For the makers of the HBO blockbuster Game of Thrones, Dubrovnik presented a perfect cinematic backdrop as the fabled city of King’s Landing.
The Croatian city, wrapped in well-preserved walls, is a place of majesty and mystery. But the screen time provided by the fantasy drama has enticed even more tourists to a location long-marketed as “The Pearl of the Adriatic”.
To turn back the tide of overtourism, Dubrovnik’s mayor is taking a series of steps to cut down on the worst excesses. Mato Frankovic told The Independent daily travel podcast:
- The city walls will be accessible only with advance booking from 2026
- Cruise ships are limited to two per day, with a minimum stay of eight hours, to spread the flow of passengers
- An audit of rental accommodation and other business is under way, with the city buying up apartments to be let to families at low rents – and a new school created in a palace.
According to the sustainable travel agency, Responsible Travel, Dubrovnik has been ranked the most overcrowded city in the world, with 27 tourists to every resident at its peak.
Mr Frankovic said: “From next year, you will be obliged to reserve your time and date in order to visit the city walls.
“There will be a designated number of people that could be at a certain time on the city walls.”
This will reduce the number of tourists that are “not very satisfied” with their visit as a result of overcrowding, he says.
“We want to reach the higher quality of service, giving the best possible experience.”
The plan centres on the Dubrovnik Pass, which costs €40 (£35) for the day. It covers museums, galleries and monasteries as well as the city walls.
Responsible Travel warns that holiday lets in the city are adding to the harm caused by tourists, saying: “Homes and flats have been turned over to tourist accommodation which destroys any sense of community, erodes authentic culture, and pushes up property prices.”
Within the Old City, the mayor said a programme is underway to audit the number of the apartments, restaurants, cafes and souvenir shops in order to reach a sustainable number.
“Some of them will not be apartments in the future,” he said. “We want to actually to have more inhabitants inside the Old City.
“We are buying houses in the Old City, restoring those houses and delivering them with the public tender to young families for a very small monthly amount of lease.”
Mr Frankovic said that a former palace has been given a new lease of life as a school to rebuild the community in the Old City.
In the wider city, cruise ships are now limited to two per day – and must stay for at least eight hours.
The mayor said: “Back in 2017, usually the cruise ships stayed just for four hours. People just ran in the city, took a photo and left.”
Today, he said, the typical call is 11 hours, allowing for a range of excursions and reducing overcrowding.
Coach parties are also being regulated, with drop-off times assigned at the main entrance to the Old City, the Pile Gate.
Mr Frankovic stressed that the city welcomes visitors. “We are fully aware that 80 per cent of Dubrovnik citizens are [making a] living out of tourism.
“If you give opportunity for to tourists to stay longer, to enjoy longer, they're actually spending much more.
“Tourists do not want anymore to be in overcrowded cities. Step by step, the overcrowded cities will be pushed on the margins of the tourism. The cities that are prepared for sustainable tourism will be leaders.
“Our main goal is for Dubrovnik to be alive.”
The decision comes a year after Venice became the first city in the world to charge admission for daytrippers, in an attempt to stem what one resident called “obscene rivers of tourists”.
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