Travel Man: Dubrovnik
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The Croatian Islands, from Split to Dubrovnik
Sail from island to island, discovering the most beautiful viewpoints of the Adriatic Sea. Starting from Split, you’ll travel to the islands of Brac and Hvar to explore the best-preserved picturesque landscapes of the Adriatic. Once you've had your fill of this natural beauty, head to the island of Korcula, where the island’s beauty will leave you speechless. Enjoy these island moments before heading back to the mainland for one last visit to Dubrovnik!
In the Travel Man episode, Richard Ayoade and Stephen Merchant pack Dubrovnik into a single weekend: a Game of Thrones tour, a buggy ride up Mount Srd, a ferry to the peacock island of Lokrum, and Ston oysters on a sunny terrace. A great weekend. This itinerary follows the same coast at a slower pace, hopping by ferry from Split to Dubrovnik with room to wander between the highlights. The link below opens the full trip, and you can change any part of it.
Start Inside a Roman Emperor's Palace
Split begins in Diocletian's Palace, a retirement home built for a Roman emperor about 1,700 years ago. People still live here, shop here and drink their morning coffee here. You find a cafe by walking past Roman stonework, with no roped-off line in sight. Give the palace a full, unhurried morning. When you're ready for the water, a boat trip to the Blue Lagoon and Trogir, a medieval town on its own small island, makes for an easy day of swimming and wandering.
Diocletian’s Palace is so beautifully preserved that you’ll feel like you’ve stepped right into ancient Rome.
Let the Ferries Do the Work
The middle of the trip is the part of the coast that day-trippers skip. You cross the Adriatic on ferries of about two hours, coffee in hand, and step off in a new harbor each time. Each island has its own character.
Brac is pale limestone, quarried here for centuries, which gives the hillsides and harbors a bright, chalky glow. Ride a mountain-bike descent from the summit, where the whole archipelago spreads out below you, then finish at Bol, where Zlatni Rat reaches into the sea as a long spit of smooth pebbles that shifts shape with the currents.
Zlatni Rat on Brac, an afternoon stop on day five of the itinerary.
Hvar runs on lavender: in season the fields turn the hills purple and scent the air long before you reach them. From Stari Grad, one of the oldest towns in Europe, hike out across the Stari Grad Plain, farmland that Greek settlers laid out more than two thousand years ago and locals still work today.
Korcula is the reason to slow down. Its walled old town sits on a small peninsula, its streets laid out in a herringbone pattern that pulls sea breezes through. Spend an evening at a table by the water as the stone glows, with a glass of local white wine.
Three islands, three different moods, all an easy ferry ride apart.
Strolling along Dubrovnik’s Old Town walls is a must do—especially for Game of Thrones fans who’ll spot King’s Landing right away!
Walk the Walls Above the Sea
Dubrovnik comes last. This medieval walled city is ringed by nearly two kilometers of stone wall that you can walk end to end, with the sea on one side and terracotta rooftops on the other. You don't need to know the show it appeared in. The forts, the views and the fact that so much of the city has survived intact are reason enough. You stay at The Pucic Palace, inside the old town and steps from the Stradun. Set aside a day for Mount Srd, where you can take in the same panorama the episode reached by buggy.
Five stops, one coastline. The itinerary books as a single trip through the link below, and it is fully customizable. Shorten it, stretch it, or trade an island for an extra night behind the walls. Click through and shape it into your own.
The Croatian Islands, from Split to Dubrovnik
Sail from island to island, discovering the most beautiful viewpoints of the Adriatic Sea. Starting from Split, you’ll travel to the islands of Brac and Hvar to explore the best-preserved picturesque landscapes of the Adriatic. Once you've had your fill of this natural beauty, head to the island of Korcula, where the island’s beauty will leave you speechless. Enjoy these island moments before heading back to the mainland for one last visit to Dubrovnik!
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