Explore Croatia - Game of Thrones Style

Game of Thrones, the hit serial fantasy drama based on A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin continues to prove a cult hit in the UK. The story, which focuses on seven noble families’ fight for control of the mythical land of Westeros, has just finished filming season four. With an ongoing theme of fantasy, history and legends, Croatia was an obvious choice when it came to filming locations. Here are just a few of the spots that have made it into the hit show to date. 

Much of season two and three was filmed in Dubrovnik’s picturesque Old Town, in particular at Fort Lovrijenac, or St Lawrence’s Fortress, which overlooks the stunning Dubrovnik coastline and was transformed into King’s Landing - one of the shows’ most iconic locations.

Steeped in history and architectural beauty, Old Town Dubrovnik offers visitors a myriad of unforgettable scenery and experiences. Be it sampling fresh local oysters brought in from the Island of Ston, or enjoying a historical tour of the city’s fortress, Dubrovnik offers something to suit anyone. For a quick daytrip just outside of Dubrovnik, the park Trsteno Arboretum, is the majestic garden where the court maidens weave the plot in King’s Landing, and offers a beautiful spot to escape the city’s crowds and relax.

Fort Lovrijenac has a huge historical significance to the people of Dubrovnik, as it once protected the city from the Venetians. Fort Lovrijenac now stages various musical and theatre performance and offers fantastic views of Old Town Dubrovnik – a must visit for those headed to Croatia! Fort Lovrijenac provided a phenomenal backdrop for locations well known to Game of Thrones fans, including the Red Keep, Battle of Blackwater, and the tournament held in honour of Ned Stark in season one of the show. Within the fortress, Minčeta Tower is the highest point of the city walls, offering a breath-taking view of the city. It is also where Khaleesi Daenerys Targaryen circled to enter the House of the Undying; Game of Thrones fans can walk in her footsteps to recreate their favourite scenes in this incredible fortress.

Lokrum Island, just across the water from Dubrovnik, is another exciting location, which stood in for the port city of Qarth. The island is a former monastery and has an interesting legend surrounding it. Lokrum Island is said to carry a curse which will be placed on anyone who stays overnight on the island – hence why we suggest you spend the night in Dubrovnik! The legend says that the monks cursed the land after a French general ordered the monastery to be closed. In response to this the monks walked around the perimeter of the island leaving a trail of melted wax chanting ‘whosoever claims Lokrum for his own personal pleasure shall be dammed’. The island has however become a fascinating place for day-trippers, and those wishing to visit the port city of Qarth.

The filming for the latest season of Game of Thrones has just been wrapped up (season four) along the picturesque Istria Peninsula – located at the head of the Adriatic between the Gulf of Trieste and the Bay of Kvarner. Specifically, filming took place in the quaint fishing village of Novigrad. This small fishing village on the Adriatic coast is surrounded by historic walls and a medieval urban plan that lends itself as a backdrop to the many war scenes in Game of Thrones.

Furthermore, during the last two months, the cast has filmed action-packed scenes in Split, surrounded by the azure Adriatic Sea. Split was once the home of Emperor Diocletian, who built an impressive palace in preparation for his retirement on the 1^st of May 305 AD. After the Romans abandoned this palace, it remained empty for several centuries. However, in the 7th century, this palace provided refuge for residents who fled to escape the invasion of the barbarians. Today many restaurants and shops, and even some homes, can still be found within the palace walls. Unsurprisingly, this architectural masterpiece has since been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

There has been a lot of speculation surrounding Split, and exactly how it has been incorporated into the fourth season of Game of Thrones. In particular, it is believed that the basement under the Diocletian Palace in the city centre will be one location, as well as the village of Klis and its mountain fortress. These are suggestions will be the location for the Kingdom of Dorne and its capital, Sunspear. 

Croatia offers stunning coastlines, beautiful cities, delicious food and a friendly atmosphere. As well as providing the location for several scenes from Game of Thrones, this country is a tapestry of history and exciting experiences for travellers.

An insight into Montenegrins

It’s all very well following the old adage “When in Rome…” but in order to do so, you need some insight into the locals.  What do they eat & drink?  What occupies their time?  What are the traditions and ways of the Montenegrins?  In short, who are these people?

The men are invariably called Dragan, Slobodan or Nikola – most are dark and handsome and plenty are tall (it’s no co-incidence that one of the national sports is basketball!).  Common names for the women include Gordana (Goca), Dragana and Jelena.  The latter means ‘deer’ in local language – so aptly named, as they are often thin and graceful, all legs and big eyes.  Overall, in my experience, they are a beautiful race, inside and out.

They can sometimes come across as brusque and sound aggressive – a local friend of mine tells a wonderful story of bringing her English friend to Montenegro for the first time and as she chatted to the taxi driver on the journey from the airport, her mate sat transfixed and anxious, thinking there was an argument ensuing as the tone seemed harsh, the cadence too passionate and the volume too loud for ‘normal’ conversation!  But in fact, they are generally very friendly, welcoming and generous souls.  Their primary way of showing hospitality is to lay on food and drink in ridiculous proportions – dried figs arranged on platters, nuts, olives, slices of cheese and meat to be washed down with tea (homemade mint or other herbs), coffee (usually Turkish style, strong and black with a thick sediment) or homemade ‘sok’ or syrups (sage-flower and elderflower cordials are especially delicious and refreshing).  The ordinary folk are pretty poor by Western standards but will not scrimp on making a guest feel properly welcome.  This will often include getting out the homemade ‘rakija’ – the generic term for the local hooch, distilled from pretty much anything: left-over grapes provides ‘loza’ (the most common ‘fire-water’), ‘slivović is made from plums and my two favourites are ‘viljamovka’ make from pears and ‘dunjevaća’ made from the fruit of the quince tree. 

In the same way that the English will respond to most situations by saying: “Sit down dear and I’ll make you a nice cup of tea”, so the Montenegrins will pour a shot of loza: to calm nerves, celebrate anything and everything or simply to get one kick-started on a slow morning!  Take my advice and sip it.  The flavour is normally delicious once the burning sensation has faded and if you neck it, you’ll miss this.  But more importantly, an empty glass will quickly be re-filled and it’s sheer bad manners not to drink! 

By the way, if you’re a big fan of English tea though, I suggest you bring your own as the local black tea (crnji or ruški caj) is a poor substitute for a well-brewed Yorkshire Tea.

The food in Montenegro is simple but delicious.  Summer fare is predominantly grilled meat or fish with salad and chips, accompanied by lots of fresh, fluffy bread.  You’ll almost always find a Njeguši steak on the menu and this is worth trying at least once.  It’s a pork fillet, stuffed or sometimes just piled high with, cheese & ‘prsut’ (the local equivalent to prosciutto, a cured and smoked ham).  Njegoš is the famous poet and scholar, adored and lauded in the land, laid to rest in the famous mausoleum in Lovčen National Park and this dish is named after him.  

Although the summer here is wonderful, I also recommend visiting in the Autumn and Spring, not only because it’s quieter, with less tourists and the cooler temperatures (but still mostly sunny weather) are more conducive to exploring this small but stunning country, but also because the cuisine outside of the summer season includes such delights as: ‘sarma’ (minced, spiced meat & rice wrapped in cabbage leaves and served in a rich sauce), ‘gulaš (the local version of the Hungarian goulash stew) and ‘pasulj’ (slow cooked beans in a rich tomato sauce, beside which Heinz 57 varieties pales into insignificance).

There’s one more thing to say about the food – a staple ingredient here is cabbage.  They preserve it in salted water, pickle it in oil and vinegar, serve it shredded as salad, make soup from it and stuff peppers with it.  They grow fine tasting cabbage in these parts and I’m totally hooked on making the local sauerkraut (which doesn’t taste anywhere near as acidic as versions I’ve tasted in Germany).  Interestingly, it turns out that cabbage has mildly sedative properties which might explain why folk are so wonderfully chilled out over here!

More to come on the cultural quirks of these fine people in the following weeks.  If there are any specific questions you have about understanding the Montenegrins and fitting right in, please post them as comments.