Croatia is well known for having lots of beautiful beaches with stunning blue clear water. While there are heaps of Croatian towns with easy beach access, it’s a bit harder from Dubrovnik. The city is surrounded by old city walls, and while it is one of the most incredible cities, it’s not the best for visiting beaches. There are some closer ones, but the best we found was Sveti Jakov Beach. However while researching how to get there, we couldn’t find many concrete details on how to get there.

Because of that, we’ve decided to share exactly how we got there, so you don’t have to take time out of your holiday to research. You can just spend your time enjoying the beautiful beach instead! It’s easy to reach Sveti Jakov Beach by bus, and we’ll tell you everything you need to know.

Sveti Jakov Beach is a 30 minute walk from the center of old town Dubrovnik. However it’s not the nicest walk, as it’s just along a road. The best way to get there is to take the public bus, but there are some other options too. If you want to avoid the buses, there are always cabs or ubers, or you can get a taxi boat directly from the old town for a little bit more money. There are also tours with Get Your Guide that include tours to Sveti Jakov beach too, if you want to see more of the area.

The public buses to Sveti Jakov beach are only a 10 minute ride from the old town, plus a 10-15 minute walk. You can take either the Five or the Eight, which both go from Pile Gate right outside the Old Town. There’s also another stop just north of the old town at the cable car terminal. You can find it here, or typing “City bus station Kresimira 1 for lines 5 and 8 Libertas Dubrovnik” into Google Maps should get you there. 

To get a ticket for the bus, you’ll need to head to the Libertas Ticket Counter outside Pile Gate before heading to the bus stop. It’s open every day but not all the time so make sure to plan in advance. You can also buy tickets on the buses if you need but they’ll be more expensive. Tickets on the bus should be around €2 each way, and from the ticket office around €1.70 each way.

Once you’ve got your tickets, catch the bus to the end of the line at Viktorija, hotel Vila Dubrovnik. Both of the bus lines end here. From there, keep walking down the road towards Sveti Jakov church or the Church of St. James. It won’t take more than 10 minutes of walking. Head past the church, and just on the other side is a staircase down to Sveti Jakov Beach. The staircase has a sign at the top directing you down to the beach. This staircase has around 160 steps and while getting down isn’t too hard, coming back up is a bit of a hike!

The actual beach is wonderful, and is a popular spot with locals and tourists alike. However the winning aspect about the beach is that its usually way quieter than the closer Banje beach. The water is beautifully clear and warm, and there’s a wonderful view back to Dubrovnik and Banje beach. Like many beaches in Europe, it is more rocky than sandy, so make sure to bring something comfortable to sit on. You can of course also hire some sunbeds, but there’s more than enough free beach space to sit on.

In the high season you can hire kayaks and jet skis for some more adrenaline filled time on the water. You’ll also find Kanoba Sveti Jakov, a beach restaurant where you can get sit and get some food.

Some things to keep in mind is you’ll also likely need waterproof shoes to help get into the water as the rocks get slippery when they’re wet. Also, as the beach is in a little alcove, there isn’t much shade so bring an umbrella if its sunny. As well, apart from the restaurant there’s no where to get food and water so it might be nice to take a little picnic with you if you’re there for a while.

There are a couple of rocky beaches near Dubrovnik like Bokar beach, Danče beach and Buža beach, but nothing nice and big. However near the old town there are some you can easily visit!

Only a 10 minute walk from the center of the city is Banje beach, the most popular beach in Dubrovnik. Here you’ll find sun lounges to rent and a restaurant to buy some food, which turns into a night club in the evening. It’s also a great place for water sports as you can hire kayaks, jet skis and more here. If this is your kind of thing then Banje beach is great, but if you want somewhere quiet without sun lounges taking up most of the space, Sveti Jakov is the beach for you.

Dubrovnik is a wonderful city in Croatia surrounded by the most amazing city walls. While there are some incredible things to do in the city, if you want to visit a beach your options are somewhat limited. There is a closer beach but it is often quite crowded, so Sveti Jakov beach is a wonderful option instead.

It’s easy to get to, with water taxis and tours going there, but the best way to get to Sveti Jakov Beach is by public bus. Luckily it’s a quick and easy journey and once there, you’ll be rewarded by a wonderful and quieter beach. The water is beautiful, there’s enough space for you to relax and there’s a wonderful view back to the city. Honestly however you spend your time at Sveti Jakov beach, it’s just a wonderful place to spend a couple of hours.

If you want to see our time at Sveti Jakov Beach, along with all of our other activities in Dubrovnik, check out our vlog:

• How To Decide On The Better Day Trip From Dubrovnik
• How to See the Most of Split on a Budget!
• How to Affordably See Zagreb