Where to Stay in Split
A Roman emperor's retirement palace — now a city of 170,000 people living inside ancient walls
Diocletian's Palace, the Adriatic's best nightlife, island ferries to Hvar and Brač, and a beach where a 1,700-year-old Roman game is still played every morning.
Travel Guide
Split is one of the most extraordinary cities in Europe — not because of what was built around a Roman palace, but because people actually live inside it. Emperor Diocletian retired here in 305 AD and built a palace-fortress on the Adriatic coast. After the Western Roman Empire collapsed, the locals moved in: they turned the mausoleum into a cathedral, the temple into a church, and the cellars into markets. Today 3,000 people still live within the palace walls, among bars, restaurants, and apartments squeezed into 1,700-year-old Roman stone. Outside the walls, Marjan Hill offers pine-forest hiking above the sea, Bačvice beach has Croatia's most famous nightlife strip and is home to picigin (a ball game unique to Split, played in ankle-deep water since Roman times), and the ferry terminal connects to Hvar, Brač, Vis, and the Dalmatian islands. Split is also increasingly year-round — the digital nomad scene has grown significantly, winters are mild, and crowds thin out completely after October.
Best Neighborhoods
Diocletian's Palace — Historic & Unmissable
350+ hotels · UNESCO World Heritage Palace, Peristyle Square, Cathedral of Saint Domnius
Marjan Hill — Nature & Local Escape
60+ hotels · Pine Forest Hiking, Adriatic Island Panoramas, Meštrović Gallery
Bačvice — Beach & Nightlife
180+ hotels · Picigin Beach Game, Sandy Beach (rare in Dalmatia), Summer Nightlife
Varoš — Authentic & Residential
80+ hotels · Medieval Croatian Architecture, Family Konoba Restaurants, Steps to Marjan Hill
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