Top tips for beating the crowds in Dubrovnik
As we’ve already discussed on the blog, Dubrovnik is still worth visiting despite being known as a tourist hotspot and receiving huge numbers of visitors. It’s popular for a reason, but with a bit of planning you can make the most of your visit without being overwhelmed!
Best time of year to visit
If possible, we’d recommend visiting outside of peak season, which is approximately mid/late June – early September. We visited in mid-September – while there were still lots of tourists it was more manageable than during peak season, and the bonus was we still had great weather! For this reason I’d recommend visiting in shoulder season – mid-May to mid-June or mid-September-early October.
Be aware if you visit outside of peak/shoulder season, some attractions and restaurants may be closed or have more limited hours.
Check the cruise ship schedule
Dubrovnik is (in)famous for being a popular destination for cruise ships. When we visited (September 2023) multiple ships were docked some days, which meant thousands of passengers visiting the Old Town.
Our recommendation would be to check the cruise ship schedule, which is widely available online. This will give you an idea of how many ships (and the number of passengers) due in port each day, as well as the timing of when the ships will be arriving and leaving. Ships typically arrive overnight into the port, with passengers then bussed into the Old Town during the morning. By mid-late afternoon they’ll usually head back to ship, so if you’re staying in Dubrovnik you can often plan around peak times!
Time your activities!
The Old Town of Dubrovnik (where most of the city’s attractions are) is not universally busy throughout the day. It tends to be busiest from the morning (9-10 am onwards) until mid-late afternoon. Early mornings and late afternoons and evenings are noticeably quieter! With this in mind, I’d recommend being at any popular attractions at opening time (or you could also go later in the day).
Tips for the City Walls
The Dubrovnik City Walls are one of the most popular attractions in Dubrovnik, which also mean that they’re one of the busiest. They’re also a one-way system and largely exposed to the sun, so if you’re stuck among crowds of tourists you might have a less pleasant experience. We’d recommend purchasing your tickets for the walls online in advance (or buy a city pass for the same price) and being at the gate when the Walls open for the day (for us this was 8am). The main entrance to the Walls is near the Pile Gate, but we’d recommend using one of the quieter entrances – for us this was the entrance at St John’s Fort near the Maritime Museum. This meant we largely had the Walls to ourselves for the first half of the walk, which meant we could get lots of great photos and enjoy things at our own pace!
Stay in or near the Old Town
This may sound a bit counterintuitive, given how busy the Old Town can get, but we’d highly recommend staying in or near the Old Town. While the main thoroughfares can get busy, most accommodation is located on side streets that are a lot quieter (especially at night!). Having a base in the middle of all the attractions also means you don’t need to do everything at one – you can stagger your activities to miss the crowds or only deal with them in short bursts. You’ll also get to enjoy Dubrovnik at the quieter times early or late in the day. A final benefit is having an airconditioned space to come and relax in after a sightseeing in the sun!
Break it up
We stayed in Dubrovnik for four nights, but spent time outside of the city too, including a day trip to Montenegro and a day spent sailing the Elaphiti Islands. This meant we weren’t constantly overwhelmed by the business!
