When we first booked flights to Croatia, we weren’t planning to spend even 1 day in Dubrovnik. We thought it would be too touristy and not something we’d like. However, one day in Dubrovnik was the perfect amount of time to enjoy this famous, historic Croatian town.
The views from our villa up on the hill are what sold Dubrovnik for us, and shoot, we’re so glad we decided to spend one full day there!
This is our perfect one day Dubrovnik itinerary, with staying in Dubrovnik for two nights, one full day.
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What is Dubrovnik?
Dubrovnik is famous walled city in the southern part of Croatia. Large cruise ships stop in the port here, and visitors come from all around the world to visit this UNESCO World Heritage Site.
What draws visitors in is the famous medieval walled city. It’s the place of many different Game of Thrones scenes, and has beautiful beaches and tasty (though, expensive) restaurants!
Where to Stay in Dubrovnik
There are two different types of accommodation in Dubrovnik, and really it all depends one what you’re looking for in your stay.
The first is staying in Old Town Dubrovnik. There are a handful of benefits to staying in Old Town Dubrovnik, like not having to walk up a ton of stairs to your accommodation. However, we recommend staying hillside Dubrovnik.
We stayed at Rooms Rita on the Dubrovnik Hillside for two nights and absolutely loved our stay!
While there are a handful of stairs to climb to get to Rooms Rita, the view is amazing, and well worth the climb!
Getting To Dubrovnik
Flying into Dubrovnik, the airport is actually quite a ways out of the city. However, don’t worry, you can grab the local bus and get into town rather quickly.
Take the bus from the Dubrovnik airport to the city. It costs around 70 KN (10 USD) which is cheaper than renting a car for a day that’s just going to sit at your villa the entire day you spend in the city. Trust us here, you don’t want a car in Dubrovnik.
If you get in early enough to explore Dubrovnik that evening, get off at the first stop in Dubrovnik Old Town. If not, get off at the second stop and make your way to your accommodation for the night.
This Dubrovnik itinerary is based off arriving on a late flight into Dubrovnik airport and then staying two nights in the hillside of Dubrovnik. Although, if you can get to your hillside villa before sunset on night one, there’s really no need to stay two nights in Dubrovnik.
The Perfect 1 Day in Dubrovnik Itinerary
Breakfast with a View
Wake up and enjoy breakfast with a stunning view of the Adriatic Sea. Be sure your villa offers breakfast, otherwise you’ll need to pick up some fresh fruit, yogurt, or pastries the night before!
At Rooms Rita, breakfast wasn’t included. But it was super easy to just pop to a shop on the hillside and grab some simple pastries to enjoy!
Before leaving your accommodation, pack a day pack including a water bottle, swimsuit, and a towel.
Don’t forget to pay for a VPN before you travel! VPNs keep your internet security safe, and allow you to access all your home subscriptions too! We use nordvpn
and have been super happy with their service.
Get Lost in the Hillside
Grab your day pack and get lost in the alleyways throughout the hillside. Don’t use a map, just wander along whichever way you choose and see what you stumble upon!
Be sure to leave early enough to beat the heat! You’ll be walking lots and lots of steps through the hillside!
Check out the Harbor Viewpoint
After wandering through the hillside, make your way to the Harbor Viewpoint, 42.641777, 18.112548.
This has a fantastic view of the harbor from above, and actually looks almost directly at where you’ll be swimming later today!
If you’re a people watcher like we are, this is a great people watching location ;).
Local Beer + a Light Lunch
Gusta Me is a Mediterranean restaurant on the south side of Old Town (A.K.A. not in the main touristy region) with nice views of the harbor and delicious tuna bruschetta.
Enjoy a light lunch here to save room for the other treats later in the day.
The local lemon (limun) beer is a great way to cool off from the heat! Trying the local beer is one of our top musts in Dubrovnik!
Cool Off In The Adriatic Sea
Now’s about the time the heat starts hitting you. Walk around the far side of the harbor (you can see the swimming spot under the island in the harbor view picture above). Anyways, walk all the way around the edge of the fortress, and find a nice little swimming spot to refresh in.
There’s even a shower here to rinse off all that salt after your dip in the crystal clear water!
Grab some Gelato
After getting in that beautiful water the only thing that will get you out is knowing you’re getting gelato!
Rinse off, and wander down one of the side streets through Dubrovnik Old Town to get to the entrance on the northern side. (Near where the bus dropped you off yesterday.)
From there, look for Dubrovnik 1836 Restaurant and Café. It’s just outside the bridge to Old Town, and the gelato is delicious!
It’s worth noting here, like other things in the off season, this cafe is closed in the winter.
Wander the Streets of Old Town
Now that you have something to cool you off while wandering around the streets, make your way back into Old Town and get lost in the nooks and crannies of the walled city.
Be sure to get off the main walking street and step inside the picturesque alleyways!
If you want to walk the city walls, now would be a great time to do that! You can either book a tour, or do it by yourself.
If you choose to do this, look into the Dubrovnik Pass. It’s meant to be cheaper than purchasing the city walls pass and it includes more attraction entrances.
It’s Dinner Time
Whether you stay in the Old Town for dinner or not, it’s up to you. We ate at Bota Sushi and Oyster Bar and had an overpriced meal with super small servings, so we ended up grabbing pizza at Tuttobene a Croatia “fast food” place, for dinner too!
Depending on what time you actually get around to eating, you may even just want to grab cheese, crackers, fruit, and chocolate, and enjoy them with your wine – the last part of this one-day Dubrovnik itinerary.
Dubrovnik is overpriced in general, so be prepared to spend a bit more on your meals here. It’s cheaper to eat outside the city walls, so if you do plan on going out check your options first!
Sunset and Wine
The best part of Dubrovnik is by far the sunsets! Check what time the sun is setting, and be sure to be at your villa about an hour before then to really enjoy the whole thing.
Don’t forget to grab a bottle of wine and some chocolate to snack on while you watch the sun go down on an amazing day in Croatia!
If nothing else, you must include this in your Dubrovnik itinerary!
Dubrovnik in One Day
That’s a wrap to the perfect 1 day in Dubrovnik Itinerary. I think it’s easy to see that doing Dubrovnik in a day is totally doable, and is plenty of time in the medieval city before exploring more of Croatia.
Although Dubrovnik is touristy, there’s still beauty within the city. We hope you enjoy your time in Dubrovnik and all of Croatia. We recommend hitting the road and driving to Plitvice Lakes from Dubrovnik next!
Secrets out – Croatia is one of our favorite countries. With amazing national parks in Croatia, and places like Hvar.. we’re sure it will be one of your favorites too!
Best Time to Visit Dubrovnik
We recommend going in the “shoulder season” (May to early June and mid-September- October) and avoiding Croatia during the “high season” (mid-June through early September).
If you want to enjoy warmer water, go in the fall shoulder season (September – October). And if at all possible, avoid visiting Croatia in the winter, as a lot of places are completely closed for the season.
Nonetheless, anything time you do decide, 1 day in Dubrovnik will be loads of fun!
