Two Days in Dubrovnik: Diving, Dining, and a Countryside Feast

🗺️ About Dubrovnik

Dubrovnik traces its roots to the 7th century, when refugees fleeing the destruction of the nearby Roman town of Epidaurum—today’s Cavtat—settled along this part of the coast. For nearly 450 years, from 1358 to 1808, the city stood as the independent Republic of Ragusa, a powerful maritime and trading republic that rivaled Venice.

Rather than relying on a large army, Ragusa protected its independence through skilled diplomacy, carefully balancing the Ottoman and Venetian powers surrounding it. Of course, the city also had its massive limestone walls, built and strengthened between the 13th and 17th centuries. One of the republic’s best-known mottos translates to: “Liberty is not to be sold for all the gold in the world.”

The Republic fell to Napoleon’s forces in 1808, and Dubrovnik passed through Austrian, Yugoslav, and eventually Croatian rule over the next two centuries. The city has survived more than its share of destruction. A major earthquake in 1667 devastated much of Dubrovnik, and the old town was again badly damaged during the 1991–1992 siege in the Croatian War of Independence. Much of that damage has since been carefully restored.

Dubrovnik’s old town became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979. Today, its city walls, pale limestone streets, historic buildings, and wide Stradun promenade make it one of the most recognizable—and most visited—places in Europe.

🏛️ A Second Visit, A Different Crowd

Visiting Dubrovnik for the second time gave us a chance to explore some different parts of the city and surrounding countryside.

When we were here in 2017, we did all the traditional Dubrovnik activities. We walked the entire city wall, took dozens of pictures of the town and harbor, and spent plenty of time wandering through the restaurants and shops of the old town. It was crowded even then, but the crowds felt much more manageable and getting onto the wall was considerably easier and less expensive.

This time, Dubrovnik felt much busier. Bob and I were glad we already had other plans and didn’t feel the need to repeat everything we had done during our first visit.

🤿 Two Dives Below the Surface

I had been planning a two-dive day in Dubrovnik for more than six months. I had read about the wrecks, reefs, and underwater scenery in the area and was curious to see what the diving would be like.

Our itinerary was shuffled around, moving Dubrovnik behind Kotor, but I was still able to tender ashore early and take a taxi to the Dubrovnik Palace Hotel. The hotel is a beautiful five-star resort on the far side of the peninsula, with a PADI dive operation tucked beneath the pool deck.

Our divemaster, Vlaho, led a group of four divers, including divers from Australia and the Netherlands. For our first dive, we headed across the bay to a stretch of cliffs with two connected sea caves. One was large enough for us to surface inside and talk, while the other was smaller and much darker.

Unfortunately, I had a defective leaky mask that gave me trouble throughout the dive. The marine life was also sparser than I had expected, mostly tiny fish and a seafloor covered with what looked like shells but turned out to be a type of marine algae, Padina pavonica. The caves themselves, however, were genuinely beautiful, especially the eerie blue light glowing through their entrances.

After a long lunch break at the resort, we headed out for our second dive near a group of small rocky islands. The water was cooler this time, around 63 degrees, but with a properly working mask, the dive was much easier and more relaxing. We saw a few starfish, an anemone, and some small fish, but overall, the underwater scenery remained fairly quiet.

In the end, the diving was a bit of a letdown as it did not meet my expectations after doing my research. It felt more like a basic resort diving operation than the wreck-and-reef adventure I had imagined, and even our dive master seemed less than excited about diving the same familiar locations.

Still, it felt wonderful to be back in the water.

Bob spent most of the day working, with a break for lunch and a short walk into town. The heat and crowds eventually sent him back to the ship well before I returned.

🍽️ Anniversary Dinner at Nautika

We had something very special planned for dinner: a return to Nautika, the beautiful restaurant just outside the Pile Gate where we had celebrated our anniversary during our first visit in 2017.

Nautika overlooks the old city walls, Fort Bokar, and the water just beyond the entrance to Dubrovnik. Fort Bokar was made famous for its prominent role in Game of Thrones. It is an absolutely stunning setting, with exceptional service and beautifully prepared food. Each course even arrived with its own specially selected olive oil.

Bob ordered the lobster tail, and I had the sea bass. Both were better than either of us had ever tasted before. I finished with a chocolate bomb for dessert as we watched the sun set beside the fort.

Below us, a large group of kayakers rounded the point and pulled onto the small beach beneath the city walls, ending their day just as we were finishing dinner.

We had talked about our first meal at Nautika for years, and this one was every bit as good as we remembered—maybe even better.

After dinner, we took a leisurely walk through the old town and back toward the tender landing. It was around 9:30, but Dubrovnik was still very much alive, with people dining, shopping, and wandering through the plazas well into the evening.

🍳 Cooking Lunch with Locals at Miloslavic Family Home : A Peka Cooking Class

The next morning, we traveled about an hour outside Dubrovnik for a cooking experience at a family farm. After spending so much time around the busy old town, we were eager to see more of the Croatian countryside.

About twenty of us arrived to a warm welcome from our hosts, Pero and Marija Miloslavić, who led us past beautiful organic gardens to a cooking and dining area the family had created and improved over the years.

There was a welcome area with a table large enough to seat thirty people, a dedicated kitchen for cooking classes, a stone cooking area for preparing peka over a live oak fire, and another dining area already set for the feast ahead.

Over the next three hours, we picked tomatoes, zucchini, squash, peppers, cucumbers, and herbs directly from the garden. We then peeled, sliced, and chopped everything ourselves.

We watched as the Pero layered lamb, veal, and potatoes inside a large cooking pan. He placed it over the hot stones and covered it with a traditional iron bell, which was then buried beneath ash and glowing coals. This slow-cooking method is known as peka and is one of Croatia’s best-loved traditional meals.

While the meat cooked, we made vegetable risotto and apple strudel, sampled several flavors of grappa, and talked with the couple and their two daughters, who worked alongside us throughout the morning.

When it was finally time to eat, we started with bread and olive oil, followed by our vegetable risotto as the primi course. Then came the peka—tender lamb, veal, and potatoes that were worth every minute of the wait. We finished with the apple strudel we had prepared earlier.

What made the morning so special wasn’t only the food. It was the entire experience of connecting with our genuinely welcoming hosts and spending time with fellow travelers from the ship. Some we already knew, while others we met for the first time that morning.

By the time we left, it felt a little like saying goodbye to old friends, and we took plenty of pictures to remember the day.

🚐 Farewell to Dubrovnik

The drive back to the ship was relaxing, with our guide sharing more about the region’s economy, history, and everyday life in Croatia.

Between diving below the surface, returning to one of our favorite restaurants, and spending a morning cooking and connecting with a local family, our two days in Dubrovnik became some of the best days of the entire cruise.

Next stop: A sea day with a brief stop in Mali Lošinj and Artatore Bay, before Piran.