It is weird. You walk onto the Stradun, the main limestone-paved artery of Dubrovnik’s Old Town, and you expect to see gold-cloaked guards. You don't, obviously. You see tourists eating gelato and pigeons fighting over crumbs. But the ghost of the Red Keep is everywhere. When HBO first rolled into this Croatian gem for Season 2, they didn't just find a filming location; they found the literal soul of George R.R. Martin’s capital city.
The connection between Game of Thrones Dubrovnik and the actual history of the city-state of Ragusa is deeper than most people realize. It wasn’t just pretty stones. It was the atmosphere.
The Walk of Shame is a real street (and people live there)
Most fans head straight for the Jesuit Staircase. You know the one. Cersei Lannister, short hair, lots of yelling. It’s iconic. But here is the thing: standing at the top of those stairs, looking down toward the Gundulić Square market, you realize how small the space actually is. The lens makes it look like a sprawling metropolis. In reality, it’s a tight, intimate neighborhood.
Locals told me during my last visit that the filming of that scene was a logistical nightmare. They had to pay off businesses to close, and the "shame" shouting went on for days. Honestly, if you visit today, the best time is 7:00 AM. Any later and you're just part of a human tide. The stones are slippery. Centuries of footsteps have polished them to a mirror finish. If it rains? Forget it. You’ll be doing your own accidental walk of shame right onto your backside.
Fort Lovrijenac: The Red Keep that isn't
If you look across the small bay from the city walls, you see Fort Lovrijenac. In the show, this is the Red Keep. In real life, it’s a 37-meter-high fortress built on a sheer cliff. The Croatians built it to keep the Venetians out. There’s a famous inscription above the entrance: Non bene pro toto libertas venditur auro. It basically means "Liberty is not sold for all the gold in the world."
Very Lannister-esque, right? Except the Lannisters would have definitely tried to buy it.
Inside, the acoustics are wild. That’s why they perform Hamlet there every year. When you stand in the courtyard where Joffrey’s name day tournament happened, you can feel the wind whipping off the Adriatic. It’s cold. Even in the height of summer, the stone walls of the fort hold a chill that makes you understand why the cast spent so much time in heavy furs despite the Mediterranean sun.
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What most people get wrong about the "City Walls"
People think the walls were just a backdrop. They weren't. The walls of Dubrovnik are a character. Walking the full 1.9-kilometer circuit is the only way to understand why this was the perfect King’s Landing. From the Minceta Tower—the highest point—you look down on a sea of terracotta roofs.
Wait. Look closer.
Notice the different shades of orange on the tiles? That’s not a GoT set design. The brighter, newer tiles represent houses that were hit during the Siege of Dubrovnik in the early 90s. The darker ones are original. It’s a sobering reminder that while we’re all geeking out over dragons and wildfire, this city has survived very real, very modern wars. The producers used the Minceta Tower as the House of the Undying in Qarth, not King’s Landing, which is a bit of a geographical mind-flip when you’re standing there.
The Island of Lokrum and the Iron Throne
You have to take the ferry. It’s a ten-minute ride to Lokrum Island. It’s green, lush, and covered in peacocks that are surprisingly aggressive if you have a sandwich.
The Benedictine Monastery on the island served as Qarth in the show. There’s a small visitors center there now that houses an official Iron Throne. Not a prop replica, but one of the actual seats used. Sitting in it is... underwhelmingly uncomfortable. It’s fiberglass, mostly. But looking out at the Dubrovnik skyline from the island shores, you get that perspective of the city as a fortress rising out of the sea.
Why the locals have a love-hate relationship with the show
Honestly, it's complicated. Game of Thrones Dubrovnik tourism basically saved the economy, but it also kind of broke the city. At the peak of the show's popularity, "Overtourism" became the buzzword of the decade. The mayor had to implement "Respect the City" rules.
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- Cruises: They limited the number of ships.
- Tables: They cut back on outdoor restaurant seating to keep the streets walkable.
- Noise: No rolling suitcases in the middle of the night.
If you talk to the shopkeepers, they’ll tell you they miss the quiet of the pre-HBO days, but they like the "dragon money." It’s a trade-off.
Trsteno Arboretum: The gardens of political scheming
About 20 minutes north of the city lies Trsteno. This is where Olenna Tyrell and Varys would walk and talk about treason. It’s one of the oldest arboretums in this part of the world. The two giant plane trees at the entrance are over 500 years old.
Walking through the pergolas, you can almost hear the rustle of silk gowns. It’s significantly quieter than the Old Town. If you want the King’s Landing vibe without the crushing crowds of the Stradun, go here. The fountain with the statue of Neptune is exactly as it appeared when Sansa and Margaery shared lemon cakes. No lemon cakes are actually for sale there, though. Huge missed marketing opportunity.
The real-world logistics of your visit
Don't just wing it. If you want to see the sites properly, you need a plan that doesn't involve following a guy with a plastic dragon on a stick.
- Timing: Go in May or late September. July is a furnace. August is a crowd-choked nightmare.
- The Pass: Buy the Dubrovnik Pass. It covers the walls, Lovrijenac, and several museums. It saves a lot of kuna—well, euros now, since Croatia joined the Eurozone.
- Footwear: Wear shoes with grip. The stone is slick.
Is it still worth it?
People ask if the GoT fever has died down. A bit, yeah. House of the Dragon filmed elsewhere, mostly in Spain and the UK. But Dubrovnik remains the spiritual home of the franchise. You can’t replicate that specific shade of Adriatic blue or the way the sun hits the limestone at 4:00 PM.
It’s expensive. A coffee on the Stradun might cost you more than a full meal in Zagreb. But you’re paying for the view. You’re paying to stand where Tyrion stood before the Battle of the Blackwater.
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Moving forward: Your King's Landing itinerary
To truly see the best of Game of Thrones Dubrovnik without losing your mind in the crowds, follow these specific steps:
- Book an early morning walls tour. Start at the Pile Gate entrance the moment they open (usually 8:00 AM). Walk counter-clockwise. You'll hit the Minceta Tower before the heat and the crowds become unbearable.
- Visit the Ethnographic Museum. It’s built into an old granary and served as the exterior of Littlefinger’s brothel. It’s rarely crowded and the architecture is fascinating.
- Take the cable car at sunset. It goes up Mount Srđ. From the top, you can see the entire "King's Landing" layout. You’ll see exactly why the location scouts lost their minds when they first saw it.
- Head to Hotel Belvedere. It’s a derelict, abandoned hotel outside the main town. The combat arena there was the site of the Mountain vs. the Viper trial by combat. It’s gritty, covered in graffiti, and feels like a secret find.
The magic of the city isn't in the plastic swords sold in the gift shops. It’s in the fact that the city actually looks like the fantasy. Most film sets are plywood and green screen. Dubrovnik is 1,400 years of stone, salt, and survival. Even if you’ve never seen a single episode of the show, the scale of the fortifications is enough to make you feel very small and very mortal. That’s the real King’s Landing experience. It’s not about the dragons; it’s about the power of the place itself.
Go for the photos, but stay for the history. The real stories of the Republic of Ragusa—with its spies, its diplomats, and its sheer stubbornness to remain independent—are often more wild than anything the show writers came up with.
Pro tip: If you want a swim, go to the "Buža" bars. These are literal holes in the wall on the outside of the city walls. You sit on the rocks, drink a cold beer, and jump straight into the sea. It’s the most "Blackwater Bay" thing you can do without the wildfire.
Actionable Next Steps:
Check the current cruise ship schedule for the Port of Gruž before you book your dates. If three major ships are docking on the same day, the Old Town will be impassable. Aim for days with zero or one ship to ensure you can actually see the stones you're walking on. Reach out to a local guide who specializes in "Hidden History" rather than just GoT; they often have access to private courtyards that were used as background fillers in the early seasons.