Westeros in Croatia
Since 2012, in seasons 1 and 2, for all fans, the capital of the Kingdom of the Seven Crowns is called King's Landing - actually in ancient Ragusa - where the Westeros family is headquartered. A stream of special tourists regularly arrive in Dubrovnik and set off in search of King's Landing(Fort Lovrijenac), the ancient city-state's most emblematic monument. The backdrop for many scenes, the palace is dominated by the fantastic, totally reinvented Red Keep. For season 1, the exterior scenes were shot in Malta, but a dispute with the municipality prompted the directors to find another location. This was a godsend for Dubrovnik, which could rejoice at such a turn of events in its favor. Had it forgotten the damage of the last war? Erased the marks of Serbian and Montenegrin bombing? On the surface, everything has been repaired. By the 2000s, thanks to a vast reconstruction and restoration program coordinated by Unesco, the historic city had regained the architectural harmony of its extraordinary medieval and Baroque urban fabric.
It was really from 2016 onwards that the spotlight generated by the cult series boosted visitor numbers to Dalmatia by around 15-20%. In April 2019, at a private preview at Fort Revelin before the screening of the final episode (eighth and final season), the director of the Croatian National Tourist, Kristjan Staničić, once again praised this positive impact on the promotion of his country. Today, tour operators, who have published a number of themed brochures, are still building discovery tours of the filming locations led by specialized tourist guides.
How to choose your Game of Thrones Tour
Depending on how long you've been in Croatia and your vacation budget, you'll be spoilt for choice, from a fast-paced treasure hunt (2 hours) to a half-day tour with an enthusiastic guide. He or she can arrive in medieval costume to take you to the sites and monuments, giving you a history lesson on the culture of the old town, while filling you in on behind-the-scenes anecdotes. The challenge is to show the historical heritage while recreating memorable scenes. You'll recognize the silhouette of the clock tower; the west pier, where the Battle of the Blackwater raged in season 2, with battles filmed on the ramparts; the façade of the Ethnographic Museum, which served as the entrance to Petyr Baelish's brothel; the courtyard of the Rector's palace, perfect as a royal residence, the great public street (Stradun), the mighty fortifications of Lovrijenac that protected King's Landing, the Pile Gate where King Joffrey faced a citizen's revolt, Pila Bay, where Princess Myrcella left for Dorne, where Sansa plotted with Littlefinger. Special mention must be made of the staircase of the Jesuit church of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, where one of the series' most shocking scenes was filmed, Queen Cersei's Naked Walk of Shame (season 5 finale). The tour ends with a boat trip to Lokrum for the famous souvenir photo on the Iron Throne, which now belongs to the astonishing subjects of the kingdom of Qarth. This small island, a few miles from Dubrovnik's old port, is a nature reserve where people come all year round to relax, and in summer to swim.
Some truly addicted fans opt for total immersion! In addition to all the sites in the old town and Lokrum, you can visit the ancient arboretum of Trsteno, 15 km from Dubrovnik, and then climb to Mount Srđ, where, like the king of King's Landing, you can enjoy a breathtaking view of the pearl of the Adriatic.
Jet-setters, fans, cruisers or simple holidaymakers... when it's too much, it's too much!
But all these filming locations, the backdrop to the fiction, are also places where people live. An economic windfall that proves highly profitable for some local residents, but hard to bear for others who still live inside the walls. Already overrun by the daily procession of cruise passengers and coach groups, the old town is literally suffocating from too many visitors. Mass tourism is a daily nuisance. From 5,000 in the early 1990s, the number of residents has officially dropped to 1,500, but in reality, there are fewer than 700. Some speculate, renting out their homes at a premium, turning them into cafés-restaurants and living elsewhere. Those who resist, generally the less well-off, suffer from noise pollution, the intrusion of prying eyes into their building, and petty incivilities. Dubrovnik's mayor, Mato Franković, wanted to respond to the grumbling of his constituents and the threat of downgrading by Unesco, so he had to sign some courageous bylaws to set quotas. The municipality installed a counter at the entrance to the walled city, in order to lower the number of visitors allowed into the historic town to 4,000 per day.
Discover other equally evocative filming locations
Ironically, Dubrovnik's over-tourism woes are a boon to other Adriatic towns, as well as to more modest communes, where it's advisable to fall back when Port-Réal has to close its doors to stem the crowds. Split first. The Dalmatian capital, which didn't really need the Game of Thrones effect to fill its hotel reservations, has nevertheless taken to the game. In spring 2019, it opened a museum, the Game of Thrones Museum, and Vetus-Itinera, a specialized Split agency entirely dedicated to fans of the series, organizes stays at all the European and Croatian filming locations.
In the historic center, Diocletian's Palace was built in the glory of ancient Rome, around 300 A.D. A unique architectural ensemble, listed as a Unesco World Heritage Site, the imperial residence is based on an ingenious system of vaulted basements, tunnels and underground networks that have been particularly well restored. Inside these thick, dark, oozing walls, we filmed the throne room of Daenerys and the mighty Targaryens, struggles and battles, most memorably that of the Queen of Westeros against the slave-owning lords, Mereen and Yunkai. On the way back to the open air, we pass through the narrow Papaliceva street (slave rebellion), then head off into the green suburbs, a few kilometers from Split, for Žrnovnica, a commune that in medieval times was home to grain mills. Some of these picturesque mills have been meticulously restored. This is where Missandei, Daenerys' servant and confidante, takes her bath. Still in the Split region, there's also the lagoon town of Kaštel Gomilica (free city of Braavos) and, above all, the fortress of Klis. Built into the cliffs, the massive military silhouette was the chosen film location for Danaerys Targaryen's stronghold. In true Croatian history, Klis was the first duchy to pass laws, under the aegis of Trpimir I, who reigned from 845 to 864. Today, the small town, which saw visitor numbers rise by over 60% in 2018, benefits directly from the stronghold's success. Local elected representatives and neighboring municipal museums (Šibenik, Herceg Novi, Zenica) are dreaming up a plan to enhance the region's heritage. Their joint project is to develop sustainable agri-tourism, with "ethnovillages", leisure centres, cycle paths and local restaurants.
If you opt for a multi-day stay, you'll also enter old Trogir, filmed for its medieval street atmosphere (scenes from season 2, episode 6); pose for a photo on the forecourt of Šibenik's Cathedral of St. James, which serves as an imposing backdrop for the Braavos Iron Bank, while the Krka River National Park, with its waterfalls, is so suggestive of Western landscapes, and you'll climb the steps of the Ston Wall. In Imotski, last but not least, the two deep lakes captivate fans. The Red Lake, like the blood of the dead, and the Blue Lake, like Daenerys' royal robes. It's a story we'll remember for a long time to come.
