Strolling through the old town of Dubrovnik

Start from Pile bus station (pronounced "Pilé"), served by all lines from 1 to 9 except line 7.

Street names are engraved on stone plaques. In the description below, the names are written in Croatian, i.e. as they appear on site, and in italics. See the list of routes in the "Practical Information" section. N.B. Specific letters of the Croatian alphabet (e.g. c, s or z with an accent) are not available on Visorando; in such cases, the standard Latin letter has been used.

(S/E) From the bus station, head towards the clearly visible ramparts. Turn immediately right onto a square (with a fountain) to reach a beautiful viewpoint overlooking the sea.

Return towards the city walls and cross a bridge over the old moat. Then go down either a ramp on the left (as shown on the map) or a flight of steps opposite. Pass under the Pile Gate (Vrata od Pila) and emerge onto a square with a large fountain in the centre.

Note a small church on the left, then the entrance to the cloister (klaustar) of the Franciscan monastery (Franjevacki Samostan). Continue straight ahead along a wide cobbled street (Stradun), passing the large monastery church on your left.

(1) At the corner of the church, turn left into Ulica Celestina Medovica. You will soon cross a street on the right and climb a long flight of steps. Cross a small square, go round the house at No. 2 on the left and climb another flight of steps.

After No. 8, turn left towards Gornji Ugao. Go through a small gate and head left, past some small sports fields, to reach a lovely viewpoint overlooking the town and the sea.

Retrace your steps, then continue up the steps to the foot of the tower known as Minceta (the grand staircase leading up to it does not take you to the ramparts but to a museum).

Then turn right and walk along the ramparts on your left, with the bell tower of the Dominican monastery gradually coming into view, set against the backdrop of the sea. Note the charming little houses on the right, as well as the views offered by the descending staircases.

At Ulica Boskoviceva, go through the large gate on the left for a view of the ramparts from the outside. Retrace your steps and continue along the ramparts towards the bell tower, which is clearly visible.

At the end of the street, turn right into Ulica Zlatarska and head downhill. You’ll come out onto a small square and, before the little church bordering it, turn left into an alleyway, pass under a porch and arrive at the foot of the Dominican monastery (Dominikanski Samostan; museum entrance on the left). Then turn right and go down a wide flight of steps.

(2) At the bottom, turn sharply left. Walk past St Dominic’s Church on your left and the ramparts on your right. Go through a gate, over a bridge and then through a second gate. You will then find a shaded square on your right offering a beautiful view of the sea and the harbour.

Retrace your steps back to the foot of the wide staircase.

(2) Then turn left. After a few metres, go through a small gate on the left, continue straight ahead and you will come out at the harbour.

Turn right and walk along the harbour on your left. Pass by the foot of Saint Ivan Fortress (Tvrdava Sv Ivan) and walk to the end of the jetty.

Retrace your steps. After a right-hand bend at the foot of the fortress and before the quay curves slightly to the left, go through a small gate on the left and you’ll come out onto a street opposite No. 8 (access to the aquarium – Akvarij – on the left).

Follow this street to the right. Ignore the^first flight of steps on the left and climb the^second to follow Ulica Bandureva for a few metres. At the junction immediately ahead, turn right. Pass under a^first, rather long archway, then under a^second, shorter one. Do not go under the^third archway but go down the steps on the right leading to the foot of the cathedral.

(3) Facing the cathedral entrance, turn right and walk past the Rector’s Palace on your right. Head towards the square at the foot of the bell tower and on the corner of St Blaise’s Church. Retrace your steps.

(3) Facing the cathedral entrance, turn left and climb the steps you descended earlier. First turn right then left to head back up Ulica Pobijana. At the top, ignore a turn-off to the left and walk along the ramparts on your left (after No. 5, a small door on the left leads to a bar perched on the cliff facing the sea).

Cross Ulica Sarake on the right-hand side and continue along the winding alley. At a fork in the road, turn right onto Ulica Stulina. After a right-left turn, go under a porch and head downhill.

Under another archway (with religious paintings opposite), turn left. At the junction immediately ahead, continue straight on. Then turn left into the alleyway, climb a flight of steps and enter a narrow archway.

(4) At the junction, turn right, cross diagonally across a stony area and reach St Ignatius Church (note the monumental staircase on the right leading up to it from the lower part of the town). Retrace your steps.

(4) At the previous junction, turn right towards a“bar with beautiful view”(sign). Walk along the ramparts again on your left. Pass the entrance to the famous “bar with a view” on the left and continue along Ulica Od Kastela, ignoring all the narrow stairways leading down to the right.

At the corner of a playground on the right-hand side, go down the steep staircase on the right into Ulica od Domina. At the^first junction, turn left towards the ethnographic museum. Immediately after the museum entrance, go down a staircase on the right.

At the bottom, opposite No. 8, turn right into an alleyway (not shown on the map) below a small garden. At the end, turn left and rejoin Ulica od Domina, still going downhill. Walk along the right-hand side of a small square, then past a small church, and continue straight on.

At the next junction, turn right onto Ulica od Puca and follow it to the Orthodox church (Crkva Sv Blagovjestenja). Retrace your steps.

Back at the junction, go straight on into Ulica od Puca. After No. 18, turn right into Ulica Cubranoviceva. At the end, turn left and you will immediately come to a junction you passed at the start of the walk.

(1) Go straight on and you’ll come back to the square with the large fountain. Go through the Pile Gate again and leave the old town. After the bridge over the old moat, go straight on to the bus station (S/E).

Names of streets and monuments:
- Ulica (pronounced "ulitsa"): street.
- Vrata: gate.
- Dvor: palace.
- Samostan: monastery.
- Crkva: church.
- Sv: St (Saint).

Accessibility:
- It is recommended that you travel to the starting point by bus. Not only is the station very well served, but access to the area around the old town is very difficult, particularly in summer, and car parks have limited capacity. See information on Dubrovnik’s bus routes (overview map and route details). Tickets can be purchased either on the buses themselves or at dedicated kiosks (there is one at the start of the walk).
- The old town, within the city walls, is entirely pedestrianised. Low-cut trainers or walking shoes are preferable to street shoes. Given the large number of steps involved, the route is not accessible to wheelchair users and may be difficult with a pushchair.

Times, alternatives and resources:
- The times given are walking times, not including any stops or visits you may wish to make. Depending on the number of these visits and their duration, the time taken for this walk can vary from one and a half hours to four or five hours.
- For church visits, please ensure you are dressed appropriately. No church visits during services.
- The route naturally lends itself to numerous variations depending on your mood, provided you have a detailed map (see below).
- There are numerous fountains and other drinking water points along the route, which is very welcome in summer...
- Bars and restaurants can be found all over the place to quench your thirst or grab a bite to eat, particularly around major monuments and main streets. Some bars are located outside the city walls on the cliff overlooking the sea (a beautiful viewpoint).

Maps:
It is essential to carry a detailed map showing the street names in Croatian (at the very least, the one accompanying this description). Maps of the city can be purchased locally (at newsstands or the tourist office at the entrance to the old town). It is also possible to obtain small guidebooks with maps included in France, at specialist bookshops.

Hike undertaken by the author on 26 August 2018.

- Old Town ramparts (13th century), punctuated by imposing towers (13th–15th centuries). The route runs alongside the ramparts in several places, as indicated in the description.
- Off the main route, it is possible to walk the full circuit of the ramparts via the old circular path (around 2 km), which offers extensive views. Access is immediately to the left after entering through the Pile Gate. Open from 08:00 to 19:00. Adult admission (August 2018): 150 Kuna.
- Franciscan Monastery (14th–15th centuries). There is an admission charge for the cloister (30 Kuna per person in August 2018). Museum opening hours: from the last Sunday in May to the last Sunday in October, 09:00–18:00; in winter, 09:00–17:00.
- Beautiful view of the town and the sea just before Minceta Tower.
- Dominican Monastery (13th–15th centuries). Museum opening hours: 1 May to 31 October, 09:00–18:00; in winter, 09:00–17:00.
- The harbour
- Dubrovnik Cathedral (17th–18th centuries), built on the site of the former Romanesque cathedral (12th–14th centuries) destroyed in the 1667 earthquake.
- Rector’s Palace (14th century).
- St Blaise’s Church (18th century).
- St Ignatius Church (late 17th century).
- Ethnographic Museum in a 16th-century building.