Cavtat Old Town Waterfront

Cavtat is what Dubrovnik was 40 years ago - a small stone town wrapped around a horseshoe harbour, with palm trees along the waterfront, fishing boats tied up ten metres from the coffee tables, and a total absence of cruise-ship crowds. It sits on a peninsula 20 kilometres south of the city and was actually founded before Dubrovnik: the Greeks called it Epidauros, the Romans built villas here, and when they were sacked in the 7th century the survivors fled north to found what became Dubrovnik. Today it is where residents come to swim, eat and unwind.

The waterfront promenade curves for a kilometre around the harbour, lined with cafes, small hotels and restaurants under palm and tamarisk trees. At the eastern end is the Vlaho Bukovac house-museum, home of Croatia's most important 19th-century painter (€5, well worth it). At the western end, up a short hill, is the extraordinary Račić Mausoleum by Ivan Meštrović, an octagonal white stone chapel with a family's tomb inside. Between them are two swim beaches, several excellent seafood konobas, and a boat-taxi service back to Dubrovnik in 45 minutes.

Get here on bus 10 from the main bus station in Gruž (€6, 40 minutes, every 30 minutes) or by boat from the Old Harbour in the season (€15 return, 45 minutes, hourly). Come for lunch and stay until sunset; the waterfront restaurants do fresh grilled fish for a third of Old Town prices, and the light on the water at 19:00 is the softest in Dalmatia. This is the day out for anyone who wants Croatia beyond the postcard.

Hours & entry

Always free

Open 24 h · Cafes 8:00-24:00 in summer · Best light late afternoon

What to see

• Vlaho Bukovac House-Museum — East end of the waterfront, Bukovčeva 5
• Račić Mausoleum by Meštrović — Cemetery at the top of the peninsula
• The palm-lined promenade — Full curve around the harbour

Tips from the ground

• Boat is more expensive than the bus but scenic and drops you 100 m from the best konobas.
• Lunch at Konoba Kolona - book ahead in summer.
• The mausoleum is a 15-min climb but the interior is genuinely moving.