are there any beaches in dubrovnik that we can use?
 

we will be there in june. staying at adriatica because of recommendations on this board. are there any public or hotel beaches that we can use near the ploce gate?

Hi there. We stayed in Dubrovnik in Sept.2004 and swam every day. There is a stunning little beach( and bar) about 100 metres beyond( outside) the Ploce gate. There's a yellow Post Office sign( Posta) and just beyond it is a staircase to the East West bar and beach. I'm assuming this is very near where you will be staying. No charge for the beach and lovely view of Dubrovnik while you are swimming/sunning!
We also took a boat one day to an island just off Dubrovnik called Lokrum. Good for swimming and relaxing and just a 10 minute boat trip from the harbour.
We loved Croatia. Sure you will too. Linda

thank you lin29! just yesterday i found the internet sight for "east west club". i thought it w/b a high daily rate. suprised to hear "free". how do they make $$? do the boats for lokrum leave from the old harbor (near ploce gate)? did you do any boat or car excursions?

What is the closest airport to Dubrovnik? Trying to get there from Toronto or Buffalo.

wow,
We're flying from Montreal with Thomas Cooke Airlines to London. Get on whichbudget.com to get a cheap flight to Dubrovnik.

Thanks, Syl! When are you going?

wow,
Leaving Sept.10 for 3 weeks touring Slovenia & Croatia by car. Can't wait.

Hi Bodhijack.
The beach at EW Bar is called Banje beach I think and it's a public beach. They charge to hire deckchairs or beds but we just wandered onto the beach with our towels...no problem. I found a website earlier describing the Dubrovnik beaches. Here's the link:
http://www.dubrovnik-guide.net/plaze.htm
Yes, the boats for Lokrum leave from the old harbour. We did a day trip to Mljet with Atlas. Mljet is lovely...beautiful saltwater lakes, bicycles to hire( or cars). But to be honest, we are very much independent travellers and did not enjoy the tour. We were part of a group of 70 odd people and seemed to spend more time waiting around than anything else.Quite honestly one does not need a tour guide for Mljet. There is a daily fast catamaran in summer. Look at www.alpex.hr. If you do go, be sure to take swimming gear and maybe a picnic lunch. I do know that several people on this board have done the Montenegro daytrip with Atlas and enjoyed it.Hope this helps.

lin29. great info, linda! thank you, again. we,too, are independent travelers so thank you for the mjet info. where did you go after dubrovnik? (we are going to hvar town for 5 nights) jack

Just a shout out of thanks to Syl for the whichbudget link... so helpful for us. We're leaving home on May 21 for Croatia.. and was wondering about options for getting home. This gave us one more option! Much appreciated. I'll post a trip report when we get back Jun 1... hopefully it will be helpful to folks going after us.

Here is the website for the East West Bar:
http://www.ew-dubrovnik.com/cocktail_bar.html

Be aware that most Croatian beaches are pebbles, so swim shoes/sandals are advisable.

Have a great trip, you will love Croatia!

:-)

Are you staying at the VIlla Adriatica? If so, looks like the E/W beach is right there. And the website given you for the beach is perfection, the bar looks exactly like that and is huge! We spent parts of two different days there and it was welcome respite from the sun at times. Very casual. bathrooms, etc. No food, at a grocery store/bakery just on the street above it we bought burek sandwiches for lunch. yum...I never saw a sign that said the beach was there but as is typical in dubrovnik when trying to get "below" from "above" you take the plunge and just pick a staircase. BUt the directions given you past the post office are good ones, just don't panic if you don't see the sign. THere are at least 2 walkways right there. Just returned this week, am so jealous. On the ploce gate side there is the old harbor and all sorts of boat companies/tours line up tables and you can easily compare locations, times and prices. The ferry to lokrum runs ever hour, I think until 7 pm last return. There is an inland salt lake for swimming otherwise swimming off the rocks there is more diffiult than the dubrovnik beaches. There is a little cafe on the island too. And nude beaches but we mostly just saw topless. I whipped my shirt off as a joke when the family wasnt looking (two teenage daughters and my husband with me) and it has become the big trip joke. Just know that when the ferry arrives to drop off at Lokrum it just turns around and leaves. If you want to be back at a certain time, be on time. Also we had one day where the water was smooth as glass, then another a bit windy and rocky which is the day we went.

I just checked out the website for East/West.. and it definitely was the beach we found.. but DEFINITLY did not look anything like the pics on the website. (that is beautiful, and so inviting!) We walked down the stairs to find some (about 10) scattered stacked plastic lounge chairs, which not one person was using. There was a huge bulldozer drivin by a 20yr old guy just going back and forth, with 2 young (6ish) girls chasing after. It was like they were playing a game, they would run up to it, he would turn the bucket toward them, they would run. (really scarey!).This went on for the entire hour we were there. Anyway, people were laying on the rocky beach - which we also did since we didnt want to pay for the chairs. It didnt seem the bar was open. And the man who worked there, was extemely rude to us. I'm thinking they were just 'getting ready' for the tourists (?) - Sorry to rant, but it was def one of the low-lights of our Croatian experience. Im glad that you, rosexmke, had a better experience there, and I hope that you bodhijack, do as well.

thank you callalilli and rose (lots of flowers on this board)! rose, at east/west did you sit on beach chairs or a towel? also, on lokrum, is it a short walk to the salt lake? jack

I am not a hot sun person so I just stayed under the canopy in the bar. The rest of the family just used towels, not sure why they didnt rent a chair. Walk to lake about a half an hour. There is a posted map a little ways up from the dock and you can buy one for about a dollar I think and I would, it shows the paths.

Also, for old town to this beach, there is a little market on the way so you can pick up snacks/drinks if needed. The beach bar is a place to relax and get out of the sun. Oh..and if you jump into the water, look towards old town- it's a great view into the old port. Enjoy your trip!