In summer Croatia is very well suited for Island Hopping, but for now I will only describe some very few islands that can easily be visited on day trips from Dubrovnik, as well as some walks in the Old Town.

Regardless of walks, Dubrovnik is of course well worth visiting in its own right. Many people have in fact discovered this, so in summer the main street is completely packed in the middle of the day. Luckily there are no cars! Except the odd transport van. The old town is well protected by huge walls, and is a sight you won’t forget!

Still, I have read that Dubrovnik’s most prominent landmark is in fact Restaurant Proto! And that is not because of its general visibility… So a visit here should also be included in your trip, and their upstairs terrace is pretty informal and still very nice. The food is of course great.

Selected walks: For walks in Croatia take a look in Landscapes of Croatia by Sandra Bardwell, referred to below as “/Bardwell/”. A couple of city walks are described in Dubrovnik by Piers Letcher, referred to below as “/Letcher/”. A walk up to Mount Srđ from Dubrovnik can be found in The Rough Guide to Croatia by Jonathan Bousfield, referred to below as /Bousfield/. There is also Walking in Croatia by Rudolf Abraham.

•1 LOPUD (my total time 3h19, this includes stops for photography and drinking, as well as some “research”; +-406m; 2 laps): This is walk 3 in /Bardwell/.

Take the Jadrolinija ferry from Gruž harbour in the morning (usually at 09.00 or 10.00, depending on season and day of week), returning in the evening. Tickets are bought at the Jadrolinija ticket office just across the street. At time of writing the price is just 36 Kuna return. You should plan your return so you can eat at e.g the nice fish restaurant Obala which has a perfect location.

Not that much to say about the actual walk itself, except to tell that is very idyllic indeed. There is only one part which has been damaged by forest fire that is not very interesting.

But after Svete Mauro do take one of the two options you will find going straight ahead to get down to the track were you turn back right. You can continue left at the first opportunity, but then you should take the next option ahead. Continuing left a second time take you into an overgrown portion of the path that will lead you to the mentioned cypresses at the 1h10min point, but I cannot recommend this. BTW, it is all track from here now, no path anymore.

•2 KOLOČEP (my total time 1h49, this includes stops for photography and some small rests for drinking and admiring the views; +-179m; 1 lap): This is walk 2 in /Bardwell/.

Take the Jadrolinija ferry from Gruž harbour in the morning (usually at 09.00 or 10.00, depending on season and day of week), returning in the evening. Tickets are bought at the Jadrolinija ticket office just across the street. At time of writing the price is just 36 Kuna return. You should plan your return so you manage to eat at least some lunch at La Trattoria among palm trees. E.g. their pasta is really excellent.

What a peaceful walk! Just beware that the sign at the “chapel and cemetery” was now missing. And instructions just above Uvala Gornje Čelo are not very precise to say the least, so you will have to stretch your imagination a bit here. Luckily there are really not many places to go…

•3 MLJET (my total time 2h43, this includes stops for photography, some small rests for drinking and admiring the view and even a swim; +-317m; 2 laps): From Polače you can make up your own walk selecting from walk 4-6 in /Bardwell/. I followed walk 5 solely.

Take the high speed catamaran Nona Ana from Gruž harbour (usually at 09.15, returning at either 16.00 or 16.55 in the evening, depending on season and day of week). Tickets are bought at their ticket booth in the harbour an hour before departure. At time of writing the price is just 100 Kuna return. Remember also to buy a ticket to the National Park at the kiosk close to the old Roman palace (where the walk starts).

Unlike some I am not a member of any mountaineering club, but I still find the timings in /Bardwell/ really exaggerated. The Montocuk ascent from Polače is quoted as 1h05, the official signs says 35 mins!

Wait for the new signed option for “Montocuk” that does NOT enter the road with the “barrier”.

And of course the important turn-off back to Polače from the road at the “small inlet” IS marked! That sign also says “Montocuk” (which still is correct, of course).

BTW, just at the point where you come down to the road in the first place there are some nice swimming opportunities.

•4 LOKRUM (my total time 2h17, this includes stops for photography, some small rests for drinking and enjoying the tranquility and even a stroll through the botanical gardens; +208m -197m; 1 lap): This is walk 1 in /Bardwell/.

Take the ferry from the small harbour in Old Town. It has half-hourly departures and cost 40 Kuna which includes both return AND entrance to the park!

If a walk should ever be called “a walk in the park” it must be on Lokrum… Absolute bliss can be found here, and be sure to eat at the very nice restaurant in the monastery ruins after your walk, and also visit the good bar close to the harbour where you can e.g sample local brandies. Swimming opportunities are a disappointment though, I could not see anything (including the FKK beach) that was not just uncomfortable sea “access” from rough cliffs.

There are no problems finding your way, except just after you set off. Here you will find too many options and no way of knowing which one Susan wants you to take. Disregard the text completely here and refer only to the map.

•5 AROUND THE DUBROVNIK CITY WALLS (my total time 0h44, this includes stops for photography; +-77m; 0 laps): This is walk 1 in /Letcher/. Difficult to get lost here 😉

Tickets cost 50 Kuna, and do respect the one-way sign. You are supposed to do counter-clockwise circumnavigation.

•6 DUBROVNIK – THE OLD CITY: This is walk 2 in /Letcher/.

Should be another very interesting town walk, with loads of opportunities for extra sightseeing. However, I did not do this walk myself.

•7 MOUNT SRĐ: See “Mount Srđ” in /Bousfield/.

Access is from Jadranska street. It is quoted at 2 hours (one way?), but that seems like a lot. I have not done the walk myself, so I cannot say for sure. Report back to me if you have done the walk.

• Good starting points: • Gruž area, just above the main port in Dubrovnik

• How to get there: • By air

• More info: • A Croatia travel guide by Jeanne Oliver has indispensable travel information, including ferry schedules, but you MUST check locally published timetables as well as other important information for the traveler you might find at ticket agencies • Jadrolinija is the most important ferry company, and you can download timetables here for free