Consisting of an imperial Roman palace that was taken over by the plebs and turned into a vibrant city, central Split is an attraction in itself. There’s no single must-see attraction here: it’s really a question of taking time to stroll the palace’s narrow, tunnel-like streets, where Roman, medieval and Renaissance buildings jostle to form a unique urban jungle. Rising above the city to the west, the Marjan peninsula presents an easily accessible expanse of woodland park, with some fine views of the town center.
A view of the Diocletian’s palace from the hills surrounding the city will quickly establish why any emperor would be more than happy to locate his palace at the site that Diocletian chose for his retirement home. Construction began in 293 and was competed in ten years, utilizing a variety of materials from the region, including white stone shipped from the island of Brač to sphinxes transported from Egypt. Diocletian’s palace has become the quintessential ‘living museum’, as people continue to live and work inside the walls of the ancient palace complex ever since ancient times. We will be visiting the palace and its cellars during our guided walk.
If you wander around asking where the ‘Obala hrvatskog naradnog preporoda’ is (literally Quay of the Croatian National Revival), you might be greeted by a few blank looks. Instead, just ask for the Riva. It is a broad street on the waterfront that runs the length of the old town and hugs the palace on its south side. It’s THE gathering spot, day and night, for the people of Split to engage in some of the activities that have been turned into a fine art in Croatia: chatting over a cup of coffee and people-watching.
The Papalic family settled in Split in the early 14th century and built a small palace to serve as the home of this respected family. Today it houses the City Museum of Split. The collection includes antique sculptures and monuments from Split and nearby Salona, paintings, documents, and photographs which help tell the story of Split.