ZAGREB / PLITVICE LAKES / ZADAR / TROGIR / SPLIT / BOL / DUBROVNIK

OVERVIEW

• When: 5 August – 15 August, 2021
• Where (accommodations): Zagreb: Esplanade Zagreb Hotel; Plitvicka Jezera: Hotel Jezero; Zadar: Teatro Verdi Boutique Hotel; Split: Time Boutique Hotel; Bol: Lifestyle Hotel Vitar; Dubrovnik: Royal Blue Hotel
• Transportation: Aer Lingus flight from Boston to Dublin, Ireland. airBaltic flight from Dublin to Vilnius, Lithuania. LOT Polish airlines from Vilnius, Lithuania to Zagreb (layover in Warsaw, Poland). Thrifty car rental in Zagreb airport, return in Dubrovnik airport. British Airways flight from Dubrovnik to Boston (layover in London Heathrow). Jadrolinija ferry from Split to Supetar (Brac island) and from Sumartin (Brac island) to Makarska.
• Sights/attractions: Zagreb: Upper and Lower town, Ban Jelacic Square, Zagreb Cathedral, St Mark’s Church, Museum of Broken Relationships, Tkalciceva street, Lotrscak Tower, Tunel Gric, King Tomislav Square, Funicular Railway; Plitvicka Jezera: Plitvice Lakes National Park; Zadar: Old Town ( Church of St Donatus, Zadar Cathedral (St Anastasia), Bell Tower, City Walls and gates, Five Wells Square, People’s Square, Sea Organ, Sun Salutation, Roman Forum; Trogir: The St. Lawrence Cathedral, Waterfront Promenade, Old Town, Fortress Kamerlengo; Split: Old Town, Diocletian’s Palace, Peristil Square, Temple of Jupiter, Cathedral of Saint Domnius, Riva Promenade, Kasjuni Beach, Prva Vidilica Na Marjanu view point, St Duje’s Cathedral; Bol (Brac island): Town center, Zlatni Rat Beach; Dubrovnik: City Walls, Old Town, Dubrovnik Cathedral, Stradun Street, Jesuit Stairs, Rector’s Palace, Dominican Monastery, cable car to Mt Srd.
• Food/drinks: Zagreb: Le Bistro Esplanade, Korica bakery, Vinodol; Plitvicka Jezera: Hotel Jezero restaurant; Udbina: Licko Selo restaurant; Zadar: Butler Gourmet & Cocktails Garden; Trogir: Konoba Bonaca restaurant; Split: Zinfandel Food & Wine Bar, Sug Restaurant; Bol: Ribarska Kucica restaurant, Mali Raj restaurant; Dubrovnik: Pantarul restaurant, Orka restaurant, Posat restaurant.

This is such a special trip that we’ve been waiting to have! We had the plan (and the tickets) to go back home to Lithuania in 2020. Covid-19 happened and the trip was rebooked, then cancelled. Restrictions in Europe were changing from one day to the next (and still somewhat are), so we decided to move the trip to the summer of 2021. I was determined to go back to Lithuania this year and see my mom no matter what-it’s been a long three years since the last time I’ve been back home.

At the same time, we realized that if we spend the whole two weeks in my home country, it will be a great vacation for us, but none for my mom and stepdad. They would run around cooking, cleaning and making sure that we are happy, which is not a well deserved vacation that they also desperately need. Both of them work in the medical field and never had a luxury to work from home during the pandemic, so we wanted to make sure they get to relax and have a change of scenery as well. That’s how a road trip through Croatia came about.

We spent 5 nights in Lithuania and took my mom and her husband with us on a 10 day Croatian adventure. My sister joined us, and the five of us managed to fit in one car and travel from Zagreb to Dubrovnik making several stops along the way. Lastly, my brother-in- law flew in for the end of the trip and we were all finally reunited for a few wonderful days. Here are our highlights from each stop.

ZAGREB

We flew to the capital of Croatia through Warsaw, Poland and that’s where Sean’s bag was left (thank’s a lot, LOT Polish airlines). Not ideal, since it was a carryon size suitcase with all of his clothes. Luckily it was not my luggage, or we would have been on a Croatian shopping spree 🙂 . Thankfully it arrived the next day, because we had only one night and one day dedicated to exploring Zagreb.

We picked up our rental car at the airport and held our breath while loading the luggage. Five people, each with a bag- will we need to hold them on our laps? Phew, it fit just so- once again packing light paid off.

Zagreb is located in the northwestern side of the country and I think is often overlooked by the tourists. At least every time I’ve heard about Croatia it was not mentioned as the place to visit. Since we arrived in the afternoon, we got to see a bit of the night time Zagreb, and then continued our tour the next day. We found it clean, calm and pretty quiet. In August most of Europe is on vacation, and those that live in the cities try to escape to the seaside, so we enjoyed the fairly empty streets. There were no lines for the restaurants, museum or the view points.

For the one night accommodation we chose Esplanade Zagreb Hotel. It was listed as one of the best hotels in the city and we can report it was a very pleasant stay. Spacious rooms, beautiful decor, reasonably priced and centrally located- we walked to all of the attractions – what’s not to love!

For our first vacation dinner we didn’t have the energy to look any further, so dined at the Le Bistro Esplanade– restaurant located right at the hotel. It was delicious, beautifully presented, but definitely pricey.

After all this feast, time to walk around a bit. Since it was so close to the hotel we checked out the King Tomislav Square. I liked it better at night than during the day- there were no people and the lit up fountain was very pretty.

Breakfast was not included in the hotel stay, so we found a cute caffe near by with excellent pastries. Korica is an Artisan bakery where we had our first ‘cruffins’ – a delicious mix between a croissant and a muffin filled with light cream. Breakfast of champions!

Now we are ready to tackle the day and see what Croatian capital has to offer! Here is what you can see/do in less than 8 hours in Zagreb. Make sure to visit both Upper and Lower town, because both are unique in their own way.

Ban Jalacic Square

The main square in the Old Town Zagreb is nice for people watching, relaxing and shopping at the nearby stores. No need to spend too much time, but enjoyable to pass through and to feel the rhythm of the city.

Cathedral of Zagreb

Even though it’s closed for visitors and is under renovation (it was damaged during the earthquake in 2020), it’s still beautiful from the outside. Cathedral is the second tallest building in Croatia and apparently is one of the most monumental sacral buildings in Gothic style southeast of the Alps.

Tkalčićeva Street

You simply cannot miss this long street lined with restaurants, cafes and souvenir shops. Super charming area of Zagreb and a great place to stop and rest in case you are tired from all the walking.

Stone Gate (Kamenita Vrata)

As you approach the Upper Town, you’ll get to the Stone Gate- important landmark and part of the city walls. Built between 1242 and 1266 it holds a chapel for Mother of God.

On the 260th anniversary of the shrine, the archbishop of Zagreb, declared the Mother of God of the Stone Gates for the patron saint of Zagreb, and that date (May 31st) is now officially celebrated as the Day of the City.

St. Mark’s Church

Located in the St Mark’s Square in the Upper Town, this is one of the oldest architectual buildings in Zagreb dating from the 13th century. Colorful roof is very picturesque and called for many photos 🙂 .

Museum of Broken Relationships

It’s pretty rare for us to visit museums, especially when we’re in town for a short time, but this one was recommended by a few people. Also, it was a VERY hot mid day in Zagreb, so we went in partially because of the interest and partially because we needed to cool off.

Museum is not that big and does not take very long to cover, though there is a lot of reading involved. There are artifacts from all over the world that represent a relationship that has ended. Each has it’s story- some sad, some funny, some very heart warming. Since it’s not out of the way from all main tourist attractions, I’d say it’s worth visiting.

Lotrščak Tower 

Right down the street from the Museum of Broken Relationships, in the Upper Town, there is this fortified tower that has amazing views of the city. You need to climb some steps, but not too bad considering the panorama that is waiting at the top.

Grič Tunnel

Quite a random tourist attraction, but we found it interesting. The tunnel is in the city center, in the Lower Town and connects several streets. It has six exits, once again was refreshing to hide from the heat and whistle/shout in the tunnel as the sound echoes extremely well.

Built in World War II it once served as a bomb shelter, then was abandoned and in 1990s hosted one of the first raves in Croatia!

Lower Town: Ulica Ilica, Oktogon, Funicular and more

Just wander around the streets for some shopping (Ulica Ilica), pass through the Octogon gallery passageway and you are in yet another city block. Jump on a Funicular and you’ll easily get to the Upper Town. We loved Zagreb for it’s clever design and walking friendly layout.

For lunch we stopped at Vinodol restaurant- excellent Croatian food in the heart of the city.

Successful first 24 hours in Croatia! We are ready to start our road trip. Next stop- Plitvice Lakes National Park.

PLITVICE LAKES NATIONAL PARK

This is the oldest (established in 1949) and largest (just under 300km²) national park in Croatia and we’ve not seen anything quite like it. It takes about two hours to get there from Zagreb, depending on traffic. Since we’ve heard how popular this park is, plus it’s a busy season, we decided to arrive the night before and it was the right choice. We left Zagreb late afternoon and got to Hotel Jezero just before sunset.

I do not recommend driving in the dark- the road leading up to the park is curvy and there are no street lights. Being there the night before allowed us to get a nice dinner right at the hotel. We got a good sleep and were ready to go in the morning before the crowds and the heat.

Hotel Jezero is listed as a four star hotel, which I’d say is a bit of a stretch- it’s definitely simple and basic accommodations, but location cannot be beat. Just steps away from the park entrance #2, so you don’t need to drive anywhere, so you can just get up, have breakfast and start exploring.

I highly recommend booking the tickets in advance online- you will skip a line and only will need to show/activate the ticket at the info booth right near the entrance. We started at 8.30 am, which I’d say was a bit late. If you can, go first thing in the morning, because by the time we were finishing up at 1.30 pm, the heat was unbearable. The amount of people also increased with every passing hour, so bottom line is- start early and finish early for the best experience.

The park is huge and consists of 16 named and several unnamed lakes cascading into one another. I don’t think I’ve seen this many waterfalls in one place – they were EVERYWHERE. It is very well organized and the lake region is divided into the Upper and Lower lakes.

There are numerous hiking trails which are very well maintained and do not require any mountain climbing experience. My parents are not hikers and have knee problems, but still were able to do the walk with several little rest stops. There are multiple benches along the paths – it seems like whoever organized this park thought about everything. Well, maybe not everything. Bring bottles of water/snacks and have your bathroom situation taken care of at the entrance. There are NOT many bathrooms, yet you see signs pointing to WC at every corner. However, how far this WC is nobody tells you. Wear comfortable shoes, not flip flops- there are parts of the paths that have smooth rocks and could be slippery.

There are many ways to sightsee this park. When you see the park map, this is the route we took. We chose to take a shuttle from station St2 to St1, hike to see the Big Waterfall (Veliki Slap), then walk up to P3 where the boat takes you across the lake to P2. From there you have several options- do a longer or some shorter hikes, and either walk or take a shuttle back to St2. The reason we went this way was that all of the waterfalls were coming down in front of us, instead of away from us. I feel like that makes it a lot more picturesque.

No pictures can describe how beautiful the nature in this park is. The water is super clear, fish seemed to be floating in the air. The color of some lakes is also more of a Caribbean Sea blue than the typical lake. No swimming is allowed unfortunately, but if you are in Croatia, this is a magical place to visit.

ZADAR

Since we finished exploring the park early afternoon, we headed out to our next destination- the city on Croatia’s Dalmatian coast- Zadar. We stopped once during the 1hr 40 min drive, since we needed to get lunch and stretch our legs. Licko Selo restaurant was just off the highway and had decent reviews online. It was not a life changing experience, but if you love meat, this might be your place. The portions are insanely big and had we known this, we’d ordered one or two meals to share between five of us.

For our one night stay in Zadar we booked Teatro Verdi Boutique Hotel as it was literally in the Old Town. This 12 room modern hotel had parking and delicious breakfast included in the cost, so it was a an easy decision.

Checked in and refreshed we strolled around this old and beautiful city. 9th century Church of St Donatus, 12th Century St Anastasia’s Cathedral, Venetian gates, Five Wells Square are just a few main points to visit in Zadar’s Old Town.

We were not running around checking off every church that we had on the list, but just enjoyed walking around the old cobblestone streets and admiring the beauty of the ancient architecture. One of the MUST visit places if I had to choose would be climbing the Bell Tower. It was not long before sunset, so the heat of the day subsided and the light turned the perfect golden color- the views of the city below were simply breathtaking.

For the actual sunset, there is no better place than near the water- as a reference point you can choose the Sea Organ. That is an architectural sound object where the crashing waves into the tubes below the steps create a sound of music. There were quite a lot of people there, so we stayed a bit further down, but it was very interesting to walk by and hear this ‘music’ coming down from under the concrete.

Another interesting object right nearby is The Greeting to the Sun. Three hundred multi-layered glass plates with solar modules underneath. I am sure it’s best viewed in the dark, but even around sunset the light was visible and especially enjoyed by the kids stomping around.

Contrary to most of the other cities, we did not have dinner reservations in Zadar, because the place we wanted to go only took walk-ins. We went along the harbor to the Butler Gourmet & Cocktails Garden and had to wait quite a bit until we got a table for five.

Great food and drinks, nice set up- it was worth the late dinner and the wait.

TROGIR

This town on the Adriatic coast was not part of our detailed travel itinerary. Since we saw all of the Old Town Zadar sites on the day of arrival, we decided that we don’t need to walk around more the next morning. After a wonderful breakfast at our hotel we hit the road, so that we reach our next destination- Split earlier. There were two ways to get there- along the coast or inland.

We chose the longer, but more scenic route which led right to Trogir. It was a 2 hour drive along the coast vs 1.5hrs if we went inland. The road was not as scenic as we expected it to be, but I am very glad we stopped in this charming town. To be honest I wish we had more time there than a couple of hours.

We grabbed lunch at Konoba Bonaca– the first restaurant we saw after getting out of the car – fresh, simple meals, nothing to rave or complain about.

The melting ice cream from one of the Old Town streets was delightful though.

Despite the heat we walked around for a bit and even climbed up the Kamerlengo Fortress. As you will notice in this post- we did a lot of climbing and saw a lot of views from high up. Every view was better than the next, and we never said it was a waste of time or effort.

Our parents skipped this climb and stayed in the shade below. Make sure to bring some water if you do this on a hot day.

We did not walk around for much longer, just along the Waterfront Promenade and some of the Old Town streets. The mix of Renaissance, Baroque and Roman architecture is both impressive and extremely charming, it reminded us of Italy.

Only another half an hour drive and we are in Split. If you are staying there, I highly recommend visiting Trogir for a quick day trip.

SPLIT

Old Town

Two nights at the Time Boutique Hotel flew by in no time (cheesy, I know 🙂 ). We arrived to the second largest city in Croatia late afternoon and first thing we did was enjoy the spa at the hotel. It was still too hot outside to sightsee and we booked this place partially because it had a spa. It’s indoor pool, jacuzzi and sauna, so don’t expect to be getting a tan here, but it was perfect for relaxing and restoring our energy for the evening on the town.

From Time Boutique Hotel to the most famous place in Split- Diocletian’s Palace is about 18 min walk. Perfect to burn off those big Croatian dinners. The Palace that is more like a fortress takes up half of the Split’s Old Town and is an absolute MUST to visit.

Honestly it felt like Rome. I knew Croatia is beautiful, but did not expect it to have such incredible old towns! Every corner, every cobblestone street is so charming!

For some ‘people watching’ go to Riva Promenade (Split Waterfront). Wide street lined with cafes, bars and palm trees lovely place to sit on a bench and relax.

Since we did not have time to stop at any of the Croatia’s wineries, we at least got to taste some wine (and eat amazing food) at the Zinfandel Food & Wine Bar.

They even had live music- an awesome singer throughout the whole dinner! This place was one of our favorite restaurants in Croatia.

Before going to bed we wandered around the Old Town a bit longer- it was significantly more crowded at night. Maybe it was due to cooling down weather, but it was becoming tight to walk in the narrow streets.

We checked out Temple of Jupiter, strolled down the Marmontova Ulica which was full shops, and called it a night.

Beaches and views

Kašjuni Beach

You can’t come to Croatia in summer and not go to the beach. The central city beach in Split is Bačvice, but as it is within walking distance from the busy Old Town, it gets extremely crowded. Since we had a car, we decided to drive 15 min and spend the day at the less busy, but no less beautiful Kašjuni Beach.

Even here, where it’s considered more local, the beach filled up pretty quick. We arrived around 10.30 am and already had to park on the side of the road (and got a parking ticket of $35). There were still plenty of chairs and umbrellas to rent, but by noon every single one was taken. Of course, you could just put a towel down, but since most of Croatia’s beaches are pebbles, that might not be the most comfortable. I definitely recommend renting an umbrella as well- the sun is super strong and even though I love to tan, I was looking for a shade after a couple of hours.

There is a restaurant/bar, so if you did not pack any snacks, you don’t need to starve or go anywhere. We loved the crystal clear turquoise water, the views of the nearby Marjan hill, delicious piña coladas and the relaxing atmosphere. “Now,” my step dad said, “I feel like we’re on vacation!”

Viewpoint to Marjan

This viewpoint is not a far drive from the beach, but you need to climb some stairs to get there. Only me and my sister ran up while the others waited in the car. I believe for Google maps you would need to put directions to Prva Vidilica Na Marjanu or Vidilica Cafe, because it is right near the observation deck.

Definitely stunning views of the city and the Adriatic Sea below!

For our second and last dinner in Split we chose Šug restaurant right in the Old Town. Beautiful setting on the outside patio, great service and food, but we still preferred the Zinfandel. Either way you can’t really go wrong.

By the way, for most of the places we had dinners booked in advance- either by emailing or calling the restaurants. Since it’s a busy season most places were packed and for five people would’ve been hard to get in otherwise.

Last walk around the beautiful Split Old Town and we are ready for our next adventure!

BOL

There are around 1200 islands and islets in Croatia. It’s summer, it’s hot and we have only been to one beach so far. Time to change that! We chose Brač island for several reasons. One- it was recommended by the friends that are from Croatia. Two, the fact that it’s easily accessible from Split. And last but not least- the world renown white pebble stone beach Zlatni Rat (Golden Cape or Golden Horn).

To get to Brač island is fairly easy- we booked Jadrolinija ferry tickets online and just had to show up around 45 min prior to a scheduled departure from Split to Supetar. The ferry goes every hour, but the ticket time was not assigned, so if you want to get on a specific time, it’s recommended to be there early. You drive on the ferry inside your vehicle and then get out and enjoy the views for just about an hour long sail. From Supetar to Bol is about 45 min drive- you have to cross the island from the north side to the south. Since we were not returning back to Split, our return ferry was from the western side of the island, a town called Sumartin. That ferry brought us back to the mainland into Makarska. This way we cut an hour of drive to our final destination- Dubrovnik. But first- beach time!

Lifestyle Hotel Vitar

Centrally located (around 18 min walk) between the famous Zlatni Rat beach and the Bol town center this gem of a place was perfect for our two nights stay. I only wish it was longer.

You could actually see the Zlanti Rat beach from the rooftop terrace. On the day of the arrival we did not even bother going to the beach- infinity pool, jacuzzi and the comfy lounge chairs with the sweeping views were way too inviting to leave. Hotel is adults only, you can order the drinks from the hotel bar and food delivery is available from a take out menu.

Even if we didn’t explore the rest of the town, we all felt like we were on vacation just enjoying this place.

Zlatni Rat (Golden Horn) Beach

This beach is regularly listed as one of the top beaches in Europe (even the world), so we had to see what the hype is all about. The walk from the hotel is pleasant and luckily has a shade from the pine trees lining the path. The online images, photographed from the top, gives an illusion of a sandy shoreline. There is NO sand (just like most of Croatia’s beaches), so bring your water shoes, because pebbles even though smooth, still can hurt the feet.

On one side of the ‘horn’ the water is super calm and clear. The other side had more waves and therefore was not as see-through. Either way it was refreshing, not cold- perfect for swimming. Get there early if you want to rent a chair or umbrella. The nice part about this beach was that it had a lot of natural shade as well, in case umbrellas are sold out.

It is a very nice beach, but having been to a lot of places in the world, I don’t think it’s that special. Maybe I just like the sand (Sean actually preferred pebbles), maybe the amount of people that crowded it- it’s a place to visit once, but if we were back in Bol I would enjoy more the rooftop pool than this beach (just my honest opinion).

Bol Old Town

It’s more like a fishing village and is charming to no end. Cute little streets, old buildings, fishing boats or luxury yachts in the harbor- we walked around and every corner was picture perfect. We loved this area of town.

Surprisingly it was not very crowded, temperature cooled off- it was the best golden hour walk with an incredible sunset.

Island dinners

We had two nights in Bol and therefore booked two incredible places for dinner. One was close to the Old Town- Ribarska Kućica and the view from our table was like out of a fairytale. Even if they served terrible food (which they don’t!), the view alone would have been worth it.

For our second night we went to Mali Raj– the restaurant located close to the Zlatni Rat beach. Walking to dinner we got a magical sunset and another view of the beach from a different angle.

The stone building is positioned inside the old olive grove and if you sit outside (you should), you’ll be surrounded by olive trees.

Local cuisine, friendly staff- it was perfect last night on the island.

SCENIC ROUTE

It took around 30 min to get from our hotel to Sumartin where we picked up another Jadrolinija ferry to Makarska.

If we had another day, I would’ve loved to explore this beautiful coastal city. Just arriving on the ferry you could see how picturesque this place is. Tip for this ferry ride- if you can, back into it rather than going forward. It is a lot easier to disembark facing forward than having to do it in reverse.

The drive from Makarska to Dubrovnik is around 2hrs and 45 min depending on traffic. We were lucky there was none! This coastal route is extraordinary, so even though it seems like a long time in the car, it went by quick.

The way the country is shaped and the road aligns, you have to briefly cross into Bosnia and Herzegovina before you can get back into Croatia to reach Dubrovnik. We expected traffic at the boarder, but lucky for us there was no line at all. The officer did not even take a look at our passports- we had them ready through the open window, but they just waved us in and just like that we’re in another country 🙂 .

Same thing happened at the boarder back to Croatia. They must be used to the tourists crossing, so it was a completely hassle free experience. We’ve heard it’s a lot worse on Fridays/weekend days, so try to time it up accordingly.

DUBROVNIK

Last stop on our Croatian adventure, where we’ll spend the longest time in on place- whole three nights 🙂 ! We returned the car at the airport, since we will not be needing it here. Well, if you spend a week, then the car might be useful, but since most of our time was allocated for the Old Town, hotel and dinners, then Uber or bus worked just fine.

Royal Blue Hotel

We looked into accommodations in the Old Town, but there was nothing that we actually liked. The prices were sky high, the space was limited and for the end of the trip we wanted to be able to relax and not feel trapped in a small room. Lapad area attracted us with the access to the Adriatic Sea and a short ride to the Old Town (bus goes every 15 min and takes about 15-20 min). We chose Royal Blue Hotel and had a wonderful stay.

Well, for full disclosure, it did have some issues. Check-in took a long time, they seemed to be under-staffed and not in any rush. Our room was beautiful, but AC made a lot of noise, so technician fixed it the following morning (we got a couples massage as a compensation). Breakfast was a busy buffet and, as we were leaving, they were implementing the new rules about having to choose a set time for breakfast. But other than that it was perfect.

We loved their 18+ rooftop lounge/pool. Great music, amazing views- especially for sunset.

The other great thing about this place is that it’s right on the Adriatic. Once we had enough of the pool, we could easily jump into the crystal clear blue sea.

Old Town

Surrounded by the massive 16th century stone walls, Dubrovnik’s Old Town is featured in the movies, TV shows and is absolutely beautiful. Dubrovnik Cathedral, Stradun Street, Rector’s Palace, Dominican Monastery– all these famous sights are within the city walls.

It did not help that the first time we walked around here was about 100F degrees. Sweaty and lifeless we tried to get as many beautiful sights in as we could, but it was a struggle. Be smarter and go either early in the morning or around sunset if you are here in summer.

For the Game of Thrones lovers there are special tours to go see the sights where the show was filmed. We only saw the Jesuit Stairs, Sean was happy with that (I don’t watch the show, so I could not care less 🙂 )

Dubrovnik Cable Car

Even on a hot day this was a great activity, another of the ‘musts’ while in Dubrovnik. Cable car takes you to Mt Srd and the views up top are gorgeous.

Don’t just take a picture and leave- have lunch at Restaurant Panorama. Cool breeze, nice shade, good food and you can enjoy the view for a longer time.

The Walls of Dubrovnik

We almost did not climb The Walls. During the day it was way too hot and they are not open in the dark. The entrance is from 8am to 7pm, so the last evening of our trip, Sean and I did our Covid tests (required to fly back to the USA) and literally ran to the Old Town, just making it in right before 7. This was THE BEST time for such activity. It cost around $35 pp and is absolutely worth it. Walking on top of Dubrovnik Walls was one of the top 5 experiences of this trip.

Even though we saw incredible views from the cable car, this was different. You are walking literally just above or alongside the roofs! Setting sun created a warm glow- it really was magical.

If we had entered earlier, there were a few places right on the walls to have a drink/snack. But we were on a time crunch to make the full circle, so it was a lot faster tour than it could have been.

We finished in about 1.5 hours, but to fully enjoy it, give yourself 2-3. I insisted that my sister and brother in law climb the walls (their flight was leaving late afternoon), so they got up early and went in the morning.

Both of them loved it too, though even at 9 am she said it was already hot. Worth the sweat!

Dubrovnik dinners

Three nights, three wonderful dinner experiences in Dubrovnik.

Pantarul restaurant

This was our first dinner, closest to our hotel (about 20 min walk). Pantarul restaurant had no views, but we LOVED the food. We were all tired from the long day of travels, so wanted to go to a place that is easy to get to. We all left happy and full.

Orka Restaurant

Orka restaurant was our second night in Dubrovnik and it had the most beautiful view. Food was good as well, but to be seated on the rooftop overlooking the marina was definitely special.

It is located in the quiet part of the city, so we didn’t feel like we’re in a busy and crowded tourist trap.