We were at the end of our Sail Croatia trip and pulling into Dubrovnik, Croatia, with mixed feelings. We were looking forward to all of the wonderful things to do in Dubrovnik, but, as always, sad that the trip would soon be over. Croatia and the coast, the cool and intensely clear Adriatic Sea, was a dream vacation for us. As we celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary, we woke up every morning to hot coffee and new views of water and cliffs. Sometimes I can’t believe this is the life I get to live.
In my dreamlike state, we got off the boat in Dubrovnik and walked to the bus station, headed to the old, historic city center – turns out, with HUNDREDS of other people. If you are one of the thousands who plan to visit Dubrovnik, read on to get all the tips and tricks you need to know.
(And I feel like my article is about to buck much of everything else you’ve read on Dubrovnik on the Internet.)
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About Dubrovnik, Croatia
Picture Dubrovnik in your mind and you likely think of medieval walls and terracotta roofs. You think old and important in some way, and you are not wrong. Dubrovnik’s historic center was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1979.
Dubrovnik started its modern history era as very rich and very independent. It was a stop on the spice and trade routes and named itself a republic.
It has also been phenomenally preserved. While there was a massive earthquake in 1667, many of the buildings and the city have been salvaged and/or restored.
Today, tourism and the film industry float Dubrovnik. The old town has very few permanent residents left. The real estate has gotten too lucrative and pricey – renting and selling to companies looking to capitalize on the tourism boom has been too appealing.
Dubrovnik has been trying to encourage overnight visitors as opposed to the four to six extremely large cruise ships that dock a day, hoping this will encourage responsible tourism. And in 2025, Dubrovnik had 4,281,792 overnight stays (exclusive of the large cruise ships but likely including the smaller ones like the one we were on).
Dubrovnik is ridiculously crowded. It was worse than the crowds I saw in Spain during our travels there.
In fact, while researching this article, I learned that Dubrovnik has been ranked the most overcrowded city in the world, with 27 tourists to every 1 resident (source).
Dubrovnik’s old town isn’t large, yet thousands of people pour off cruise ships (us included) at the same time to hurriedly see the same sites in one day (a big reason I don’t like cruises). Additionally, Europeans can fly here fairly cheap. Add in the Game of Thrones phenomenon, and Dubrovnik has exploded in popularity on an international scale.
Dubrovnik gets so crowded that the city itself has a proper walking direction, a controlled gate to curb traffic flow, and feels like a controlled Disney experience (which, as I admitted, we are not Disney people). It was stuffy and uncomfortable during the height of the afternoon.
Since we were on a Sail Croatia cruise, we stayed overnight in Dubrovnik, which meant we could see the town after the major ships had left. HUGE difference.
Depending on how flexible you are regarding weather and expectations for swimming/beach time, I would try to go to Dubrovnik outside of the high season. We were there in early June, technically a bit before high season, and it was still packed. I would also try to see the city when the large cruise ships are not in town (as learned in Grand Cayman, one of the best ways to “hack” a vacation).
Guide to Dubrovnik, Croatia - what to do and what to avoid
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How to Get to Dubrovnik and What to Know
Thousands of people (including us!) arrive by some sort of cruise ship for a quick stop. But Dubrovnik does have a major international airport nearby.
The airport sits 22 kilometers (a 30-minute drive) from the old city. And you don’t really want to plan to drive to the old city. There are areas that are strictly restricted, with severe penalties and fees if you drive in them.
There is a shuttle bus, taxis, cabs, Ubers, and car rentals all available from the airport to the old city.
Where to Stay
We stayed on our boat, of course, as did thousands of other tourists! None of the docks available for the boats were adjacent to the historic area, so you plan to either take an Uber, cab, or public bus to the old city center from where your boat is.
That being said, at the start of our trip, Mr. Family Trip and I stayed the night in a small town near Dubrovnik called Cavtat.
Cavtat was fantastic! While it is about a 30-minute drive to downtown Dubrovnik, it is incredibly close to the airport and also way less touristy and crowded than Dubrovnik itself.
Adventurous Kate has a full post on Cavtat that you can check out. I highly recommend this town. We had such lovely strolls along their walking trails and promenade. It was an enchanting place – with way less packaged sightseeing and tourists than Dubrovnik.
Walking Tour
As you know, I love walking tours. So, of course, I highly recommend a guided walking tour like this one. Dubrovnik’s old, historic center isn’t too terribly large, but you won’t really know what you are looking at without some help (unless you are just looking for the Game of Thrones steps, in which case you’ll find those in two minutes).
And speaking of….
As discussed in an earlier post about Split, there is quite a bit of Game of Thrones fandom in Croatia – particularly in Dubrovnik. Fans of Game of Thrones can get a special walking tour, like this one.
You’ll also find a lot of souvenir and trinket shops around Dubrovnik selling GoT tzotchkes. Since that series was released to massive popularity, tourism in Dubrovnik has skyrocketed (according to our local guide).
Climb (or Ride) to a Viewpoint
Seemingly built into the coastline, the old historic town of Dubrovnik is gorgeous – and we wanted to get a bird’s-eye view of it if we could (and we chose to do this rather than walk the walls; more on that below).
We decided to go to Lovrijenac Fortress. This fortress is called the “Gibraltar of Dubrovnik” and sits at 37 meters above sea level. The fort first appears in records in 1301.
Today, it is used as a theater and event venue that is open to tourists to pay to go in and see phenomenal views of Dubrovnik.
NOTE: There are a LOT of steps to get to the entrance. This is not going to be easy for those with mobility concerns.
Of course, it costs to get in – around 15 Euro per person.
You can also get good views by riding the cable car (if you plan in advance, you may be able to secure reservations at Panorama Restaurant for sunset). At the time of our visit, the cable car was around $30 USD per person.
- Learn more about the Dubrovnik cable car at www.dubrovnikcablecar.com.
Notes on Why We Skipped Walking on the Walls
Piggybacking on the “Disney” nature of Dubrovnik – or the “controlled theme park nature of it” – we ended up not walking the walls.
First: It was ridiculously priced at 40 Euros person (close to $50 USD per person when we were there). Second: you could only go along the walls in one direction. Third: there were only a few controlled access points. All this combined meant that if you didn’t plan your wall walk correctly or didn’t want to walk the entire perimeter, you paid a lot of money to walk a small portion. Additionally, there weren’t many cafes along the wall, and it was a hot, sunny day (plus, again, those crowds!).
Contrast this to Korcula, where we had just been, and we were completely uninspired by walking the walls.
I am sure there were gorgeous views, of course. And I know people love this. We just elected not to do it.
That said, we DID want a view OF Dubrovnik (not out from Dubrovnik), so we did pay to get into that fortress that looked out over Dubrovnik and the coastline.
If you want more on walking the walls of the old city of Dubrovnik, I recommend this post.
PRO TIP: If you plan on doing the city walls, get the Dubrovnik City Pass instead of just the ticket to the walls. This will also give you access to the Fort as well as other museums and public transportation for about the same price. The City Pass can be purchased online at www.dubrovnikpass.com or in person at the ticket booths.
Eat Good Food
We ate at Proto Fish Restaurant (reservations pretty much required). It had a beautiful ambience, and the food was delicious – oysters from the Adriatic Sea and black risotto. It was not cheap, and I wouldn’t feel comfortable showing up in jean shorts, but it was a lovely and special dinner out.
- Proto Fish Restaurant is online at www.esculaprestaurants.com/fish-restaurant-proto-dubrovnik and at Široka no. 1, 20 000 Dubrovnik.
See Dubrovnik at Night
The Stradun is the street in Dubrovnik that connects Pile Gate to Ploče Gate. It is paved in limestone that has been there for centuries, smoothed and polished by millions of footsteps. Along the Stradun are cafes, bars, restaurants, and gelaterias. Many of the buildings were rebuilt after an earthquake in 1667 with a very uniform style.
While the Stradun is worth a stroll any time of day, at night it is exquisite – it sparkles. No sun in your eyes, just gentle manmade light hitting the stones.
Of course, if you are in Dubrovnik at night, it means a lot of the cruise ships have left, so you may experience a little more breathing room.
You can Probably Skip Buza Bar
I don’t get what the buzz is about the Buza Bar, folks. This is a spot the Internet RAVES about, so, of course, we thought we’d grab a sunset drink here and enjoy.
While when featured on the Amazing Race, Buza Bar was hard to find, that is no longer the case. Just follow the line of people crouching through the old city wall and heading down the steps to the bar.
Buza Bar had to remove all tables due to city ordinances, so it is a standing-room-only place. The oontz house music is pumped loudly, and the drinks are canned and way overpriced. Also, no toilets and cash only.
The cool thing? People jump off the cliffs. But there are places to see and do that in other spots on the wall.
I guess it all depends on what sort of trip you are on as to whether this is going to be a thing you want to do.
- Buza Bar is online at www.bbuza.com and located at Crijevićeva ul. 9, 20000, Dubrovnik.
Note that there is another spot along the cliffs nearby that people call a “mini Buza,” but it is really just another nearby spot to jump, and they were only selling beer when we went by.
Unfortunately, lots of litter and trash from all the tourists and people.
We ended up finding a cafe in a more remote courtyard with decently priced drinks and enjoyed our time there, people-watching as the sun started to slant.
With More Time...
- Sea kayak: you can pair this with snorkeling, too
- Take a day trip to Mljet National Park: see our guide here.
- Go to Lokrum Island: the Iron Throne is here or you can enjoy the island and the cave (note that this “blue cave” is not the famous Blue Cave)
- D’vino wine bar: over 60 wines by the glass
Dubrovnik is, indeed, a beautiful and unique place. I understand why travel writers and bloggers frequently cite it as one of their favorite cities in the world, but, quite frankly, its popularity is hurting it. We had far more interesting and rewarding experiences in the other Croatian towns and cities we visited simply because we weren’t fighting the hordes and swarms of people all vying to see a small city under a hot summer sun.
If you can, stay when the sun starts to go down, when the large cruise ships (not the smaller ones like the one we were on) leave for the night. Then, you can finally breathe in the Dubrovnik salt air as much as you like and feel the city.
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