Dubrovnik: Game of Thrones&Lokrum Island Walking Tour

Dubrovnik supplies the stone walls, sea views, and steep stairways that made King’s Landing feel believable. This three-hour tour takes you from Lovrijenac Fortress, the Red Keep, through the Old Town filming sites, then across to Lokrum, where you can sit on the official Iron Throne.

I like the mix of show trivia and Croatian history, which works even if someone in your group has never watched Game of Thrones. I also like that the tour ends on Lokrum, giving you the choice to return to town or stay for a swim. The main catch is cost: the advertised $41 does not include the €15 Red Keep entrance or €30 Lokrum entrance.

Key points at a glance

• Lovrijenac sets the tone: Spend about an hour at the fortress used as the Red Keep, with views back toward Dubrovnik.
• The Old Town locations come quickly: Pile Gate, Stradun, the Jesuit Stairs, Rector’s Palace, and the Old Port connect several major scenes.
• Walk of Shame fans get the real stairs: The Jesuit Stairs are one of the tour’s most recognizable stops.
• Lokrum adds a proper half-day option: The tour ends there, so you can leave the group and continue swimming or exploring.
• The Iron Throne is a genuine photo stop: You can sit on the throne donated to Dubrovnik by HBO.
• Guide quality matters here: Guides such as Michaela, Mihaela, Ines, Josip, Andrea, Marko, and Darko have been praised for humor, local history, and behind-the-scenes detail.

Why Dubrovnik makes such a convincing King’s Landing

The appeal here is not just a collection of signs pointing to filming sites. Dubrovnik’s Old Town already has the hard, medieval-looking walls, narrow lanes, polished limestone, and dramatic drops to the Adriatic that the series needed. The tour helps you see how familiar streets became locations for political plots, battles, royal ceremonies, and Cersei’s punishment.

You start outside the Old Town at the Amerling Fountain in Pile Square. Look for the blue umbrella with the DUtheTour logo, near the Dubravka restaurant. This is a useful meeting point because Pile Gate is right beside it, and the first major stop is Lovrijenac.

The tour is led in English or German. The guide names connected with this experience include Michaela, Mihaela, Ines, Josip, Andrea, Marko, Darko, Davor, and Alex. The strongest descriptions of the guides focus on energy, humor, patience, and the ability to explain both the series and Dubrovnik itself.

That balance matters. A pure television tour can become thin once you have seen a few screenshots. Here, the real city gives the experience more weight. You can understand why Dubrovnik mattered long before cameras arrived, then see how filming turned existing streets and fortifications into King’s Landing.

Lovrijenac, the Red Keep above the sea

The first substantial stop is Lovrijenac, with about an hour set aside for guided sightseeing. The fortress sits outside the main walls on a rocky rise, giving you broad views toward Dubrovnik and the water. In the show, it became the Red Keep, the seat of power in King’s Landing.

This is likely the tour’s best setting for understanding scale. From the fortress, you can look back at the walled city and see why the location worked so well on screen. The views also make the stop worthwhile for anyone who likes Dubrovnik but is not a devoted fan of the series.

The practical issue is the separate entrance fee of €15. That cost is not included in the tour price. Check the current arrangement when booking, since the tour description lists the ticket separately and entrance rules can change.

Allow yourself proper shoes for this part. The experience includes fortifications, stairs, and old stone surfaces. The information provided does not promise a flat route, and the locations themselves make some walking unavoidable.

A good guide uses Lovrijenac for more than scene recognition. Michaela, Andrea, Marko, and others have been praised for adding filming stories, actor details, and local context. That is the difference between simply being shown a fortress and understanding why a director would choose it for the Red Keep.

From Pile Gate to Stradun

After Lovrijenac, the group moves through Pile Gate, with around 10 minutes of guided explanation. This is one of Dubrovnik’s main entrances and a natural place to connect the real city with the fictional capital.

You then continue along Stradun, the Old Town’s principal street. The stop lasts about 15 minutes. Stradun is broad and easy to recognize, but the value comes from learning how the production used the street and nearby buildings rather than expecting a large permanent movie set.

The pace here is fairly brisk. You are not spending half an hour at every location, so listen closely and keep your camera ready. Guides have been praised for showing images that help match the present-day street to scenes from the series. That small detail can make an ordinary corner suddenly click into place.

If someone in your group has not watched Game of Thrones, Stradun is also where the Croatian side of the tour helps. Several past groups included nonfans, and the guides kept them involved with stories about Dubrovnik and Croatia rather than assuming everyone knew every character.

The Jesuit Stairs and the Walk of Shame

The Jesuit Stairs receive about 15 minutes. For many fans, this is the most emotionally recognizable Old Town stop because the staircase was used for Cersei’s Walk of Shame.

The stairs are visually strong even without the television connection. They rise in a formal sweep, creating the kind of theatrical approach that works on screen. Your guide can explain how the scene used the setting and point out the details that are easy to miss when you arrive alone.

This is a good place for photographs, but remember that it is a real public space in the middle of the Old Town. The tour gives you time to see the site and take pictures, not a private set visit. Crowds and other people may affect the perfect shot, especially during busy periods.

The stop also shows why a guided tour helps. You can find the stairs by yourself, but it is harder to know which angle mattered, what happened during filming, and how the scene fits into the wider story. The guides who receive the strongest praise tend to add humor and behind-the-scenes details rather than reciting only episode names.

Rector’s Palace and Dubrovnik’s political backdrop

Rector’s Palace gets about 10 minutes of guided sightseeing. This stop gives the route a change of mood. Instead of focusing only on the most famous fantasy scenes, the guide connects the show with the actual political and civic character of Dubrovnik.

The palace is part of the city’s historic core, and its inclusion helps explain why the Old Town could play several different places in the fictional world. Productions often rely on a city’s details as much as its grand views. A doorway, courtyard, or stone façade can suggest power without much decoration.

Ten minutes is enough for an explanation and a look around, but not for an extended museum visit. If you want to explore every interior in detail, you would need separate time in Dubrovnik. The tour’s goal is to connect several locations in one route, not replace a full city history tour.

That said, the historical material is one of the best reasons to choose this experience if your group has mixed interests. Multiple guides have been praised for giving Croatia and Dubrovnik enough attention that nonfans still enjoyed the walk.

Old Port and Blackwater Bay connections

The route continues to the Old Port for roughly 10 minutes. From here, the sea and harbor setting help explain the connection with Blackwater Bay and other waterfront scenes.

This is one of the places where the real setting does much of the work. Dubrovnik’s relationship with the water is central to its character, and the port gives you a fresh view after the lanes and stairs of the Old Town. Your guide can point out how the show used the waterfront and explain the scene’s place in the story.

Do not expect a long boat trip at this point. The actual ferry crossing comes later and lasts about 15 minutes. The Old Port stop is a short guided visit before the group boards for Lokrum.

The sequence is well judged. You first see the city’s main filming locations on foot, then leave the walls for an island setting that represented Qarth. It keeps the tour from becoming a repetitive loop through the same streets.

The ferry to Lokrum and the island’s Qarth role

The ferry ride takes about 15 minutes and leads to Lokrum, presented here as the City of Qarth. The island changes the feel of the outing. Dubrovnik’s Old Town is built, crowded, and dramatic; Lokrum offers trees, open air, ruins, and rocky swimming spots.

The island entrance fee is listed as €30 and is not included in the $41 tour price. This is the biggest value question. If you calculate the advertised tour price plus both separate entrances, the total can be much higher than the headline figure. Ask at booking exactly how the €15 Red Keep ticket and €30 Lokrum ticket are handled, and budget for both if they apply to your visit.

Once on Lokrum, the group visits the Benedictine Monastery for about 15 minutes. The monastery gives the island a real historical anchor, while its appearance in the Game of Thrones world adds another layer for fans. The combination is more satisfying than a simple branded attraction because you are seeing an actual Dubrovnik island with its own character.

The island is a protected forest reserve. Peacocks and rabbits live there, and the tour description notes that they are friendly. Treat them as part of the setting, not as animals to chase or feed.

Sitting on the official Iron Throne

The Iron Throne receives about 10 minutes for a visit and photographs. It was given to Dubrovnik by HBO, making this more than a replica placed at a random photo stop.

This is the tour’s clearest fan moment. You can sit on the throne, take your picture, and finish the organized portion of the experience on Lokrum. If you have watched the series, the photo is an easy souvenir. If you have not, it is still a quick, harmless stop rather than the whole reason to visit the island.

Ten minutes will not provide unlimited photo time, especially if the group is large. A small or private group may feel more relaxed, but the standard group size is not specified. The company does offer private groups, so that option may suit families or friends who want more control over questions and photographs.

The best guide experiences seem to add trivia and humor here instead of treating the throne as a rushed prop. Still, it is wise to keep expectations realistic: this is a photo stop, not a long exhibition about the series.

Staying on Lokrum after the tour

The tour finishes on Lokrum, which is a useful design choice. You can take the ferry back to Dubrovnik with the group, or stay on the island and continue on your own for the rest of the day.

Bring swim gear, a towel, and sunscreen if you want to use the rocky beaches. The island is suitable for a slower afternoon after the guided walk, though the information provided does not describe sandy beaches or provide a full swimming itinerary. You should expect rocky shorelines.

All visitors must leave by the last ferry. Overnight stays are not allowed. This matters if you are tempted to treat the island as an open-ended escape from Dubrovnik. Keep track of the final departure time and do not leave your return until the last moment.

You can also spend extra time around the monastery, enjoy the natural setting, and look for the peacocks and rabbits. The tour does not include a separate botanical garden visit in this three-hour version, so do not confuse it with a longer excursion that continues elsewhere.

Price, timing, and overall value

The listed price is $41 per person for three hours, with a professional guide included. That is a reasonable starting price for a guided route covering the fortress, several Old Town locations, the ferry connection, Lokrum, and the Iron Throne.

It is not the final cost if the separate entrance fees apply. Add €15 for the Red Keep and €30 for Lokrum, or €45 in total. Currency changes aside, those fees can more than double the advertised tour price, so the value depends on what you want from the day and how the ticketing is handled.

I would consider the tour good value for a Game of Thrones fan who wants context, photographs, and transport between the city and island without planning every stop. It is less compelling if you only want to photograph the Iron Throne, since the island entrance is a substantial extra cost.

The three-hour length works well for a cruise stop, a first day in Dubrovnik, or anyone with limited time. The route includes enough locations to feel substantial, but it does not leave much room for lingering. A private group could make the pace and questions easier, though the price for that option is not provided.

Free cancellation is available up to 24 hours before the tour for a full refund, and you can reserve now and pay later. Starting times vary, so check availability for your date. These terms are useful if your Dubrovnik plans depend on ferry schedules, weather, or a changing cruise timetable.

Who should book this Dubrovnik tour?

I would choose it if you have watched Game of Thrones and want to connect scenes with real places. The Walk of Shame stairs, Red Keep, Blackwater Bay, Qarth, and the Iron Throne cover the main fan interests in one outing.

I would also recommend it for mixed groups. The strongest part of the format is the combination of show facts and Dubrovnik history. A person who has never seen the series can still get a city tour, while a fan gets filming details and behind-the-scenes stories.

You should think twice if you dislike stairs, quick stops, or extra entrance fees. The route includes a fortress and stone streets, and the three-hour schedule is designed to keep moving. You should also skip the swim plan if you do not want to carry a towel and sunscreen or manage the last ferry.

Final decision

Book this tour if you want the full city-to-island connection, not just a short filming-location walk. The local guides, especially the repeatedly praised names such as Michaela, Mihaela, Andrea, Marko, Ines, and Josip, add the humor and Croatian context that keep the route interesting.

Before paying, confirm the separate €15 and €30 entrance charges and decide if you will return immediately or stay on Lokrum. With those costs understood, this is a lively and practical way to see Dubrovnik through Game of Thrones while still giving you a real afternoon on the island.

FAQ

Where does the tour meet?

Meet at the Amerling Fountain in Pile Square, outside Dubrovnik’s Old Town. Look for the blue umbrella with the DUtheTour logo, near the Dubravka restaurant.

How long does the tour last?

The tour lasts three hours. Check available starting times when booking.

Which languages are available?

The live guide option is available in English or German.

Is a professional guide included?

Yes. The tour includes a professional Game of Thrones walking tour guide.

Is the tour private?

A private group option is available. The standard group format is not specified.

Is the entrance to Lovrijenac included?

No. The entrance ticket to the Red Keep, Lovrijenac, is listed separately at €15.

Is Lokrum Island included in the tour price?

The tour visits Lokrum, but the island entrance ticket is listed separately at €30.

Can I take a picture on the Iron Throne?

Yes. The tour includes a photo stop at the Iron Throne on Lokrum.

Can I stay on Lokrum after the guided tour?

Yes. The tour finishes on Lokrum, and you can stay for swimming or nature time instead of returning immediately to Dubrovnik.

Can I stay overnight on Lokrum?

No. Overnight stays are not allowed, and everyone must leave the island by the last ferry.

What should I bring if I want to swim?

Bring swim gear, a towel, and sunscreen. The island has rocky beaches.

What is the cancellation policy?

You can cancel up to 24 hours before the activity for a full refund.

Can I reserve now and pay later?

Yes. The activity allows you to reserve your place and pay later.