Diocletian's Palace, Split

Dioklecijanova palača

A palace built for Roman Emperor Diocletian after his abdication in AD 305. Around 3,000 people still live within its walls, and its colonnade, underground halls and bell tower form the heart of Split.

Diocletian's Palace was built as a retirement palace for the Roman emperor Diocletian and completed in AD 305. It covers 30,000 square metres. Medieval residents moved in and built homes within the palace, forming today's old town of Split, where people live inside a Roman palace. It was inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 1979. The heart of the complex is the Peristyle, a square enclosed by red granite columns and black sphinxes. During the day, 'guards' in Roman costume perform, and in the evening, Klapa a cappella singing often takes place. The cafés on the square's steps offer the best seats. To the east, the Cathedral of St Domnius was converted from the emperor's mausoleum and is one of the oldest Catholic cathedrals in the world. Climbing its 57-metre bell tower gives views over the old town and harbour (a combined ticket for the cathedral, tower and crypt costs about EUR 10–15). To the west, the Temple of Jupiter was converted into a baptistery. The palace basement (Podrumi) preserves the same floor plan as the palace above. It was the filming location for the basement where Daenerys, the Mother of Dragons, kept her dragons in Game of Thrones. Entry costs about EUR 8, and the basement passage leads directly to the Riva seafront promenade. Inside the palace are also a statue of Archbishop Grgur Ninski (rub his big toe for luck), the Golden Gate, the Silver Gate and the Iron Gate. Split is about 230 km from Dubrovnik, roughly 4 hours by long-distance bus, or about 4.5 hours by fast ferry in summer. Plan to stay at least one night, combining it with the sunset from Marjan Hill and a ferry to Hvar. Restaurants inside the palace are pricey. The Green Market (Pazar) and the fish market, a 5-minute walk from Riva, are more local.

Opening hours

Palace grounds open all day; cathedral and crypt approx. 08:00–20:00 (shorter in winter)

World Heritage · Roman ruins · Old town · Game of Thrones

Nearby sights

Places to eat nearby

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