Seaside Promenade

The seaside promenade of Cavtat, known locally as the Riva, runs along the shore of the bay of the small Dalmatian town of Cavtat, about fifteen kilometres south of Dubrovnik, on the Croatian coast. It is a long, curving walkway beside the water, lined with palm trees, villas, cafés and restaurants, and it is the natural centre of town life, a place where people stroll, sit and watch the boats.

Cavtat has a very old history. It was founded by Greeks, and under the Romans it was a flourishing town called Epidaurum, whose people fled inland after it was destroyed in the early Middle Ages and went on to found Dubrovnik. The modern town grew up over the following centuries around its sheltered bay, and became a small, self-contained port with a character quite different from its famous neighbour. In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, when the Dalmatian coast was part of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, Cavtat developed as a quiet retreat for wealthy families and visitors, and many of the villas along the waterfront date from that period.

Walking along the Riva gives a sense of that elegant, unhurried past. The promenade is paved and well maintained, with benches and shaded spots under pines and palms, and the clear blue water of the Adriatic Sea laps against the stone. Behind it are villas and houses with lush gardens, cafés and restaurants that serve fresh fish and Dalmatian dishes at tables almost on the water’s edge, and small shops. At one end of the bay is the harbour, where fishing boats and yachts are moored, and at the other, the path leads up toward the Rat peninsula, with its pine forest and the cemetery with the Račić Mausoleum, the finest work by the sculptor Ivan Meštrović on the Adriatic coast. Small pebble beaches and rocky platforms along the path give access to swimming, so you can combine a walk with a dip.

Visitors will find several places of interest close to the promenade. The Rector’s Palace, Knežev Dvor, is a Renaissance building that once housed the Ragusan officials and now holds a museum and library bequeathed by the scholar Baltazar Bogišić. The Bukovac House Museum honours the painter Vlaho Bukovac, born in Cavtat, and the Franciscan Monastery has a quiet cloister and paintings. Together they make a short cultural route along the waterfront, and the whole area can be covered at an easy pace in an hour or two.

For many, the promenade is popular for morning walks, evening strolls and casual meetings, and it is lively but calm, never crowded in the way of larger resorts. It is free and open at all times, and the best moments are early morning and sunset. It suits families, couples and anyone who enjoys a relaxed seaside walk.