Dubrovnik Old Town History - Small Group Walking Tour

The Large Onofrio's Fountain is our meeting point (next to Hard Rock Cafe), all our tours gather here next to the Red Umbrella where the guide briefly presents him/herself and off we go on the 1.5 h Discover Dubrovnik tour.

Our starting point is a great place for a brief overview of the city’s history painting the picture of the rise of a small maritime trading city-state of Ragusa. We touch upon its accomplishments such as the innovative aqueduct system the Large Onofrio’s fountain is a part of.

Just next to the fountain we start our walk down the main street passing by the small votive Church of Holy Savior. We discuss how important religion was at that time and how it shaped the City to be the way it is today.

Continuing on we come across the Franciscan Church and Monastery; which is a large complex belonging to the Order of the Friars Minor. It consists of a monastery, a church, a library, and a pharmacy. The earliest monastery was built in the 13th century outside the walls. The library (built in the 17th century) contains over 20,000 books, among them 1200 valuable old manuscripts. The pharmacy dates from 1317 and is the third oldest, still functioning pharmacy in the world. We mention various local traditions, centuries-old that persist to this day.

We resume our stroll along the main street Placa or Stradun; the most favored promenade and gathering place. It is the venue of all public feasts and processions, but also the main business street of the City. The widest and most beautiful street divides the City into northern and southern halves. We look into the overlay of the city from this location in a bit more detail. You will hear a bit more about the demise of the venerable Ragusa Republic leading up to the more recent history of Yugoslavia and the Homeland War in the 1990s and all the troubles the city endured during that period.

We get off the main street to the more narrow inner street of Old Town walking towards the Port. We stop by the Orthodox Christian Church and describe how other religious communities like the Orthodox Christian, Jewish and Muslim influenced the history of the city.

We come across the Green market at Gundulic square where we can observe and discuss local produce and interesting stories and traditions.

Next up is one of the most important buildings in the city; The Rector's Palace is a palace in the city of Dubrovnik that used to serve as the seat of the Rector of the Republic of Ragusa between the 14th century and 1808. It was also the seat of the Minor Council and the state administration. Furthermore, it housed an armoury, the powder magazine, the watch house and a prison.

Furthermore, we get to the Cathedral where according to a legend, Richard the Lionheart was returning from the Crusades in 1192 when he was shipwrecked in a storm and cast aground on Lokrum Island in front of Dubrovnik.

Ships from Dubrovnik were renowned throughout the Mediterranean and galleons from the Republic could be found in navies across Europe and beyond. These ships were built and loaded in the legendary Arsenal, which is another stop on the tour. Once in the Old Port, your guide will relate the stories of the famous Quarantine and the nearby fortresses of St. Luke and St. John.

Leaving the Port we get to the eastern end of Placa (Stradun) street, under the City Bell Tower, on Luza square where several interesting stories and monuments are covered here; church dedicated to the patron St.Blaise, legend of the knight Orlando and his column, Sponza Palace, Small Onofrio's Fountain, the high Bell tower.