---
title: "Where to Stay in Dubrovnik"
description: "Inside the walls or overlooking them — the best hotels, boutiques, and neighbourhoods in Croatia's most dramatic city."
canonical_url: "https://atsiolevart.com/dubrovnik/where-to-stay"
last_updated: "2026-04-28T20:57:09.285Z"
---

Where you stay in Dubrovnik shapes your experience more than in most cities. The Old Town — the limestone-walled, UNESCO-listed medieval city that draws millions of visitors — is compact, car-free, and operates under its own particular rules. Hotels and apartments inside the walls put you at the centre of everything, but that centre comes with cruise-ship crowds, cobblestone logistics, and noise that can test even the most enthusiastic traveller. Properties just outside the walls offer proximity without the constraints, while the further-flung neighbourhoods of Lapad and Cavtat trade convenience for space, value, and a quieter pace.

The right choice depends on your priorities: historic immersion, seaside luxury, family convenience, or simple peace. This guide covers each area honestly, along with the best hotels in each.

## Old Town

Staying inside the Old Town walls is the most atmospheric option and the most demanding one. You'll be living inside a medieval city — quite literally — with all that entails: narrow stone streets, steep staircases, no vehicle access, and a sensory experience that alternates between magical (early morning, when the Stradun is empty and the stone glows pink) and overwhelming (midday, when three cruise ships have docked simultaneously).

The practical realities are worth stating plainly. There is no car access inside the walls. If you arrive by taxi or transfer, you'll be dropped at the Pile Gate (west) or Ploče Gate (east) and walk from there — with your luggage, on stone streets, potentially up flights of stairs. Many Old Town properties are in historic buildings without lifts. Check with your hotel about luggage assistance before booking.

Noise is the other consideration. The Stradun, the main pedestrian street, hosts bars that run late, and sound carries easily through stone buildings. Apartments above bars on or near the Stradun should be avoided unless you're a heavy sleeper.

With those caveats, staying in the Old Town is an extraordinary experience. Waking up inside walls that were built in the 13th century, stepping out for coffee before the crowds arrive, and walking home through illuminated medieval streets after dinner — it's a privilege that no amount of hotel luxury outside the walls can replicate.

### The Pucić Palace

The Pucić Palace is the only five-star hotel inside the Old Town walls, and it earns that distinction. Occupying a beautifully restored baroque palace on the Gundulićeva Poljana — the market square, home to the morning produce market — the hotel has just 19 rooms and suites, each individually decorated with antiques, rich fabrics, and the kind of old-world character that standardised luxury brands can't manufacture.

The rooms facing the square are the ones to request. Waking up to the sound of market vendors setting up below, then stepping onto your balcony overlooking the square, is one of Dubrovnik's great pleasures. The rooms facing the rear are quieter but less atmospheric.

The hotel's restaurant, Defne, serves Mediterranean-Croatian cuisine on the square, and the rooftop terrace offers panoramic views across the Old Town rooftops to the sea. Service is personal and attentive — at this scale, the staff know every guest by name within hours.

Rates start around €400 for a classic room, rising to €1,000+ for the best suites in July and August. The Pucić Palace suits travellers who want to sleep inside history and don't mind the logistical trade-offs of an Old Town location.

### Saint Joseph's

Saint Joseph's is a boutique property of just six rooms in a restored 16th-century building steps from the Stradun. The rooms are designed with a contemporary sensibility — exposed stone, clean lines, excellent bathrooms — that contrasts beautifully with the building's medieval bones. There's no restaurant, no spa, no pool — just thoughtfully designed rooms in an irreplaceable location.

The intimacy is the appeal. This is as close as you can get to living in the Old Town rather than visiting it. Rates start around €250 for a standard room. Book well in advance; with only six rooms, availability vanishes quickly for summer.

## Just Outside the Walls

The area immediately surrounding the Old Town — particularly the Ploče neighbourhood to the east and the Pile area to the west — offers the best compromise between proximity and comfort. You're minutes from the Old Town gates on foot, but you have access to proper hotel facilities (pools, spas, parking) and the kind of space that the walled city can't accommodate.

### Villa Dubrovnik

Villa Dubrovnik is, for most travellers, the best hotel in the city. The location is breathtaking: perched on a cliff on the eastern side of the Old Town, with every room and every public space oriented toward the medieval walls and the island of Lokrum floating in the Adriatic beyond. The view from the infinity pool — the Old Town to your left, Lokrum straight ahead, open sea to the right — is among the most spectacular in Mediterranean hospitality.

The hotel provides a private boat shuttle to the Old Town harbour, making the commute between your cliff-side retreat and the historic centre both practical and beautiful. The 56 rooms and suites are designed in a contemporary Mediterranean style — white stone, blue accents, enormous windows — and the best suites have private terraces and plunge pools.

Dining at Restaurant Pjerin, the hotel's terrace restaurant, is excellent: refined Dalmatian cuisine served with the Old Town walls illuminated in the background. The spa, cut into the cliff face, is small but well-equipped.

Rates start around €500 for a superior room, rising to €1,500+ for cliff suites with private pools. Villa Dubrovnik combines the best of both worlds: the Old Town is minutes away by boat, but your actual environment is one of serene, contemporary luxury. It's the hotel that Dubrovnik regulars come back to.

### Hotel Excelsior

The Excelsior occupies a commanding position on the Ploče road, just east of the Old Town walls, and has been Dubrovnik's premier hotel since the 1920s. The location offers direct, unobstructed views of the Old Town and harbour from the terrace, pool, and most rooms — a panorama that's become one of the most recognisable vistas in Adriatic hospitality.

The 158 rooms and suites have been thoroughly modernised while retaining the building's grand proportions. Lake-facing rooms (the "Villa Odak" wing) command the best views. The Beach Club, accessible by a private elevator through the cliff, provides direct sea access. The Salin Restaurant serves polished Dalmatian cuisine, and the bar terrace is one of Dubrovnik's best spots for sundowners.

Rates start around €350 for a city-view room, rising to €800+ for sea-view suites. The Excelsior suits travellers who want a full-service luxury hotel within walking distance of the Old Town — the Ploče Gate is a ten-minute walk.

## Lapad

Lapad is the residential and resort neighbourhood on the peninsula west of the Old Town, about 4 kilometres away. The area has its own beaches (Copacabana Beach, Lapad Bay), a pleasant tree-lined promenade, and a concentration of larger resort-style hotels. It's where Dubrovnik families spend their weekends, and it offers a fundamentally different experience from the Old Town: relaxed, beachy, and unpretentious.

The trade-off is distance. Reaching the Old Town from Lapad requires a bus (15–20 minutes, frequent service) or taxi. It's not arduous, but it means the Old Town becomes a destination you visit rather than your home base. For some travellers — particularly families and those visiting for more than a few days — that separation is a benefit.

### Dubrovnik Palace

Dubrovnik Palace occupies the tip of the Lapad peninsula, with a dramatic cliff-side position and views across to the Elaphiti Islands. The 308 rooms are spread across a terraced building that cascades down the cliff to a beach club at sea level. The design is contemporary and airy, and the sea-view rooms — which constitute the majority — have balconies with unobstructed Adriatic panoramas.

The facilities are comprehensive: three pools (including an indoor spa pool), a full-service spa, multiple restaurants, and direct beach access via elevator. The hotel runs a shuttle to the Old Town. Rates start around €200 for a sea-view room, making it significantly more accessible than the cliff-side boutiques nearer the walls.

Dubrovnik Palace suits families and travellers who want resort-style facilities with genuine quality. It's not intimate — the scale is large — but the position, the views, and the standard of the rooms represent strong value.

### Sun Gardens Dubrovnik

Sun Gardens is the full resort experience: a sprawling complex on the coast northwest of Lapad, with 201 hotel rooms, 207 residences, a spa, multiple restaurants, kids' clubs, pools, and direct beach access. This is self-contained holiday territory — you could spend a week here without leaving the property, and many families do exactly that.

The standard is high. The rooms are modern and well-maintained, the dining options cover everything from casual poolside to refined Dalmatian, and the kids' facilities are genuinely excellent. The beach is a mix of pebble and platform with clear swimming water.

The trade-off is significant distance from the Old Town (about 20 minutes by car). Sun Gardens operates its own shuttle service, but this is not the base for travellers who want to be in and out of the Old Town multiple times a day. It's the right choice for families and resort-focused travellers who want Dubrovnik's climate and sea without its crowds.

Rates start around €180 for a garden-view room, representing excellent value for the facilities offered.

## Cavtat

Cavtat is a separate town, 20 kilometres south of Dubrovnik (and just five minutes from the airport), that functions as a quieter, more affordable alternative base. The town occupies a small peninsula with a harbour, a pleasant promenade lined with cafés and restaurants, and a pace that's dramatically slower than Dubrovnik's Old Town.

Cavtat's appeal is its relaxed atmosphere and proximity to Dubrovnik without Dubrovnik's intensity. Regular boats connect Cavtat to Dubrovnik's Old Port (roughly 45 minutes), and the road journey is about 20 minutes. It's also the gateway to the Konavle region — a green valley of vineyards, farmhouses, and traditional restaurants that's one of Croatia's most appealing rural areas.

### Hotel Croatia Cavtat

Hotel Croatia is Cavtat's largest and most established property, occupying a seafront position with views across the bay. The 487 rooms have been modernised in stages, and the sea-view rooms in the renovated wing are comfortable and well-appointed. Facilities include multiple pools, a spa, and a private beach.

The hotel functions as a well-run resort that benefits from Cavtat's calm. Rates start around €130, making it the most accessible option in this guide. It's a practical choice for travellers who want a seaside base with easy access to both Dubrovnik and the airport.

## Apartments vs. Hotels

Dubrovnik's Old Town has a vast supply of private apartments — hundreds of properties in converted medieval buildings, ranging from basic studios to beautifully restored multi-bedroom residences. For longer stays, groups, or travellers who want the independence of a kitchen and living space, apartments can be excellent.

The warnings, however, are real. Many Old Town apartments involve multiple flights of steep stone stairs with no alternative — a serious consideration with heavy luggage, small children, or mobility limitations. Sound insulation in medieval buildings is often poor. And the unregulated nature of the market means quality is inconsistent: beautiful photos can mask cramped spaces, poor plumbing, and indifferent management.

If you do book an apartment, confirm the exact location (which street, which floor, how many stairs), verify recent guest reviews, and communicate with the host about luggage transfer before you arrive. The best Old Town apartments offer an experience no hotel can match — but the worst are genuinely miserable.

## How to Choose

**For first-time visitors (3–4 nights):** The Ploče area, just east of the Old Town, gives you the best balance. Villa Dubrovnik or the Excelsior put you minutes from the Old Town on foot or by boat while providing the comfort and facilities that the walled city can't offer. You'll spend your days exploring the Old Town, [eating at its best restaurants](/dubrovnik/best-restaurants), walking the walls, and [taking day trips](/dubrovnik/things-to-do) — and you'll return each evening to a pool, a sea view, and quiet.

**For families:** Lapad (Dubrovnik Palace or Sun Gardens) provides the space, pools, beaches, and kids' facilities that make a family holiday sustainable. Visit the Old Town as a day trip rather than trying to navigate it with pushchairs and tired children.

**For couples seeking atmosphere:** The Pucić Palace or Saint Joseph's inside the walls deliver an experience that's unmatched for romantic intensity — the medieval setting, the intimacy, the sense of living inside a place rather than visiting it. Accept the logistics and lean into them.

**For budget-conscious travellers:** Cavtat offers genuine quality at significantly lower prices than Dubrovnik, with boat connections that make the Old Town accessible without the Old Town price tag.

**For longer stays (5+ nights):** Consider splitting your time. Two or three nights inside or near the Old Town for immersion, then move to Lapad or Cavtat for beaches, relaxation, and a different rhythm.

## Getting There

Dubrovnik Airport (DBV) is 20 kilometres southeast of the city, near Cavtat. The drive to the Old Town takes 25–35 minutes depending on traffic. Private transfers can be arranged through hotels; the airport shuttle bus is reliable and inexpensive; taxis are available but negotiate the fare or insist on the meter.

There is no direct rail connection to Dubrovnik. Most travellers arrive by air. In summer, ferry connections run to the Elaphiti Islands, Korčula, and Split from Dubrovnik's Gruž harbour.

Within Dubrovnik, the bus system connects all neighbourhoods efficiently. Taxis and ride-hailing are available. Inside the Old Town, everything is on foot — and the Old Town is small enough that you can walk from Pile Gate to Ploče Gate in 15 minutes.