all in! It gets hot so go early morning or late afternoon. We started near the water fountain square on the edge of the city.
War photography museum - a MUST do.. Especially if you didn't do a tour. Its at the top of the cable cart which is a must do anyway and it's really interesting to find out more about the war which happened in Dubrovnik which if I’m totally honest I had no idea about. After you see the imagery it makes you see Dubrovnik in a totally different light and you notice so much more when you're wandering around. ( they also have a zip line and dune buggies at the top if that's your kind of thing.. I think the zip line would actually be amazing to do
Lady pipi- a must do but they don't do reservations …we went for lunch. It opens at 12 so we go there at twenty to 12 to ensure a spot as we heard the ques get pretty long. We got a pick of the tables and ended up in the best spot with views of the grill and the city. We each chose a dish but if we went back we both said we would get a sharing platter so we could try everything! haha
Proto - A lovely little fish restaurant in one of the allies just off the main street - one of the more pricer restaurants but great service and great food. Go for the fish platter. It's got a little bit of everything and was absolutely delicious,
Restaurant Kopun
Taking inspiration from old Croatian recipes. They have a man playing the guitar just nearby which creates a gorgeous ambience. You’re in the most gorgeous setting surrounded by old buildings having just walked up the Jesus steps. Go for the squid ink risotto and scallop if that’s your kind of thing. It’s under appetizer but its main meal size and was one of the nicest meals I had.
Peppino artisan gelato - trust me we tried alllll the ice cream and this one was the best. They have a few shops but one with the most flavors is the one on Ulica od Puča 9, Dubrovnik
We absolutely loved the hazelnut and toffee one. We were recommended the Carob and fig flavor but they didn't have it when we were there so keep an eye out for that if you go too.
Other Recommendations:
There was so much we didn’t get to do which was recommended to us so I’ve put everything in a list which is easy to screenshot and take with you.
I would love to know what you thought of anything we have recommended or if you have anything to add to the list!
Hope you have an amazing time
We already can’t wait to go back one day!