Known as the Pearl of Adriatic Sea, Dubrovnik in Croatia is without a doubt one of the most beautiful coastal cities in Europe. It will be difficult not to fall in love with Dubrovnik…that medieval charm of its old town and those stunning orange-roofed buildings. Plus the beauty of its old town during nightfall is especially magical and I found myself overlooking the truckload of tourist groups who are here for perhaps the same reason.

After the beer and resting my tired feet, I bought my ticket and board the bus from Kotor to Dubrovnik.

The journey took almost 3 hours where the bus cruised along the scenic coastal road which overlooks the Adriatic Sea. Yet, I was seated on the side which faces the opposite side of coastal road…boo…

It was already late afternoon when I arrived at Dubrovnik Main Bus Station located at Gruž Port so I got myself a taxi to Hotel Dubrovnik Palace to save me some time.

Check in, Backpack off, wander I go!

While Hotel Dubrovnik Palace is not situated near the Old Town, it’s a mere 10-minute ride away from the bus stop right in front of the hotel via the ‘Hotel Palace – Pile’ local bus No. 4. Buying your bus tickets from the reception beforehand will be cheaper as compared to buying on board from the driver, 12 Croatian Kuna (S$2.50) versus 15 Croatian Kuna.

I was already mesmerised by the forts and the sunset view upon alighting at Pile bus stop. It’s beautiful, just beautiful.

Nightfall at Dubrovnik Old Town

A short walk from the bus stop brought me to Pile Gate (Gradska Vrata Pile), the main entrance of the Old Town.

It’s less crowded than I thought, perhaps the day trippers have already left, which means they are missing out the magical moment of Dubrovnik Old Town…something like this…

Amazing combination of sunset colours and the lights along Placa Street (Stradun) leading to Bell Tower, I love it!

The blue hour and those whitewashed buildings make an equally stunning pair.

Another great place to enjoy the blue hour moment is the Old Port (Gradska luka).

Not far from the Old Port are the Dubrovnik Cathedral and Rector’s Palace.

I would have continued wandering around but my stomach protested violently and demanded to be fed LOL. To that, it’s not hard to find places to eat around the old town – there’re restaurants almost everywhere I turned. I settled for Restaurant Konoba Penatur amid being tourist-trap-looking, which one isn’t anyway?

Thankfully, the 37 Euro fresh seafood platter and the soup turned out better than I thought.

The streets get even quieter after dinner and a joy to walk around. Besides the restaurants, most of the other shops (majority are selling tourist souvenir) have already closed for the day.

I decided to head back for an early rest (it’s only 9 pm…) and be back here in the morning next day.

STAY: Hotel Dubrovnik Palace review

‘Best hotel!’ said the taxi driver who drove me over from Dubrovnik Main Bus Station. Nestled in a rocky cove of Lapad peninsula, Hotel Dubrovnik Palace lobby is like any modern hotel but with a stunning view of Adriatic Sea, the exact reason why I opt to stay here instead of Old Town.

Another unique thing about the hotel is that the reception level is on the top floor while the rooms are at lower floors, took me a while to get used to. Yup, totally upside down but that ensures every room to have a gorgeous sea view.

The longish rectangular room is spacious and extend to a private balcony good for watching the sunset. Everything else in the room was perfect and quiet for a good night rest on its comfortable bed. Tasty breakfast, good WiFi signals, friendly staffs were an additional bonus.

There’s a tourist tax of 7 Croatian Kuna per night during my stay.

With an incredible sea view like this, I wouldn’t even hesitate to stay here again when I revisit Dubrovnik. It’s that good.