Skalini
cro. a series or flight of steps; a staircase
… and one of the most photographed motives inside Dubrovnik Old Town?
As you’ve probably already noticed, Dubrovnik is a city with a LOT of stairs.
This is one of those universal statements that are so overwhelmingly correct that even our fittest guests have to acknowledge this truth. One of them even went so far as to describe it like this:
“If a Stairmaster could somehow be turned into a town – that would definitely be Dubrovnik Old Town.”
So, how many steps are there?
A few years ago a research team armed with cameras and recording devices actually spent time counting all the steps. They discovered there are a grand total of 4,343 steps within the perimeter of the city wall and 1,080 steps on the wall itself, making the grand total 5,423. Which makes Dubrovnik the city with the most stairs on the Mediterranean.
We’re quite sure that our Tourist Board will not be using this fact in their advertising slogan any time soon, but the steps and stairs are part of Dubrovnik’s charm and we love them, (or at least we tell ourselves that we don’t mind them all that much).
Stairs are considered a cool (and cold) place to unwind with friends on a late summer night, a place to wait before meeting someone, a play area for children and an impromptu concert stage if needed.
These are our favorite spots:
The most famous – Jesuit staircase
These beautiful and elegant Baroque stairs just off Gundulić square lead up to the Church of St. Ignatius and 17th-century Jesuit College, reminiscent of the famous “Spanish Steps” in Rome on the Piazza di Spagna.
Over the years, these steps have been used for productions of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, and various music performances during the Dubrovnik Summer Festival.
Most recently these steps were used for the infamous Game of Thrones “walk of shame” in season 5. This controversial film scene was originally blocked by local church authorities, since it contained nudity, however, permission was eventually granted for one of the Cersei’s most iconic scenes.
The longest:
These stairs on Boškovićeva Street lead from the Stradun up to the small gate on the northern wall of the city, which is also called Buža. This set of stairs is actually not the longest but it surely feels that way because of the steep and continuous climb. Fortunately, there are plenty of interesting shops and boutiques to stop and visit on your way up or down.
The most photogenic – Steps from Prijeko
Gardens are rare within the Old City walls, but when ficus and cacti plants growing from small pots manage to overtake the stone facades, #dubrovnik on Instagram is filled with scenic images like this one.
The most beloved – The church of St. Blaise
The wide staircase in front of the church, shaded from the sun for the good part of the day, is the popular place for weary tourists to
sit people-watch for a while.
In all that hustle and bustle of the main street Stradun, these steps seem to promise some inner peace and relaxation, drawing people in to take a break. For locals, this is often the most common
meeting point in the Old Town.
SO …
No excuses in Dubrovnik Old Town: if you really want to see the areas where locals still live, you’ll have to step it up a notch. Away from the noise and crowds of the main street and up charming side alleys, you’ll find small galleries, authentic souvenir shops and restaurants, as well as locals simply living their daily lives.
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