10 Best Things To Do In Dubrovnik, Croatia (2026 Guide)

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Dubrovnik is a beautiful city in Croatia. It’s famous for its medieval Old Town, the stunning landscapes, and more recently, for being one of the filming sets of Game of Thrones.

I’ve been to Dubrovnik numerous times, and every time I fall more and more in love with the city. Despite the growing tourist crowds, there’s something in those old brick alleyways that keeps pulling me back.

Dubrovnik is the perfect destination for someone looking for both a beach and cultural holiday. With such a well-preserved medieval town you can’t help but learn of Dubrovnik’s history, while also enjoying the beautiful Croatian coast.

In this article I have outlined the 10 top activities and attractions in Dubrovnik, with practical tips on costs, how long each activity takes, prices, exact location, and how to avoid the worst crowds.

You will also find my top tips for the best places to eat, where to stay and useful packing tips. So without further ado, read on and discover the best things to do in Dubrovnik, Croatia!

Best things to do in Dubrovnik at a glance

Dubrovnik is a city in Southern Croatia, located on the Adriatic Sea. It’s a very popular destination, and it’s easy to see why.

Before we dive into the details of the best things to do in Dubrovnik, here is a quick overview of all the most famous attractions of Dubrovnik.

Activity	Why visit	Rating
Walk the Dubrovnik City Walls	Iconic views over the Old Town and Adriatic; the definitive Dubrovnik experience	5/5 ⭐
Game of Thrones walking tour	See real-life King’s Landing locations with behind-the-scenes stories	4/5 ⭐
Sunset sea kayak tour	Paddle around the walls at golden hour and explore a hidden sea cave	5/5 ⭐
Cable car to Mount Srđ	Panoramic views over Dubrovnik, the islands and coastline; best sunset viewpoint	4.5/5 ⭐
Elaphite Islands boat trip	Escape the crowds with swimming, snorkelling and relaxed island vibes	4.5/5 ⭐
Enjoy the Croatian beaches	Easy beach time close to the Old Town	4/5 ⭐
Explore Dubrovnik Old Town	Wander medieval streets, palaces and churches with endless photo opportunities	4.5/5 ⭐
Day trip to Montenegro	Combine dramatic scenery and historic towns like Kotor and Perast in one day	4/5 ⭐

 

Map of the best places to visit in Dubrovnik

I have mapped all of the best attractions in Dubrovnik in the map below, so that you can exactly where each spot is, and plan your time in Dubrovnik more efficiently.

10 top things to do in Dubrovnik

Walk on the Old Town walls

• Time needed: 2–3 hours
• Approx. cost: ~€20–€25 (varies by season)
• Best time to go: Early morning or late afternoon to avoid the cruise ship crowds and heat

Regardless of how much time you spend in Dubrovnik this is the one main tourist attraction that you cannot miss. The Old Town of Dubrovnik is entirely surrounded by walls.

Back in the day these were to keep invaders out and to protect the city from the power of the sea and waves. Today, it’s the main tourist attraction of Dubrovnik. Access to the walls costs around 20 EUR.

The walk lasts around two hours, and you can only walk it going in one way (imagine the traffic and how messy it would get with people walking in opposite directions)!

It’s a very beautiful walk, since the walls are considerably higher than the majority of the rooftops in Dubrovnik (makes sense if you think about it, they had to keep invaders away and make sure houses inside the town were safe!) which means there are beautiful viewpoints from pretty much any spot on the walls.

There are only three access points to the walls though, if it starts raining, like it did when we where there, you might end up having to walk for quite a while under the rain before you can get off the walls.

Top tip for visiting the walls; go in the afternoon. In the morning there are all the visitors from the cruise boats who go around in big groups often making it hard to walk in the narrow sections of the walls.

Most of these groups leave around lunch since the cruise boats leave early, so if you go on the walls early afternoon you will be able to enjoy the walk without as many people.

You can easily walk the Old Town walls alone, but if you prefer to have someone tell you about the history of Dubrovnik while you do it there are many guided tour options.

This tour specifically is great since it goes early morning or at sunset, when there will be considerably less people on the walls.

Book your Old Town Walls guided tour here! Or check out prices & availability below!

 

Do a Game of Thrones walking tour

• Time needed: ~2 hours
• Approx. cost: from €25
• Best time to go: Morning or evening in summer (cooler temperatures), or any time in shoulder season

Another addition from my last visit to Dubrovnik were the Game of Thrones walking tours. I quickly realised that they are amongst the most popular tours in Dubrovnik!

GoT was already around four years ago, and I remember my friend who has from Dubrovnik pointing out which parts of the town had been used in the TV show, but that was it.

This time we found the city full on organised walking tours, where a guide will take you to all the main filming locations in the Old Town, showing you pictures of the scenes to help your recognise them.

Being all avid GoT fans we couldn’t miss on the chance of seeing all the filming locations and feeling like we were also in Kings Landing for a day.

The tour lasts about two hours, and are a fun way of combining seeing the city with learning more about a TV show you know and love.

It’s interesting also to see how much of it real life props and how much is added CGI. If you want to find out more about the filming locations of GoT in Dubrovnik check out my article here.

Discover all the Game of Thrones filming locations in Dubrovnik with a guided tour by GetYourGuide or Viator!

 

Do a kayak sunset tour

• Time needed: ~3 hours
• Approx. cost: from €25–€35
• Best time to go: Sunset tour in summer (best light, less crowded on the water)

Another popular tour, which was also one of the highlights of our Dubrovnik trip was doing a kayak sunset tour.

The tour is about 200 Croatian Kuna per person, and includes a sandwich during the tour and wine once the tour is over and you’re back safely on firm land.

We met with our group at 4pm, it took some time to get everybody arranged with life jackets and their kayaks, plus the usual security chat and then we were off kayaking.

Kayaking under the walls of the Old Town of Dubrovnik is both impressive and beautiful at the same time.

Looking up at the size of the walls from your small kayak makes them seem even more imposing. The kayak tour goes around the island of Lokrum, before then arriving at a secret beach inside a huge cave. 

I did this tour also last time I was in Dubrovnik four years ago, and even if the beach was lovely, when we went this time there were so many kayaks you couldn’t even sit on the beach.

Cliff diving from the rocks surrounding the cave is very popular. After having our sandwich, swimming in the water and relaxing for a bit we set off on the return home, and this was even more stunning than before.

The return was at prime sunset time, and we got to kayak under the walls of the Old Town as the sky was lighting up with all the reds and pinks you could imagine.

Estimated time required: 3 hours

Book your kayak sunset tour in Dubrovnik here! 

Or check out prices & availability for your chosen date below!

 

Discover the Old Town of Dubrovnik

• Time needed: 2–4 hours
• Approx. cost: Free (entrance to some attractions or a guided tour is extra)
• Best time to visit: Early morning or evening

I’ve mentioned the Old Town of Dubrovnik before, but it’s so beautiful that it deserves to be its own item on this list of the best things to do in Dubrovnik.

The Old Town of Dubrovnik is enclosed by the city walls I previously mentioned, so it’s hard to miss it. Within the Old Town walls you will find countless adorable streets and houses, built with the traditional style and brick.

In 1667 there was an earthquake in Dubrovnik, which then lead to the meticulous renovation and preservation you can see today. Walking around the streets of the Old Town will feel like stepping back in time!

Estimated time required: Up to you really! From 1 hour to all day, depending on how many cute streets and corners you want to find.

You can also do a guided tour of the Old Town if you want to discover all the most iconic spots, as well as learning about the history of Dubrovnik along the way.

Click here to book your guided walking tour of Dubrovnik Old Town!

Or check out prices & availability for your chosen date below!

 

Explore the Croatian beaches

• Time needed: However long you want!
• Approx. cost: Free 
• Best time to visit: Early morning for less crowds, afternoon for sunset vibes, but great any time of day!

There are lots of beautiful beaches in Dubrovnik.

However like most Croatian beach destinations (from what I’ve seen anyway!) there aren’t many sandy beaches. Even the beach inside the hidden cave was rocky, but the water is always clear and beautiful.

There are two main beaches on either side of the Old Town, one is made up of small rocks instead of sand, whilst the other by the Pila gate can’t really be called a beach by Italian standards (we pride ourselves with our white sandy beaches).

However according to the tour guide it’s where the locals go to hang out and play water polo, so we couldn’t miss it. It took us a bit of trial and error walking down little paths in the cliffside, when we eventually found it.

There is no beach per se, just big slabs of rock where people put their towels to sunbathe, and a water polo court floating in the sea in front of it.

Even if you’ve never played before I recommend jumping in and joining a game if you can, it’s great fun and the locals are very welcoming.

Do a boat trip to the Elaphite Islands

• Time needed: Half or full day
• Approx. cost: €30 to €60
• Best time to visit: May to September

In the harbour of the Old Town of Dubrovnik you will also see lots of stalls trying to sell you excursions and boat trips to the islands off the coast of Dubrovnik.

If you’re a beach person and want to take a break from all the city sightseeing of the other activities on this Dubrovnik bucket list, this is a great way to spend a day in Dubrovnik.

The Croatian beaches and sea are absolutely stunning and you will spend a relaxing day exploring some beautiful islands.

Prices vary depending on the boat size, if food and drinks are included, how many stops the boat does etc but usually range from 30 EUR to 60 EUR.

You can book your boat tour directly at the harbour of Dubrovnik, but if you’re visiting during high season I recommend booking your Elaphite Islands boat trip beforehand online, as it can sell out very quickly in high season.

Click here to see the latest prices and availability for a Dubrovnik boat trip, or check out the calendar below!

 

Take the cable car at sunset

• Time needed: 1–2 hours
• Approx. cost: ~€25 round trip
• Best time to visit: Late afternoon or sunset on a clear day

Dubrovnik has the sea on one side and hills on the other. There is a fort on top of the closest hill, from which there is a beautiful view that overlooks Dubrovnik and its surroundings.

If you’re feeling sporty you can walk up the hill, but it will take more than one hour, or for the lazy people like us you can take the cable car to the top.

If you go at sunset the view will be even more beautiful, since the soft light will really make the colours of the red roofs stand out. 

There is also a restaurant here but as you can imagine it is considerably more expensive than the restaurants inside the Old Town.

I recommend going just before sunset, enjoying the sunset and the view and then getting the cable car back down to have dinner and enjoy the rest of your evening.

Click here to book a cable car & buggy safari guided tour!

Taste the delicious Croatian cuisine

In Dubrovnik you will find many delicious places to eat. One of my personal favourite was Lady PiPi (if you like meat or fish, as they don’t have much else).

Both our AirBnB host and the guy from which we bought our Game of Thrones and sunset kayak tours recommended it as a place “where the locals go”, so we couldn’t not check it out!

The venue is outdoors and lovely, with a beautiful view over the rooftops of Dubrovnik. For 20 EUR each we had a huge mixed barbecue of meat, which was great value for money.

There are many restaurants both with epic rooftop views or hidden in cute side streets. Make sure to check online reviews or to get a local tip, since given how touristy the Old Town is, some can turn out to be tourist traps.

Visit the Rector’s Palace

• Time needed: Around 1 hour
• Approx. cost: €15
• Best time to visit: Early morning or late afternoon

The Rector’s Palace in Dubrovnik is one of the main tourist and historical attractions. It used to be a political building, acting as the seat of power for the Rector of the Republic of Ragusa and later on in history for the Minor Council.

Today it’s just a beautiful palace that you can visit and if you’re a Game of Thrones fan, you might even recognise it as the setting for a lot of the Qarth scenes in season two. 

Go on a day trip to Montenegro

• Time needed: Full day (10–12 hours)
• Approx. cost: from €60
• Best time to visit: April–October

I know what you’re thinking, how is going to an entirely different country one of the best things to do in Dubrovnik? I thought the same thing, until I discovered that it’s one of the most popular day trips from Dubrovnik.

The drive from Dubrovnik to Kotor in Montenegro is only 2 hours. You will find many Montenegro day tours from Dubrovnik that will occupy the whole day, taking you to Kotor, Budva, and many beautiful viewpoints along the way.

It’s not for everyone, but if you’re a traveller keen to tick off as many Europe bucket list experiences, and don’t mind spending a few hours driving, then it’s a great activity!

Click here to see prices and availability for your Dubrovnik to Montenegro day trip, or check out the calendar below!

 

How to plan your days in Dubrovnik

If you want a detailed day-by-day breakdown of how to spend 2 or 3 days in Dubrovnik, make sure to check out my Dubrovnik itinerary. If you want a high level overview, here are my suggestions:

1 day in Dubrovnik: Focus on the Old Town, City Walls, and a sunset cable car ride.

2 days in Dubrovnik: Spend a chill morning at the beach, then join a kayak sunset tour in the afternoon.

3+ days in Dubrovnik: Add a boat trip to the Elaphite Islands, or day trips beyond Dubrovnik (like Montenegro).

Where to stay in Dubrovnik

The best places to stay in Dubrovnik are those within the walls of the Old Town, or just outside.

These will obviously be a little more expensive than accommodation further out, but you will be so close to all the main attractions that it will be worth it. I’ve listed below some options for every budget.

Budget: Hostel Angelina – This lovely hostel is right in the Old Town. It has spacious dorms and a fun sociable atmosphere.

Click here to book your stay at Hostel Angelina!

Mid-range: Buza Apartment – This hotel has awesome views over the Dubrovnik Old Town, as well as being just 30m from the nearest beach, while still offering an affordable price.

Click here to see the latest prices and availability at Buza Apartment!

Luxury: The Pucic Palace – If you’re looking to treat yourself, this is the perfect place to do so. Located right in the heart of the Old Town, this beautiful hotel has great views over the rooftops of Dubrovnik.

Click here to book your stay at The Pucic Palace!

Do you need travel insurance to visit Dubrovnik?

After my personal experience spending two nights in a private hospital in Tenerife, and having to pay for it out of pocket (it wasn’t cheap), I always recommend getting travel insurance.

You might not end up needing it, but for a small fee you can travel without worries. Personally, I suggest getting your travel insurance with  Heymondo.

Heymondo offers tailor made travel insurance, providing the best value for money for your specific trip. You can also buy it once you’re already abroad and have forgotten about it before flying (which, if you’re anything like me, is quite likely).

Besides the usual cancellation, medical expenses, luggage coverage and general travel insurance services, Heymondo also has a 24/7 doctor chat and instant assistance through their app.

As a Greta’s Travels reader, you get 5% off your Heymondo travel insurance!

Click here to get your 5% off Heymondo travel insurance!

What to pack for a trip to Dubrovnik

You don’t need much besides the usual travel essentials to have an awesome time in Dubrovnik. However I’ve listed below some key things you don’t want to forget!

Power bank – Whether it’s to check where you’re going with Google Maps, or to take beautiful travel pictures, you don’t want your phone to run out of battery!

Water bottle – You can drink the tap water in Croatia, so kill two birds with one stone by saving money and consuming less plastic!

International adapter – Depending on where you’re travelling from you might need an adapter to charge your electronics.

Fast drying towel – Whether it’s for the shower of your hostel dorm, after a a kayak tour or to lie on the beach, you’ll need one of these. I love them because they dry quickly and don’t take up much space.

FAQs about the best things to do in Dubrovnik

How many days do you need in Dubrovnik?

Two full days is the minimum to see the Old Town, walk the City Walls, and fit in one or two key activities like the kayak sunset tour. If you want to include boat trips to nearby islands, or day trips to other cities, plan for three to four days.

You could stay longer in Dubrovnik, just enjoying the beautiful beaches and vibe, but if you have the time I recommend planning a wider Croatia itinerary and travelling on towards Split.

What is the best time to visit Dubrovnik?

The best months to visit Dubrovnik are May, June, September, and early October, when the weather is warm but the crowds are smaller.

July and August are peak season, with very high temperatures and large numbers of cruise-ship visitors (after all, Dubrovnik is one of the best cruise destinations in the Mediterranean!), especially in the middle of the day.

Is Dubrovnik worth visiting?

Yes. Dubrovnik is absolutely worth visiting for its stunning medieval Old Town, dramatic city walls, clear waters and beautiful Adriatic setting. It’s one of Europe’s most interesting cities, and a great base for island-hopping and day trips.

The city can feel overwhelming in mid-summer when the main streets are packed, but in shoulder season or with smart timing, it’s the highlight of any Croatia trip.

Is Dubrovnik expensive?

Dubrovnik is one of the more expensive destinations in Croatia, particularly in the Old Town and during peak summer months. Accommodation, restaurants with views, and tours all tend to cost more than in other parts of the country.

What currency do you use in Dubrovnik?

Croatia uses the Euro (€) as its official currency, having switched from the kuna in January 2023.

Cards are widely accepted in hotels, restaurants, and most shops, but it’s still useful to carry some cash for small purchases, markets, and tips. ATMs are easy to find around the Old Town, bus station, and main tourist areas.

Is the Dubrovnik Pass worth it?

The Dubrovnik Pass can be good value if you plan to walk the City Walls, visit two or more included museums or attractions, and use public buses during your stay.

It makes sense for first-time visitors who want to pack in several paid attractions over a short period. If you’re going to follow my suggested itineraries, it’s probably worth it as individual tickets would be more expensive.

Click here to purchase your Dubrovnik Pass for your trip!

Can you wear swimwear in the Old Town?

No. Under Dubrovnik’s “Respect the City” rules, wearing swimwear such as bikinis, swim trunks, or going shirtless in the Old Town streets can result in a fine of around €150.

You should wear proper clothing when walking between your accommodation, the Old Town, and the beaches. Change at the beach or in your accommodation rather than on the main streets.

Is Dubrovnik safe for tourists?

Yes. Dubrovnik is considered very safe, with low crime rates and a noticeable police presence in the main tourist areas.

As in any popular destination, it’s sensible to watch for pickpockets in crowded places, keep valuables secure, and be careful on busy steps and along the walls. The main risks are heat, crowds, and slippery stones rather than crime.

Are there mosquitoes in Dubrovnik?

Mosquitoes can be present from June to September, especially in the evenings and near water, but they’re usually more of a nuisance than a danger. If you tend to get bitten a lot, just use mosquito repellent and you’ll be fine.

Final thoughts on the best things to do in Dubrovnik

Dubrovnik is a beautiful city which I have travelled to multiple times, and would happily go back to again.

In this post I’ve given you a summary of what to do in Dubrovnik and the best places to see, including an estimate for how long each activity will take you, so you can plan your time in Dubrovnik accordingly.

Have you been to Dubrovnik before? Would you recommend other places to see? Let me know in the comments below!

I want this guide to include all the most amazing things that you can do in Dubrovnik, so if you have other cool suggestions let me know and I’ll include them!

Looking for more Croatia travel tips? Check out all my Croatia guides here!

• Ultimate guide for a Hvar Island day trip from Split
• Where to stay in Hvar Island, Croatia
• The best tours in Split
• Best things to do in & around Split
• Krka National Park – everything you need to know
• Everything you need to know about doing a zipline tour in the Cetina Canyon, Omis
• Where to stay in Split

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