WHAT IS THERE TO SEE IN DUBROVNIK?
Dubrovnik -
the city of a unique political and cultural history (the Dubrovnik
Republic, the Statute from 1272), of world-famous cultural
heritage and beauty (inscribed on the List of World Heritage
Sites by UNESCO)
- is one of the most attractive and famous cities of the Mediterranean.
Apart from its outstanding natural beauties and well-preserved
cul-tural and historical heritage, Dubrovnik also offers high-quality
visitor opportunities. It is also the city of hotels, of high
ecological standards and tourist programs, and is equally
attractive in all seasons. Its geographical isolation is compensated
by high traffic and communication standards - especially through
air traffic and fast hydrofoil boats.
The tourist development of Dubrovnik started before the First
World War; quite soon, the exclusiveness of its attractions
made Dubrovnik a powerful international tourist centre.
The sightseeing of Dubrovnik and its monuments requires several
days. However, already a walk through Stradun, through narrow
streets and small squares, monumental ramparts and fortreses,
provides enough opportunities to experience the millennial
beauty of its shell-shaped urban core, centuries of building,
stone-cutting, carving and engraving, the history of the Duke's
Palace, libraries, the oldest pharmacy in the south of Europe,
etc.
Dubrovnik offers individual choice among numerous museums
and galleries, which contain the jewels of Croatian heritage.
The Dubrovnik Museum
in the Duke's Palace keeps 15,500 exhibits in its cultural
and historical department. A collection of furniture from
the 17th-19th century, uniforms of dukes and councillors,
aristocratic garments and many other items are exhibited in
the authentic halls of the palace. The Maritime Museum (situated
in the fortress Sveti Ivan) has a number exhibits on a permanent
display, related to the maritime affairs of Dubrovnik and
Croatia on the whole, with a particular emphasis on the history
of the Dubrovnik Republic. The museum of the Franciscan monastery
keeps all inventories of the old pharmacy, as well as the
works of Dubrovnik jewel-lers, painters and embroiders. The
museum of the Dominican monastery exhibits valuable examples
of Dubrovnik painting from the 15th and the 16th centuries,
as well as sculptures, jewellery, manuscripts, incunabula
and notes (music). The treasury of the Dubrovnik cathedral
keeps the relics of St. Blaise, patron of Dubrovnik, and numerous
paintings and works of art. The Rupe Ethnographical Museum
presents traditional occupations and the rural architecture
of the region of Dubrovnik, national costumes and hand-made
textiles. Very attractive is also the Aquarium of the Institute
of Biology, situated in the fortress Sveti Ivan, comprising
interesting marine species.
Dubrovnik has a number of churches, monasteries and hotels
scattered all over the town. Its coastal belt is adorned with
several marinas, piers and promenades. Because of a magnificent
view on the mediaeval Dubrovnik, a walk along the town ramparts
is a must for each visitor.
A great number of Dubrovnik restaurants and taverns offer
delicious specialities of local and international cuisine.
Sports and recreational facilities include playgrounds, courts
and requisites for all sports in the sea and on the ground,
from tennis and table tennis to sailing and yachting. There
are also several gyms and fitness centres with swimming pools,
saunas, massage, aerobics, solarium, box gyms, etc.
Dubrovnik is the city
of an outstanding cultural and artistic life. The most important
event in the cultural life of the city is the Dubrovnik
Summer Festival (10th of July - 25th of August), traditionally
held since 1950. It is a theatre and classical and folk music
festival, since 1956 included in the calendar of world festivals
and as such one of the most famous cultural events in the
world. Concerts and other performances take place on open
stages in the town (Gunduliceva Poljana, Drziceva Poljana,
Lovrijenac, Revelin) or in beautiful interiors of the most
famous buildings (Duke's Palace, cloisters, churches). The
repertoire includes works of Croatian and world classics,
performed by the leading personalities from Croatia and abroad,
including a number of world-famous actors, directors, conductors,
etc. So far several hundreds of them have performed in Dubrovnik.
An important part of the Festival are performances of local
(Lindo,
Lado)
and foreign folk music ensembles.
The artistic life of Dubrovnik is characterized by numerous
exhibitions taking place throughout the year. Apart from already
renowned galleries - the Art Gallery (Put Frana Supila 23),
its exhibition space Luza Art Centre (Stradun), Sebastian
- occasional and permanent exhibitions are also held in other
spaces as well.
Very famous are also Dubrovnik carnival festivities - so-called
Dubrovnik "karnevo" (local variant of the word "carnival"),
held ever since the early Middle Ages, when they were brought
from the neighbouring Italy. Another important event is the
Feast Day of St. Blaise, also the Day of Dubrovnik (3rd of
February). The feast takes place for the whole week, including
religious ceremonies, a procession through the town, concerts,
sports events, entertainment and carnival programs. Excursions
to Dubrovnik during that week are regularly organized.
In the vicinity of Dubrovnik, in the gorge of the Ombla river,
is Miho Pracat ACI Marina; it has 450 berths in the sea and
250 places on the land. Boaters may also use Dubrovnik Marina.
DUBROVNIK,
a town, port and tourist centre of the southern Croatian coast.
It lies at the foot of the limestone Srd Mount (412 m), in
a valley enclosed to the south-west by the Lapad plateau and
a smaller reef with the oldest part of Dubrovnik. The ancient
town core was connected with the suburban zone on the other
side of the valley by levelling and filling up of a marshy
valley between the Gruz Bay in the north and Stari Porto (Old
Port) in the south, as well as by the construction of the
Placa (Stradun). Stradun thus became the centre of the town
and its main street, connecting two opposite town gates: the
Ploce Gate in the east and the Pile Gate in the west. Upon
the construction of the port in the Gruz Bay, Gruz was gradually
annexed to Dubrovnik and became an integral part of the town.
Later on, Dubrovnik extended also to the Lapad peninsula,
to lower parts of the Srd slopes and outside the town ramparts
toward Zupa. The climate of Dubrovnik is characterized by
warm and dry summers and mild winters.
The average air temperature in the coldest month (February)
is 4.6 °C and in the warmest month (August) 26.2 °C. The cold
half of the year accounts for 68 % of the total annual rainfall;
the spring accounts for 29, the summer for 14, the autumn
for 26 and the winter for 37 rainy days out of the total number
of 105 rainy days. Snow occurs extremely rarely; with 2,554
hours of sunshine a year, Dubrovnik ranks among the sunniest
towns of southern Europe. In July it has 12.4 hours of sunshine
a day, like Alexandria in Egypt. The vegetation is subtropical
and extremely luxuriant (olives, almonds, citrus fruit, rosemary,
laurel, holm oak, pine, stone pine, cypress). Southeast of
the old part of the town is a tourist zone called Ploce (hotels
and beaches), west of it is Lapad (sports facilities, hotels,
beaches, walking trails), while northwest of it is the Gruz
port and Gruz. Economy is based on tourism and seafaring.
The town has a number of cultural and educational institutions:
the Nautical College, the Tourist College, the University
Centre for Postgraduate Studies of the University of Zagreb,
the Institute of History of the Croatian Academy of Arts and
Sciences, the Dubrovnik Summer Festival and other.
Dubrovnik has a town port,
the port of Gruz and a marina. The old town port is protected
by the Porporela breakwater; yachts drawing up to 3 m may
dock in it; smaller ships are docked in the cove of Gornja
Bocina. The port of Gruz is a trading port, situated 2.5 km
northwest of the ancient town core of Dubrovnik. Dubrovnik
Marina is located in Komolac, in the interior part of Rijeka
Dubrovacka, about 4 km from the entrance to the port of Gruz.
Dubrovnik is located on the main road (M2, E65). The Dubrovnik
airport is located in Cilipi.
Due to the fact that there is an extensive and detailed history
of Dubrovnik dating back to the Medieval era. We have provided
you with the following most popular links pertaining to historical
Dubrovnik. Many of these links are also multilingual.
Croatian
Homepage
Croatian National
Tourist Board
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