The Diocletian’s Palace is a 4th century Roman palace in Split Old Town. Here there are many places of interest to see when exploring. Diocletian’s Palace makes up a large area of the old town, which makes it a rather special place. It is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site, one of many in Croatia. Old Town Split is a beautiful place to explore and is also interesting too.
The Diocletian’s Palace in Split has many Roman features, narrow side streets and picturesque archways. The area also has some town squares that are surrounded by beautiful buildings. In Croatia style, there are lots of cafes where you can sit and enjoy the splendid views.
Fortifications surround the Diocletian’s Palace, which makes for a great walk around the perimeter. It some beautiful gates to get in or out, the most notable being the gold and silver gates, which are both photogenic. Split Old Town can be like a maze and is great fun just to explore, especially late at night when it’s quiet and it can get spooky.
History of Diocletian’s Palace In Split Croatia
Diocletian’s Palace is a palace that they built for the Roman emperor Diocletian in the early fourth century AD. The palace forms about half the old town of Split in Croatia. It is called a palace, however the site is actually an enormous fortress. The Palace name comes from its intended use as the retirement residence of the emperor.
About half of the Diocletian’s Palace was for his personal use, and the rest housed a military garrison. Today, the remaining parts of the palace are part of the historic centre of the city. In 1979, it become listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site because of its historical significance.
Places of Interest in Old Town Split & Diocletian’s Palace
Old Town Split is also home to various museums, towers, statues, churches and a fantastic cathedral which is a must see building. It’s a wonderful area for sightseeing, especially during quiet times. We enjoyed many wonderful dog walks through the Roman palace.
Roman City Walls
The city walls of Split are rather impressive and it’s fascinating to walk the perimeter of the Diocletian’s Palace. Highlights of the city walls are the gates used to enter the fortress. The two most impressive are the golden and silver gates which you can visit at any time of the day.
Diocletian’s Cellars
The Diocletian’s Cellars can be entered from Riva my the seafront of via steps down from the Peristil. It’s a rather interesting place to see and a handy way to enter the palace. They have a tourist market in the cellar where you can buy some nice souvenirs while sightseeing.
The Cellars of Diocletian’s Palace is a set of substructures at the southern end of the site. They are made up of a barrel vaulted structure that sits below the former private apartments of Emperor Diocletian. The cellars were used to elevate the private apartment, however they were also used to store food and wine. There is remnants of an old wine press in the cellars to see while exploring the area.
Vestibul
The Vestibul is a lovely building to see when sightseeing in Split. Seeing the sky above is rather impressive when sunny. The archways to enter the structure are also nice to see. They sometimes call it The Rotonda or The Atrium. The Vestibul is another interesting part to see, which was the formal entrance to the imperial apartments of the palace.
Golden Gate
To access Diocletian’s Palace, there are a series of impressive gates, including the iconic Golden Gate. This is one of the principal gates of the palace. To the northern end of is the golden gate, or Zlatna Vrata.
This was the main gate through which the Roman Emperor traditionally entered the palatial complex. The Golden Gate dates back to the 4th century. Part of the gate is the tiny church of St Martin which dates back to the 6th century. This is one of the oldest churches in Split.
Gregory of Nin Statue
Outside the golden gate is the black and impressive Gregory of Nin Statue. This is a marvellous work of art to see while at the Golden Gate of the Diocletian’s Palace. It’s great to see in the daytime and popular with tourists, however at night when it’s dark there is a new feel to it.
They built the Gregory of Nin statue in 1929. This was to commemorate the 1000th anniversary of the bishop’s opposition to rulings of the Roman Catholic Church. Apparently, they consider it to be good luck to rub the statue’s toes.
The bell tower and the Chapel of the Holy Arnir
Near the Gregory of Nin statue, and the north gate, is a bell tower and the Chapel of the Holy Arnir. This was part of a Benedictine monastery that was founded here in the 11th century. The 17th century tower is the last remaining part of the monastery
Saint Domnius Cathedral
The Cathedral of Saint Domnius is a beautiful Catholic cathedral in Split and is a great place for sightseeing. Saint Domnius Cathedral also has an Imperial Roman mausoleum and an iconic bell tower. They consecrated Saint Domnius Cathedral in the early 7th century.
This is the oldest Catholic cathedral in the world using its original building. Subsequently, they added the impressive bell tower in the 12th century. They built the earliest part of the cathedral in 305 AD.
The cathedral is free to look around the outside and there are many splendid views of the building and tower while exploring the Diocletian’s palace. You can also visit the inside and climb the tower too.
Visitors can purchase tickets to enter the sites in a the building opposite the tower, which is also the treasury. Tickets include access to inside the church, the tower and the treasury. The inside of the cathedral building is rather nice, and has some very interesting decor to see.
Treasury Museum
The treasury museum at the cathedral is fascinating and has lots of artefacts and is very informative. The museum’s exhibitions are in many languages, including English. Some artefacts and artworks in the treasury are very old and others are pretty extravagant.
Saint Domnius Bell Tower
To see Split Old Town and beyond from above. Climbing the 12th century Saint Domnius Bell Tower is a great option. The Saint Domnius Bell Tower dominates the city’s skyline and can be seen from most parts of the city. Thus, the views from the top of Saint Domnius Bell Tower are splendid. Views include towards Marjan Forest, the nearby mountains, the Adriatic Sea and the buildings of Old Town.
To climb to the top of Saint Domnius Bell Tower, it is a rather steep climb. There are many features to see while ascending, and the views from each floor are wonderful. Inside the Saint Domnius Bell Tower you can also see the bells of the tower too.
Peristil
Peristil or Peristil Square is a fantastic place of interest and there’s lots of ancient architecture to see here. The cathedral, vestibul and many other ancient buildings can be seen from the square, which is very photogenic.
The Peristyle Square is part of the Diocletian’s Palace. It is a courtyard area that leads to the entrance. This area can get busy at certain times of the day. However, later in the day or at first light, you can sometimes have the place to yourself.
People’s Square or Pjaca
The People’s Square or Narodni trg is a lovely town square to hang out for a drink and enjoy the views. Narodni trg is part of the old town of Split just outside the Diocletian’s Palace and near to the Iron gate entrance to the palace. In the 13th century Split expanded beyond the palace, thus forming this square as the man town square.
There are lots of beautiful buildings to see in the square, including the late Gothic Rector’s Palace complex, City Hall and the Renaissance Karepić Palace from the 16th century. At the west end of the square is the Nakić’s house, a beautiful building that they built in the style of the Viennese Art nouveau.
The bars and restaurants of the square mostly have outside seating and they have splendid views of the area. As a bonus the outisde seating areas made it a dog friendly place to relax.
Church of St Martin
Down the narrow side streets is the Church of St Martin. The Church of St Martin was one of the first little churches that they built in the palace. They built it in the 5th and 6th century in the walkway above the golden gate. It has lots of early Romanesque features to see when visiting.
Benedictine monastery of St. Euphemia
Outside the city walls, by the Golden Gate and Statue of Gregory of Nin, is the Benedictine monastery of St. Euphemia. The site is mainly ruins, however it has some interesting features to see. It was one of the first churches to be built near the fortress walls.
Floor Mosaic
The Diocletian’s Palace Floor Mosaic is rather nice. It consists of black, white, and grey stones. They made the mosaic in the late 4th and early 5th century. You can find this to the east of the vestibul and is a lovely place to see while sightseeing.
Iron Gate
The Iron Gate is best seen from the People’s Square or passing through it. Split’s Iron Gate is also known as the Western Gate, is one of the four principal Roman gates into Diocletian’s Palace. This was originally a military gate from which troops entered the complex. The Iron gate is the only gate of the palace that remained in continuous use to the present day.
In the 6th century, above the gate, they built a small church dedicated to St Theodore. This is a rather striking church with impressive decor and a bell tower.
Silver Gate
Next to the food markets in the east of the site is the Silver Gate. The Silver gate is also one of the princely gates of the Roman palace. It’s a great place to visit and is rather striking at sunset. The Silver gate was made up of two parts, an outer and inner gates. They designed these as a defensive system, thus the architecture was less ornate and decorative that the Golden Gate.
Split City Museum
Split City Museum is a fascinating tourist attraction to visit and learn some history of the city and the Dalmatia region of Croatia. The museum is in a lovely building in the old town area of the city. Inside the museum you can find paintings, sculptures, weapons, armour. Some artefacts date back to the Roman era, and others are from a more recent history.
Stray Cats
Throughout the Old Town, and the rest of Split, are many cats. They certainly are nice to see except if your dog likes to chase cats. Some are very timid and others like attention and petting. They are also nice to take photographs of while sightseeing. You can also end up meeting the occasional cat while out in the bars and restaurants of the city. This includes the resident cat at Marvlvs Library Jazz Bar.
Split Ethnographic Museum
A fascinating place to visit in the city is the Split Ethnographic Museum. The museum tells the story of the people of the Dalmatian coast. This includes exhibits of traditional crafts, costumes and the culture. They are in a wonderful building which was formerly a residential building in Roman times. There are also archeological exhibits to see inside too. Overall, a fascinating place to visit if you enjoy learning about history.
The Temple of Jupiter
Another nice thing to see when exploring is to find The Temple of Jupiter. Jupiters Temple is an ancient building that they built in between 295 and 305. They dedicated the temple of Jupiter to the Roman God, Jupiter, the god of sky and thunder.
Near the entrance of the temple, there is a sphinx that Emperor Diocletian brought over from Egypt. It’s a nice place of interest to visit and see the building or the features inside.
Fruit Square And Milesi Palace
Vocni Trg AKA Fruit square is a beautiful part of Old Town and has many pleasant buildings to see. The principal place of interest in the Square is the Milesi Palace. The Milesi Palace is a baroque building that dates from the late 17th and early 18th centuries. They consider this building to be one of the most beautiful baroque places in the city.
A cool way to enter Fruit Square is via a gate from the seafront. At the front of the palace is a statue of Marko Marulic, who was a Croatian poet, lawyer, judge, and Renaissance humanist. Another pleasant feature of fruit Square is the Venetian Tower. Nowadays, this has some shops and a few places to dine out.
See The Venetian Tower
Another nice thing to see while exploring is the Venetian Tower. The Venetian Tower is in the beautiful fruit square. The Venetian Tower is the remains of a 15th century Venetian castle they built in 1441. Sadly, the castle was mostly gone now. However, they left this pretty tower. Unfortunately for me, it doesn’t seem to bo open to visitors other than seeing from the outside.
Marulic Palace
Marulic Palace is a late gothic building that they built in the 15th century. They have added parts the palace to since then, including a courtyard in the 19th century. Apparently, the father of Croatian literature, Marko Marulić, was born here. This is one of many places of interest to see when exploring the narrow streets of the Diocletians’ Palace.
Marvlvs Library Jazz Bar
A fun place to hang out is Marvlvs Library Jazz Bar. It is located in the narrow side streets, thus is an adventure to find. They are a pretty cool bar with a resident cat or two. They serve a variety of drinks including nice beers and wines. We enjoyed a chill here while sightseeing at night.
Game of Thrones Museum
A popular place to visit is the Game of Thrones Museum. During my visit to the city, the museum was closed. However, many friends enquired if I had visited. The museum covers various topics about the popular TV show and has various exhibits, including costumes. You can find out more about visiting and purchase tickets on the GetYourGuide website.
Explore The Side Streets
Away from the popular sites are lots of narrow side streets. When exploring these, there are lots of little details to see, including fountains and archways. We enjoyed exploring different routes through the old town with Henry, my dog, and saw lots of lovely features.
You can also stay in the old town area and there are hotels and apartments available on the Booking.com website. Also, tucked away in the area are some nice places to dine out or enjoy a Croatian beer.
Church of St Philip Neri
Also in the old town of Split is Crkva sv. Filip which is a nice church dedicated to St Philip Neri. I found this church on various walks in the quieter walkways through the area. It’s nice to see from the outside and insider there are some nice decorative features. It’s also pretty quiet too, thus a great place to reflect.
They built the Church of St Philip Neri in 1735 on the site of an older church which was also dedicated to St Philip. It is a unique church because there are not many baroque churches in the city. Inside they have preserved the original features, and the artwork is from that period too.