I was under the impression from a previous post that there is ferry service in Cavtat, Croatia, to Dubrovnik. Yet when I search google I can't find anything. Does such a service exist?

If not, where is a good "home base" that would allow us to take the ferry to various islands and still reach Dubrovnik without having to take a bus or car?

Cavtat is not on an island. It is on the road south of Dubrovnik. HOWEVER, the trip by water is beautiful and worth taking. There are lots of boats that make excursions tied up at the harbor just outside the walls on the south end of Dubrovnik (name escapes me at the moment). There isn't much to do in Cavtat except walk around and eat. There are lots of good places to eat, and we had a memorable all-afternoon lunch under the trees one glorious day in October. No, I don't remember the name of the restaurant either, pretty useless!

It's a water-taxi, not a ferry. They are small boats, taking no more than about 15-20 people, and mostly sail hourly. They do not sail if the sea is any way choppy. The bus to and from Cavtat is quicker (about 30 mins) and cheaper, but the water journey is charming because you get to see more of the coastline.

If you stay in Cavtat you can avail of day trips to the islands from the village - is that what you mean? If you want to use the ferry to the islands then you'll have to travel from Dubrovnik.

Cavtat is a charming little village with nice bars and restaurants. It also has the advantage of being very close to the airport - about 15 minutes drive. DH and I stayed there last year and my parents will be staying there in May on our recommendation.

"If you stay in Cavtat you can avail of day trips to the islands from the village"

ter2000 that's exactly what I mean. So it sounds like I can take a water taxi from Cavtat to Dubrovnik, and water taxi from Cavtat to other islands in the area. Correct?

We'll be traveling with a toddler so I'd like to avoid bus or car.

Thanks!

You can take a water taxi to and from Cavtat to Dubrovnik certainly. As for to and from the islands, I'm not so sure. There are organised day trips for touring the islands, which includes lunch on the boat (seating about 30 people or so) and returning in the evening, but to get to the islands and stay there you may have to consider a water taxi to Dubrovnik, and then take a ferry to the there.

Which islands do you plan to visit?
There is an easy boat trip over to Lokrum from the old town Dbv. marina.
To go the Elafiti islands, check schedules at http://www.jadrolinija.hr/default.aspx?dpid=1227
Some people do Mljet as a day trip (to me that's too far), check Jadrolinija schedule to see if that's possible. Otherwise, excursions are an option.

Also, find out where the boat from Cavtat drops you off in Dubrovnik--is it at the same port Jadrolinija ferries use?

There are also excursion boats to Elafiti islands.

We stayed in Cavtat last September. While they have good ferry service, it's not an every day thing.

We wanted to leave from Cavtat to Lopud, but the ferry left a day later than we wanted. So we took the bus to Dubrovnik.

What's the reason for not wanting to take a bus? Our 3 year old turned out to get seasick (or "dizzy" as she put it) on the boats. And the bus to Dubrovnik was twice as fast.

Previous poster made a very helpful point, there are two ports in Dubrovnik, the old town, with the taxi boats, cruise ships, etc., and the "new" town port, where the Jadrolinja ferries are.

The bus brought us close to the "new" port, but we still had to walk at least 1/2 mile with our luggage.

We will be in Dubrovnik for one day from cruise ship. How do you suggest we spend our day? We want to walk the wall, have lunch, see the old synagogue... will we have time to go to Cavtat as well?

Thank you.

We stayed in Cavtat a couple of years ago and thought it made a very good base for exploring the area. It has a very pretty harbour area, some nice restaurants and pleasant walks. We hired a car for part of the time but there were plenty of boat trips and busses if you don't wish to drive. Here are some of our pictures of Cavtat, Dubrovnik and area.
http://www.worldisround.com/articles/223336/index.html

Just noticed that this is a revived old post. The boat from Dubrovnik to Cavtat takes 45 - 50 minutes and most run hourly through the day, so it depends how long your cruise ship stops whether you will have time for this.

Thank you. I hope we can make the time to go although it will be a busy day!

I spent 5 days in Dubrovnik last Sept and spent one of them in Cavtat. The town is really charming but if I had only 1 day I would stay in Dubrovnik. there is lots to see and I wouldn't take the time away from there.

Marie H: Terrific pics of Dub. We are going to be there for 7 days in late Sept. and I am always looking for pics of Dub.to help get familiar with the "landscape" or the "red-roof--scape." We will be staying up behind he Excelsior Hotel, part of the time. Evidently a bit of a climb. Oh Well!! Ciao! mhm

Iflaster - I really could not see a reason to go to Cavtat if you are only in for one day. It is a cute little village, but really not much to do but stroll around. It is definately not in the same jaw drop catagory as Dubrovnik.