Blue Cave Swim and City Walls Cruise with Lokrum Option Dubrovnik

Dubrovnik City Walls and Lovrijenac Fortress from the sea

The trip begins at the big pier in the Old Town harbour, the stone port that sheltered the ships of the Republic of Ragusa for centuries. Within minutes you are beneath the City Walls, almost 2 km of fortifications up to 25 metres high and 6 metres thick, built and reinforced between the 13th and 17th centuries and never breached. From the water you see them as the old sailors did: the round Minčeta tower crowning the landward side, the sea walls dropping straight into the Adriatic, St. John's Fortress guarding the harbour mouth, and terracotta roofs stacked behind.

West of the walls stands Lovrijenac, the fortress on a 37-metre rock that defended the city from the land and sea. A Dubrovnik City Walls boat cruise gives a perspective that walking the walls cannot: the full curtain of stone against the blue sea, with Mount Srđ rising behind. The crew gives commentary while you take photographs, and this 30-minute section sets the scene before the boat heads to the islands.

The Blue Cave on Koločep Island

About 30 minutes north-west of Dubrovnik lies Koločep, the smallest inhabited island of the Elaphiti archipelago, and on its rocky eastern coast is the Blue Cave. The entrance is low and the cave can only be reached by swimming, so the boat anchors in clear water outside and you swim in with a mask and snorkel from the boat's equipment. Inside, sunlight enters through an opening below the surface and is reflected off the white sea floor, turning the water a luminous electric blue that seems to glow from beneath.

The stop lasts about 45 minutes, enough for several swims through the cave and some snorkelling along the rocks outside, where the sea is clear to the bottom. Basic swimming skills are required and the crew stays close by. If you are wondering whether the Dubrovnik Blue Cave is worth visiting, mid-morning and early afternoon, when the sun is high, give the brightest colour, which is why the 9:30 AM and 11:30 AM departures are popular.

Lokrum Island nature reserve

After the Blue Cave you choose how to spend the final part of the trip. The first option is Lokrum, the wooded island that lies just 600 metres off the Old Town walls and is protected as a nature reserve. The boat drops you at the island's pier for free time to explore on foot: a Benedictine monastery founded in 1023 with its cloister and gardens, a botanical garden planted in the 19th century, a small salt lake known as the Dead Sea where you can swim, rocky bathing spots and shady paths under pines and holm oaks.

Peacocks, introduced more than a century ago, roam freely and are the first thing most visitors photograph. Lokrum has a mandatory entrance fee set by the reserve, which is not included in the tour and is paid when you arrive on the island. A Lokrum Island boat trip is the most popular way to spend a hot afternoon near Dubrovnik, and the boat brings you back to the Old Town harbour afterwards.

St. Jakov Beach alternative

If you would rather skip the Lokrum entrance fee, the boat takes you instead to St. Jakov (Sveti Jakov) Beach, a sheltered pebble cove below the cliffs east of the Old Town. Reached on land by a long staircase, the beach is far quieter when you arrive by sea. The water is clear and calm, there is a shallow area for easy swimming, and the view back towards the City Walls and Lokrum is one of the best beach views in Dubrovnik, especially in the afternoon light.

Guests who choose neither option are simply taken back to the Old Town harbour at the end of the tour. Whichever you pick, bring swimwear worn under your clothes, a towel, sunscreen and comfortable shoes for walking on rocks and paths. Water, soft drinks and sodas are available on the boat throughout the 4 hours, so you only need to buy food if you plan to eat on Lokrum.