St. Joseph's

St. Joseph's

South of Stradun, on a quiet street reached without a single step from either Pile or Ploce gate, a 16th-century townhouse that once stood empty now holds six rooms and nothing else. St. Joseph's was restored rather than rebuilt: original stone walls sit next to kitchenettes with an induction hob and a quiet fridge, and each of the six rooms is decorated on its own terms, from the King Suites' bathtubs and twin sinks to smaller queen rooms tucked under the eaves. Breakfast is not taken downstairs but delivered to the room, smoothie included, which suits anyone who would rather eat in slippers than make conversation before ten. Banje beach is five minutes on foot, the Old Town's sights closer still, and the desk is staffed around the clock for the concierge requests, transfers and tour bookings that come with staying somewhere this small. This is not a hotel for anyone traveling with a dog, arriving as part of a large group, or wanting the anonymity of a big lobby. It is for two people, or one, who want a historic address without the scale of a resort, and who will notice that St. Joseph's was the only Old Town property The Times picked among twenty-five Croatian hotels for a late-summer break, a distinction its six rooms earn one guest at a time rather than by volume. Book ahead: with a single-digit room count, the gap between staying inside the walls and staying outside them closes fast in high season, and that gap is the whole point of coming to Dubrovnik. Six rooms in a restored 16th-century townhouse steps from Stradun, each with a kitchenette and breakfast delivered to the door. The Times named it the only Old Town hotel on its list of twenty-five Croatian properties. It suits two people over a group, and skips pets entirely.