Cavtat on Bus 10, with a Walk Around the Rat Peninsula

What it is

Cavtat is the harbour village of the Konavle district, 18 km south-east of Dubrovnik. It occupies the Rat peninsula, which with the Sustjepan one encloses a sheltered bay with a palm-lined seafront promenade. It was the Roman Epidaurum; when its inhabitants abandoned it, they fled to the islet where Dubrovnik was born, and that is why documents also call it Ragusa Vecchia. In the days of the Republic it was its second port. Today it is a small village, without the crowds of Dubrovnik's old town, and you go there and back on the city bus.

How to get there on bus 10

Libertas line 10, Dubrovnik – Cavtat, runs every day. From Dubrovnik there are departures from 5:00 to midnight, every half hour at midday (at 10:00, 10:30, 11:00, 11:30, 12:00…), and from Cavtat the last one returns at 23:00. Some departures do not run on Sundays and holidays: check the day's timetable on the Libertas website, which warns it may change without notice.

A single ticket to Cavtat costs €4. Konavle tourism recommends this bus as the way to arrive from Dubrovnik. Ask at the Libertas kiosk at Pile for the stop closest to your accommodation.

What to see

• The seafront promenade. It runs the length of the bay, flat and suitable for pushchairs, among boats, terraces and palm trees.
• The loop round the Rat peninsula. A path circles the peninsula beside the sea, among pines and rocks from which people swim. It leaves from the promenade itself and returns to it.
• The Račić family mausoleum. At the top of the peninsula, in St Roch cemetery. It was built in 1921 at the wish of Marija Račić, from a family of shipowners, over the old 15th-century church of St Roch. It was designed by the sculptor Ivan Meštrović: it is all white Brač stone, crowned with a dome, except the door, the bell and the angel, which are bronze.
• The house of Vlaho Bukovac. The birthplace of the painter, father of modern Croatian painting, at Vlaha Bukovca 5. It reopened in 2004 after a restoration, with his studio and garden.
• The Rector's Palace. It houses the collection of Baltazar Bogišić, a jurist from Cavtat: paintings, prints, books and an enormous correspondence. Because of works only part can be visited.

The hours and prices of the mausoleum and the museums change with the season: check them on the Cavtat and Konavle tourism website or at the village tourist office.

How long

Half a day covers the promenade, the Rat loop, the mausoleum and a swim. If you want to enter the Bukovac house and have an unhurried lunch, allow the whole day.

Swimming

Around Rat and Sustjepan there are rock swimming spots and small stony coves. Bring water shoes and a towel.

With children

It is a comfortable outing with a pushchair: the promenade is flat and the bus goes direct. The climb to the mausoleum is uphill and with steps. For older children, the Rat path has rocks for swimming away from the bustle.

When to go

All year. It is a good escape for the afternoon when Dubrovnik's old town is full of cruise passengers: check the city's visitor forecast the day before. In winter the village is quiet and some of the terraces close.