Cavtat Day Trip

Cavtat is the classic half-day escape from Dubrovnik. The town lies on the coast about 15 kilometres south of the city, and its seafront, lined with shops and restaurants, is a gentler place to spend an afternoon than the crowded Old Town. Getting there is part of the pleasure: a boat links Dubrovnik with Cavtat and neighbouring Mlini, with views of the cliffs and walls on the way out.

Cavtat has a longer history than Dubrovnik itself. Greek settlers from Corinth founded a town here in the 6th century BC under the name Epidaurus, and it later became the Roman Epidaurum. When it was sacked in the 7th century, refugees fled north to a small island called Laus, and the settlement they founded there grew into Ragusa, the city we now call Dubrovnik. Cavtat later became part of the Republic of Ragusa.

The main sights are walkable in an hour or two. On the hilltop above the town, in the cemetery, the Račić Mausoleum belongs to the Račić family and was decorated by the sculptor Ivan Meštrović. The painter Vlaho Bukovac, one of Croatia's best-known artists, came from Cavtat, and the Museum of Modern Art in Dubrovnik holds hundreds of his works, which makes a visit there a good follow-up. The seafront itself has won recognition: in 2004 the town received a European award for its green spaces and flower displays along the promenade.

Boat timetables are seasonal, so check the timetable at the harbour before you set out, and consider a local bus or taxi off-season. Bring swimwear, sun protection and comfortable shoes.

Allow half a day, or a full day if you plan to swim and have a long lunch by the water. An evening boat back to Dubrovnik gives a final view of the city walls lit by the setting sun, a good end to the excursion. The town's long history as Epidaurum also makes it a good stop for anyone curious about where Dubrovnik's story really began, and it is easy to combine with a late lunch on the harbour before the return boat. Families will find it a calmer setting than the Old Town for an afternoon stroll.