Top Tips for Split, Croatia
Split is the main gateway to the Dalmatian Islands and is the second largest city in Croatia. It is a sprawling, bustling city that most tourists will never see much of and they aren’t missing much. The ugly, communist era high rises don’t exactly invite a leisurely stroll through the neighbourhoods out of town. But the old town area and its immediate vicinity is beautiful: Split is a city well worth some time, not just as a stopover on the way to the islands.
Here are my Top Tips:
1. Diocletian’s Palace – so this is the cool thing about Split. Diocletian’s Palace is not really a palace in the way you might think of them, a single building you need to pay an entrance fee for that has been preserved as a tourist site. It’s actually a whole complex, a city really. Three thousand people live within the palace walls, there are 220 buildings. You are not just visiting the place Emperor Diocletian built to retire after he abdicated from the Roman Empire at the turn of the 4th century, it’s the heart of the city. Within the fortress walls are narrow streets, courtyards, washing hanging out, bars, restaurants. It’s easy to think of the Palace as just the main square, but it encompasses the whole area within the walls. The models showing how it was originally built and the additions over the centuries help to envision it all – now and then.
2. Food – I found it much easier to find fantastic food here at decent prices. Some recommendations:
- Villa Spiza – Tucked away in a little street towards the edge of the old town, away from the sea. It holds about 20 people with a bench out front to wait with a glass of wine. Really great food with an old school soundtrack. It is fantastic for solo diners; single seats are set up along the bar looking directly into the tiny kitchen pumping out food. Menu changes frequently.
- Konoba Marjan -This place is all about fresh fish. Not far from the fish market, they bring out a tray of catch of the day options. I very easily got upsold into a whole sea bass – it was worth the slightly more expensive outlay. It’s busy. Book if you want an outside seat.
- Ma.Toni – A great, romantic option, but I saw a few other solo diners too. It’s set in a basement with a wine cellar vibe, but it’s near the beach (very strange to walk into a cellar next to the beach, eat dinner and walk out in the daylight again). Really lovely setting, food was good, if not outstanding.
- D16 – in the middle of the old town, has excellent coffee and friendly service.
3. People watching at Luxor – as our waiter informed us, this is a post-communist era innovation. Luxor bar sets out cushions and little trays on the steps of the main square of Diocletian’s Palace. The drinks are not the cheapest in town, but there is music every night from 8pm and the surcharge is worth every kuna for the people watching and the wonder of drinking a glass of Croatian wine on the steps of a palace used as a gathering space for 1600 years.
4. Marjan Park – you are going to need to walk off some of that food! Take the steps at the end of the Riva promenade up to the look out at Marjan park. You can stop there and have a coffee or a drink at the restaurant or keep walking, either directly up to the main lookout point at the top of the hill or take a longer walk around the hill with beautiful views of the coastline and decent shade along the way. If you get a bike, there are lots of paths to explore.
5. Green Market and Fish Market – at either end of the old town, these are busy, working markets. Clearly not just a tourist attraction, there were plenty of locals stocking up. It’s a slightly more civilised affair than the Victoria Markets in Melbourne, but not by much! Lots of vendors spruiking their fruit and veges. A great place to get a sense of the city.
6. Ice-cream – Split has a reputation for great ice-cream. As I was advised, just pick a place that doesn’t stock anything blue and you should be happily eating homemade gelato shortly thereafter!
7. Beaches – there are a few city beaches, but if you’ve just come from the Islands, don’t get too excited. I knew this was going to be my last beach stop for a long time, so I drove to Otok Čiovo and headed to Plaza Beach, near Slatine. Definitely not quite up to the island standard of beaches, but the water was gorgeous and the little café did a great wood-fired pizza and beer. I happily spent about 4 hours soaking up the sun, swimming and dozing! If you don’t have a car, there are lots of places selling island tours along the waterfront of Split. If you need some sea, I would imagine these are a good option.
