Where to stay in Dubrovnik

The western peninsula 3km from the Old City: the most affordable accommodation in Dubrovnik, with apartment rentals and family hotels at a fraction of the Old City prices. Lapad Bay has the best public beaches in the city area - Lapad Beach is sandy, free, and popular with locals. The Lapad seafront promenade has restaurants and cafes that serve locals rather than tourists. The city bus to the Pile Gate takes 15 minutes.

The working port 2km northwest of the Old City: the Gruska pijaca (Gruz market) every morning is the most authentic food experience in Dubrovnik - local farmers selling the herbs, fruit, and vegetables that the tourist restaurants serve. The harbor is where ferries depart for the islands (Hvar, Korcula, Split, the Elafiti Islands). The neighborhood has the most affordable restaurants in the city.

The walled medieval city: a UNESCO World Heritage Site enclosed by 1940 meters of city walls (€35 to walk the top - the most dramatic city wall walk in Europe, with views over the Adriatic on one side and the limestone rooftops and church domes on the other). The Stradun (the main marble promenade, closed to traffic) connects the Pile Gate to the Old Port. The Rector's Palace (€15 - the Gothic-Renaissance seat of the Ragusan Republic), the Franciscan Monastery (€5, with the third-oldest pharmacy in the world, operating since 1317), and a dozen churches are all within the walls.

The wooded island 10 minutes by ferry from the Old Port (€20 return, runs every 30 min in season): a nature reserve with no permanent residents, a Benedictine monastery ruin (a Game of Thrones filming location), a botanical garden established by Archduke Maximilian of Austria in 1859, salt-water lakes for swimming, and feral peacocks throughout. The island is closed to the public in winter. The best swimming rocks near the ferry dock are usually quieter than the city beaches.

The village 18km south of Dubrovnik (bus or boat, 30-45 min): a small bay lined with cafes, the Rector's Palace (€8), and the Mausoleum of the Racic Family by Ivan Mestrovic (€5 - a masterpiece of 20th-century sculpture on a hill above the bay). The Konavle valley inland has vineyards, a medieval aqueduct, and the Ljuta watermill still grinding flour. Far quieter than Dubrovnik and with better food at lower prices.

The neighborhood just east of the Old City walls: quieter than the walled city, with the finest hotels in Dubrovnik (the Hotel Excelsior and the Villa Dubrovnik), and the best sea views. The beach bars at Banje Beach (just outside the Ploce Gate) have extraordinary Adriatic views and charge accordingly. The walk from Ploce Gate along the Adriatic coast to the Hotel Excelsior is one of the most beautiful urban strolls in the Mediterranean.