How to Visit a Dozen Game of Thrones Filming Locations for Under $100
If Croatia is not already on your dream board by now, it most certainly should be. The country’s beautiful parks, monuments, seaside resorts and picturesque towns make it the perfect summer destination.
This Eastern European country is also one of the uncredited stars of HBO’s hit show Game of Thrones, as numerous scenes and episodes are shot there throughout the series. If you’ve ever watched the show and marveled at the gorgeous landscapes and scenery, chances are those were probably located somewhere in Croatia.
Like any GOT fan, you have probably wanted to walk the streets of Qarth or stroll across King’s Landing. Well, now is your chance! We looked into the bus travel options available on Wanderu and developed an itinerary that allows you to visit all the filming locations across Croatia for under $100! Yes, it’s possible – here’s how you can do it:
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The looped trip begins and ends in Croatia’s capital of Zagreb, with seven stops in-between. That way, if you’re arriving into Croatia by plane, you’re able to fly in and out of the most popular airport in the country.
Stops on the tour feature all the locations in Croatia where GOT has been filmed, including Krka National Park, the smaller towns of Trogir, Makarska and Trsteno, and the cities of Šibenik, Split and Dubrovnik.
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We used our unique routing system to find the most optimal route to visit all these places in one single trip and then calculated the average price of a one-way bus ticket for each leg of the journey. As it turns out, you can complete the entire tour at an average price of just about $90! To make the adventure even cheaper, you can cut the last leg of the trip by not returning to Zagreb and flying out of Dubrovnik, instead.
Now that we have the itinerary in place, let’s check out all the legendary sites you’ll be visiting on your cheap Croatian tour and compare them to their real-life counterparts:
SPLIT
Split’s Fortress of Kliss is the real-life City of Meereen.
Travel the coastal city of Split. Known as one of the most beautiful vacation spots in Croatia, this Dalmatian destination encompasses a small peninsula that serves as the location for GOT’s city of Meereen. Walk along Papali?eva Street, the setting of Meereen’s slave rebellion, and then make sure to visit Diocletian’s Palace where Daenerys had her throne and held her dragons.
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TRSTENO
At the Trsteno Arboretum, you can visit the Gardens of Red Keep in real life!
Trsteno is a town with a population of less than 300 people. It may be small but its arboretum is not to be underestimated. This 15th century garden has an impressive history and may even hold a few of Sansa Stark’s secrets, as it doubles as the gardens of Red Keep.
DUBROVNIK
From Trsteno, head south to the last spot on this GOT tour, the world-famous Dubrovnik. A fairytale has come to life in this breathtaking city. Ancient walls built around the city set it apart from the turquoise Adriatic Sea. It is also Croatia’s most popular GOT location.
Once you get there, you will see that local merchants allow you to book a Game of Thrones walking tour to hit all of the city’s filming locations. However, if you want to venture out on your own, you must definitely visit:
The Baroque steps of the church of St. Ignatius
These are the same steps as the stairs to the Great Sept of Baelor and the very place where Cersei’s shaming in season 5 took place. They can be found inside the Old Town of Dubrovnik.
This post originally appeared on wanderu.com. Get the full tour details here.
