Dubrovnik is such a special place, and was a highlight for both of us on our world trip. It really is one of those bucket list places that absolutely lives up to its hype. It’s also one of the most popular tourist destinations in Europe, whose popularity was majorly boosted after Game of Thrones used it as a filming location. Whether you’re a GOT fan or not, there are so many amazing things to see and do in this city.
This post will go over how to spend three days in Dubrovnik, but if you’ve got less time don’t worry! You’ll still be able to see the whole city plus a bit extra, so read ahead to find out what we recommend.
In this post:
Dubrovnik Pass
While in Dubrovnik, you may be interested in purchasing the Dubrovnik Pass. This is a way to see a lot of Dubrovnik’s attractions easily. You can purchase this on their website and there are multiple passes available. The one day pass is €40, the three day pass is €50 and the seven day pass is €60. The three and seven day passes have 12 attractions including the Dubrovnik walls, a palace, museums and free public transport for the duration of the pass. The one day pass has all the same excluding the House Bukovac.
Day One
Day one is about exploring the old town and really getting to experience Dubrovnik.
Explore Old Town
Old Town Dubrovnik was classed as a UNESCO world heritage site in 1979, and its easy to see why. The city dates back to the 7th century and is enclosed in perfectly preserved high stone city walls. There are three main gates into the old town, Pile Gate, Ploče Gate, and Buža Gate. The main street through the town is Stradun, but most of the old town is made up of small winding streets.
There’s lots of things to see in the old town including a Franciscan Church and Monastery, Saint Blaise’s Church and Rector’s Palace. There’s also lots of museums to see such as the Ethnographic Museum, the Natural History Museum, the Museum of Selfies & Illusions and the Maritime Museum. For some cheap food, we ate more than once at Holy Burek where a filling and delicious burek cost us only €5 each (in 2023).
If you’re a Game of Thrones fan, there’s lots of places you’ll want to see. The Jesuit Stairs, St Dominic Street, Pile Gate and the steps outside the Dominican Monastery all featured in the show. If you’re a fan of the show there are heaps of tours including this Ultimate Game of Thrones City Walking Tour on Get Your Guide you could do.
There really is so much to do in old town Dubrovnik, whether you’re a Game of Thrones fan or not. It’s a gorgeous place to spend a couple of hours wandering around and you will quickly see why it’s one of our favourite places we’ve ever visited.
Dubrovnik Walls
The walls of Dubrovnik are the most amazing sight and a great thing to visit in the city. The first rocks were laid around the city in the late 8th century. However the existing walls were built around the 13th-14th century and have been preserved ever since. It runs for 1,940 metres in length, is 6 meters thick and at it’s highest is 25 meters above ground. The walls have also survived a major earthquake in 1667 and used to hold over 120 defensive cannons. They are such an important part of Dubrovnik, and walking along them really is an amazing thing to do when visiting.
Walking the Walls
We’re going to be honest, heading up to the Dubrovnik Walls is not a budget activity. We really had to decide if this was worth the money, but we eventually decided it was.
If you’ve got the Dubrovnik pass, it is included in that. If not, you can purchase an entry ticket at any of the three entry points to the walls. The ticket costs €40, and it only allows you to go on the walls once, so you’ll have to do them all in one visit. However, it also allows entry into Fort Lovrijenac within 72 hours, so it’s two for the price of one! This is the price is you visit from March 1st to November 30th but if you visit during January or February its only €20.
The walls are open from 8am to 7:30pm but we recommend going as early as possible. It’s pretty busy right up until closing so the best time to go is right after it opens. Once on the walls, there is an amazing view of the city within the walls and everything outside them. There’s also a couple of old towers you can go up, a little souvenir shop and even a café. It took us about an hour and a half to walk around. This was with regular photo stops and some rest breaks too. It really was a great way to spend our morning and we managed to see most of it without crowds.
Fort Lovrijenac (St Lawrence’s Fortress)
This fort is situated just outside Pile gate, and is included in the city walls ticket. If you don’t have the walls ticket you can still visit, with tickets being €15 at the door. It is quite small but does have a great view over Dubrovnik old town. It’s also one of the Game of Thrones filming locations in the city. To get there out of Pile gate, you’ll have to walk around the west harbour and up the 37 meter rock to the fort. The water around is absolutely stunning, the most crystal blue colour and its just a beautiful little walk. It’s definitely worth a visit even if you don’t go inside the fort.
Day Two
Day two is about staying near the city but doing some cool stuff and seeing new things!
Go up the Cable Car
Just north of the old town is the lower station of the Dubrovnik cable car. This cable car was built in 1969 and goes up Hill Srđ to a distance of 778m meters. To travel that distance, the ride itself only takes 3 to 4 minutes each way, and the cabins hold 30 people. If you’d like to visit, it is open March to November at varying times depending on the season. Make sure to check out their website to see if the cable car is open when you’re visiting. The journey will cost €30 per adult return or €17 per adult for one way.
Up the top, as you can imagine there is a stunning view and on a clear day you can see up to 60km away. There are heaps of viewpoints as well as some stone structures to take some photos with. For food, there’s a restaurant called Panorama that serves Mediterranean food, drinks and cakes. There’s also a variety of adventure activities up on the hill such as a sky bike, a buggy adventure and a zipline. Lastly there is Imperial Fort and the Homeland War Museum which you can visit for only €5 per person.
Visit Sveti Jakov Beach
Of course while you’re in Dubrovnik, you’ll want to spend some time in that beautiful Mediterranean water. The closest beach to Dubrovnik is Banje beach or Plaža Banje which is only a 10 minute walk from the old town. It’s a small little beach with beach chairs and there’s also a restaurant and club. However not too far away is a small beach called Sveti Jakov Beach or Plaža Sveti Jakov.
While Sveti Jakov Beach is a 30 minute walk from Dubrovnik old town, it’s not the nicest walk as it is along the road. The easiest and nicer way to get there is by public bus, which is super cheap and easy. Tickets can be bought on the bus with cash and they’re only €2 each way. The bus journey only takes 10 minutes and then you’ll walk 10 minutes to the beach. The walk does include 160 stairs down on to the beach itself.
The actual beach is lovely, with crystal clear water and a great view back to Dubrovnik. Because of its distance it’s also a lot quieter than Banje beach and in the high season you can even hire some water sport equipment.
Do keep in mind that this is a rocky beach so you will need shoes to go in the water. There’s also only one restaurant on the beach and no other food nearby, but it’s a lovely spot to bring a picnic!
If you’re interested, we have a whole post all about visiting Sveti Jakov Beach from Dubrovnik with more details about how to get there and our experience.
Day Three
Day three is about getting out of the city to go to a new country (or two) if you’ve got the time.
Go to a New Country! (or two):
One of the best things about Dubrovnik is that it’s super close to a couple of different countries. It’s only a 20 minute drive to the border of Bosnia and Herzegovina and a one hour drive to the border of Montenegro. Both of these are absolutely doable as day trips from Dubrovnik and are so worth a visit! If you only have time for one, we have a full blog post comparing the two day trips here.
Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Mostar is a beautiful little city about a 2 and a half hour drive from old town Dubrovnik. There are a good number of things to do in Mostar to keep you busy for a day. It has an interesting mix of Slavic and Turkish architecture, making it feel super different to Dubrovnik too. The most popular landmark in the city is the Stari Most bridge which is an amazing arched bridge. Jumping off this bridge is quite a common thing to see, as professional divers travel here just to try this exhilarating activity.
Walking up the cobbled main road alongside the Neretva river, there’s lots of great shops and restaurants. They sell interesting things such as carpets, lanterns, clothes and other souvenirs. You can also find some great food here such as Ćevapi, which is similar to a little kofta or sausage that often come with flat bread and potatoes. Baklava is also popular here and comes in many different flavours that are worth trying.
Mostar is absolutely worth a visit and is a super easy and fun day trip! We booked this day trip with Get Your Guide: From Dubrovnik: Mostar and Kravica Waterfall Day Trip.
Perast and Kotor, Montenegro
Kotor and Perast both sit on the edge of the Bay of Kotor, and together make for a wonderful day trip from Dubrovnik. We have a post all about how to spend a day in Kotor.
Perast is a gorgeous little city on the Bay of Kotor, about 2 hours drive from the old town of Dubrovnik. This town is on the way to Kotor so is absolutely worth stopping at. It’s just a little street along the water, with some restaurants, hotels, shops and churches. It has a great view over the bay and out on to two islands with cute little churches on them.
Heading round the bay you’ll reach Kotor, which has a much more similar vibe to Dubrovnik than Mostar. The old town of Kotor is behind some city walls, some of which you can walk along for free. Behind the city walls there’s winding cobbled streets, little churches, shops, restaurants and LOTS of wild cats. There’s also Kotor Fortress which is up a massive 1,350 steps and costs €8 to hike up to.
Perast and Kotor really were worth visiting and are somewhere we’d love to go back to one day! We booked this day trip with Get Your Guide: From Dubrovnik: Montenegro Coast Full-Day Trip.
Final Thoughts
If you are looking at how to spend three days in Dubrovnik, there really is so much to see and do. With the most gorgeous old town with so much to see, the most incredible city walls and Fort Lovrijenac right nearby, there’s so much to fit into day one. Depending how many days you’re there, you could spend day two heading up the cable car, exploring the beaches or going to another country. Both Mostar in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kotor in Montenegro are places that are absolutely worth visiting if you’re got the time!
Whatever you do and however long you spend there, you will quickly see why it’s one of the most popular tourist destinations in Europe!
To see everything that we got up to during our stay in Dubrovnik, check out the vlog of our trip: