Sunset on the Mlini waterfront.
We chose Mlini because we wanted somewhere quieter than Dubrovnik itself, but still close enough to make sightseeing easy. Staying at Maistra Select Hotel Mlini, right by the sea, gave us a good balance: bigger days exploring Dubrovnik and the surrounding area, with somewhere much calmer to return to afterwards.
Day One: Arriving in Mlini
We arrived fairly late after our flight, so our first evening was mostly about settling in.
The hotel made a good first impression. Our room was bright and modern, with a balcony and a lovely view towards the sea. One small thing I particularly appreciated was finding complimentary tea and coffee in the room. As a British traveller, it’s one of those simple comforts that is always welcome after a journey and something I haven’t always found on European beach holidays.
The staff also immediately came across as very accommodating. Because we arrived late, the local shop had already closed and we’d missed the chance to pick up some fruit. When we mentioned it, the staff brought us a plate from what had been prepared for the following morning’s breakfast.
It was a small gesture, but it summed up our experience of the staff throughout the stay: friendly and willing to help.
Our bright and comfortable room at Maistra Select Hotel Mlini.
Day Two: Settling into Mlini
Breakfast was very good. You can sit inside or outside, with a nice selection of fruit, decent coffee and an enjoyable cooked breakfast. It isn’t an enormous buffet with limitless choice, but what was there was done well.
One thing worth knowing is that Hotel Mlini itself doesn’t have a swimming pool. The pools and wellness facilities are at the neighbouring Hotel Astarea, around 150 metres away.
We visited in April, when it wasn’t really warm enough for us to use the outdoor pool, but the indoor pool at Astarea was a great alternative. It wasn’t overcrowded when I went, and there was also free use of the sauna and steam room, plus an outside sun deck.
Hotel Astarea is the larger of the two hotels and has more facilities on its doorstep, whereas Mlini felt smaller and a little more personal to us. We found it easy to have an informal chat with the reception staff at Mlini and ask for suggestions. If you stay at Hotel Mlini, you’ll almost certainly spend some time over at Astarea using its facilities.
The outdoor pool at neighbouring Hotel Astarea, overlooking the Adriatic.
Day two was also when we started to appreciate just how small and relaxed Mlini itself is.
There are some lovely details around the waterfront and harbour, including a small stream and stone bridge, and it’s worth looking out for these quieter corners if you have a camera.
One of the pretty little waterways and stone bridges tucked away in Mlini.
A decorative green bicycle with planters by the waterfront also made a nice photography subject.
A colourful little photography find on the Mlini waterfront.Mlini was very quiet when we visited in April, and that’s part of its charm. You can enjoy the beach, wander around the harbour and slow the pace right down — although by the end of our first full day, we were ready to explore somewhere with a little more going on.
For dinner, we walked around ten minutes to an Italian restaurant called Flamingo. There is a fairly steep section of the walk, but the food was excellent value, with pizzas costing us around €9–10.
We made it back down to the waterfront in time for sunset, which was a lovely way to finish the day.
A quiet evening on the Mlini waterfront.
The following morning, we headed to Dubrovnik — and the contrast couldn’t have been greater.
Day Three: Our First Trip to Dubrovnik
One of the first surprises was just how easy Dubrovnik was to reach from Mlini.
We used Uber and a car arrived within around three minutes. Our outward journey cost just €3.70, although that was because I was a new customer and had an introductory offer. Our return journey was around €10, and I’d personally allow roughly €10–15 each way, knowing that prices will vary. The journey itself took us around 16–17 minutes. Dubrovnik was a brilliant day out, although there is a lot to take in.
Evening light over Dubrovnik’s historic Old Port.
One thing we would do differently is buy a Dubrovnik Pass earlier in the trip.
We bought the three-day pass for €50 and got good value from it, but in hindsight we would have paid the extra €10 for the seven-day pass at €60.
At first, €60 felt quite expensive, but once we started using the pass for the walls and museums, it made much more sense. The seven-day version would also have given us more flexibility to spread the sightseeing out.
If we did the trip again, that’s the option we’d choose.
One of my favourite parts of Dubrovnik came towards the end of the day.
If you enjoy photography, I’d really recommend staying around for blue hour. As the natural light fades and the Old Town lights begin to appear, the stone streets and buildings take on a completely different character.
Dubrovnik Old Town coming to life at blue hour.Wandering back towards the restaurants and simply enjoying the atmosphere was one of my favourite memories of Dubrovnik.
Day Four: Cavtat — The Surprise Highlight
If you’re staying in Mlini, I would definitely make time for Cavtat.
For me, it sits somewhere perfectly between Mlini and Dubrovnik. It’s busier than Mlini and has more going on, but without the same intensity as Dubrovnik. It’s relatively small, very attractive and easy to enjoy without much of a plan. We were happy simply wandering around the waterfront, stopping for an ice cream and finding different places to photograph.
Cavtat at sunset — one of our favourite stops of the trip.
Even though we didn’t get the clearest sunset, Cavtat really came into its own afterwards.
As blue hour arrived, the lights from the waterfront restaurants and hotels began reflecting across the water and the whole place became incredibly atmospheric.
For photography there are plenty of nice viewpoints, but it’s equally enjoyable if you simply want somewhere pretty to wander and relax for a few hours. In some ways, Cavtat may actually have been my favourite day of the trip. Dubrovnik is understandably the big name, but Cavtat was one of those places I enjoyed even more than I expected to.
Watching the evening light fade over Cavtat.Days Five and Six: Finding the Right Rhythm in Dubrovnik
By this point we had our Dubrovnik Pass and had realised that we enjoyed Dubrovnik more when we stopped treating every visit as a full-day expedition. On one morning we went in early to walk the city walls.
Dubrovnik’s terracotta rooftops seen from the city walls.
I’d recommend doing the walls in the morning if you can. Once we’d finished, rather than trying to cram several more attractions into the same day, we returned to Mlini and spent the afternoon relaxing.
The following day we did the opposite. We had a slower morning in Mlini before heading into Dubrovnik later. We visited the Rector’s Palace, explored more of the Old Town and some of the familiar Game of Thrones locations and viewpoints, and then headed up to Fort Lovrijenac.
View from Fort Lovrijenac towards Dubrovnik’s historic city walls.That became our preferred way of doing things.
Because Dubrovnik is so close to Mlini, half-day visits worked particularly well for us. You can have a slower morning or swim in Mlini and then head into Dubrovnik for a museum or two, or do the walls early and relax afterwards. That’s another reason the seven-day pass would have suited us better — it would have allowed us to space those shorter visits across more of the holiday.
A Birthday at the Hotel
We were celebrating a birthday during the trip, and the hotel made a real fuss of the occasion.
They sang, brought out a cake and even gave us a bottle of rosé to enjoy.
Obviously every experience will be different, but it was a lovely gesture and another example of how friendly we’d found the staff.
The stated checkout time was 10am, which felt a little early to us. We asked whether there was any flexibility and they were able to extend ours until 12.
That won’t always be possible, particularly when the hotel is busy, but it meant our final morning felt much less rushed.
La Norma: Our Special-Occasion Lunch
One of our favourite meals of the trip was much closer to the hotel.
La Norma sits along the waterfront promenade and has a lovely terrace overlooking the Adriatic.
We went for lunch and it was extremely quiet when we visited, which suited us perfectly. I imagine it becomes busier in the evening, but the relaxed lunchtime setting made it feel particularly special.
I had the ravioli with Alfredo sauce and cheese (€17.90), which was absolutely delicious.
It isn’t the cheapest restaurant in the area and definitely has a more premium feel, but for a special occasion I would really recommend it. If your budget allows for one slightly more indulgent meal, it would probably be my first choice from the places we tried around Mlini.
Lunch with a view at La Norma — our favourite special-occasion meal in Mlini.
Our Final Morning: The Walk We Should Have Done Earlier
Our main regret came on our final morning.
We finally spent some time walking along the waterfront towards Srebreno, passing the little harbour and continuing along the coast. As we went further, we found several smaller beaches and places where we could easily have stopped for a few hours. The beach directly outside Hotel Mlini is already very nice and couldn’t be more convenient, but the beaches further along gave us a bit more variety, including some slightly sandier stretches and smaller coves.
The beach just a stone’s throw from Maistra Select Hotel Mlini.
We immediately wished we’d taken this walk near the beginning of the holiday rather than the end.
Had we found those spots earlier, I think we would have returned for a longer walk and probably spent an afternoon relaxing on one of the smaller beaches. So one of my biggest tips would be to explore locally early on.
It’s very easy to focus on Dubrovnik and Cavtat, but give yourself a morning or evening to see what’s within walking distance too.
Final Thoughts
The thing I’d emphasise most about staying in Mlini is simply to be prepared for how small it is.
It isn’t a resort packed with major sights or dramatic architecture. Its appeal is the opposite: beaches, the sea, a little harbour, picturesque details and somewhere genuinely peaceful to return to.
The arrangement with the neighbouring hotels suited us well. Hotel Astarea has the pools and more of that larger-resort feel, while Hotel Mlini is smaller and, for us, felt a little more personal. Having Astarea just a short walk away adds facilities that Hotel Mlini doesn’t have itself.
Once we’d started exploring Dubrovnik and Cavtat, I really appreciated having somewhere much quieter to spend the rest of the time. We could go into Dubrovnik for the architecture, history and spectacle, visit Cavtat when we wanted somewhere atmospheric but less hectic, and then return to Mlini knowing there was no pressure to keep sightseeing. For us, the formula ended up being quite simple: Dubrovnik for the spectacle, Cavtat for the atmosphere, and Mlini for the breathing space.
Insider Tips
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Be prepared for how small Mlini is. Its appeal is relaxation rather than a long list of sights.
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Hotel Mlini doesn’t have its own pool. The pools and wellness facilities are at nearby Hotel Astarea, only a short walk away.
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Explore the local promenade early. We wish we’d discovered the beaches towards Srebreno sooner.
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Consider the seven-day Dubrovnik Pass. When we visited it was €60 compared with €50 for three days, and we would choose the longer version next time.
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Do the city walls in the morning if possible.
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Stay in Dubrovnik for blue hour if you enjoy photography.
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Make time for Cavtat. It was one of the biggest surprises of our trip.
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Try Flamingo for good-value Italian food, and La Norma if you want something more special.
