Best Things to Do in Split, Croatia: A Perfect 24-Hour Itinerary

If you are looking for the best things to do in Split, Croatia, in a single, well-paced day, this is exact itinerary we would use to explore.

I have visited Croatia many times over the years, but somehow 2026 was my first time properly stopping in Split. We had just stepped off a three-day sailing trip, spent a few quiet, magical days unwinding on the island of Šolta, and then found ourselves with one final night in the city before an early flight home.

Is Split, Croatia Worth Visiting?

Split is worth visiting, but a day is enough. Split should not be your main destination. Split’s main draw is its location: it’s the jumping off point for many beautiful islands and is not too distant from the Plitvice Lakes National Park.

As for the city itself, it’s small enough to feel walkable inside an afternoon, but it has more layers of history per square metre than almost anywhere else on the Adriatic. The old town is built quite literally inside a Roman emperor’s retirement palace, and you walk through 1,700 years of history every time you cross a square to find a coffee.

If you are flying into Split airport for your Croatian island holiday, one night in the city is enough to give you a strong sense of the place.

Where to Stay in Split

For a 24-hour stay, I would not bother with the resort hotels along the bay. The whole point is to be inside or right next to the old town so you can walk everywhere. We booked an apartment just a few minutes’ walk from Diocletian’s Palace, and there are many places to stay within the Palace too!

A few practical thoughts on choosing a Split stay:

• Look for apartments inside or directly next to the old town, ideally within five minutes’ walk of Diocletian’s Palace. If you have money to spare, you can stay inside one of the old Roman palace buildings as much of the palace is now private property and has been converted into hotels/Airbnbs! This would be a great gift for a history lover.
  
• A small kitchen is more useful than you might think for breakfast, especially if you have an early flight.
  
• Out of season (May, late September, October), you can find very nice one bedroom apartments for around €80 to €120 a night. In July and August, expect prices to roughly double.

24 Hours in Split Itinerary

Morning: Meštrović Gallery

Start your day with a walk to the Meštrović Gallery. This beautiful gallery is 30 minutes from Split along the coast. The gallery sits inside Ivan Meštrović’s former villa, a striking pale stone building he designed himself in the 1930s, set back from the coast road with sea views and a quiet garden full of his sculptures.

Meštrović was Croatia’s most celebrated sculptor, and his work fills two floors of the house, from monumental marble figures to smaller bronze studies. Give yourself at least an hour to wander, and don’t skip the Kaštilac Church just up the road which is included in your ticket.

Morning Coffee: Shakerato

Climb the hill behind the Meštrović Gallery to find a cafe that is truly Split’s hidden gem: Shakerato. This wonderful cafe is set back is the suburbs, so fewer tourists and more locals make it here. They have a wonderful outside terrace with tumbling jasmine, filling the cafe with a beautiful floral scent. Their house speciality is an iced shakerato (like their name) and it is delicious. It’s cash-only, so make sure you have some euros on you.

Lunch: Feel Green or Focaccina Sandwich Bar

Our first stop was lunch. After a week of cheese-heavy Dalmatian cuisine on a sailing trip, we were craving vegetables. Feel Green delivered exactly that. I had a smoked tofu bowl with herbal tea. The food was fresh, vibrant and exactly the kind of reset our bodies needed before an afternoon of sightseeing. Around €18 per person.

Another option? Check out Focaccina Sandwich Bar. This rave review focaccia takeaway serves delicious stuffed focaccia as big as your head. Charlie ate here on her second day in Split and loved it. A cheaper option at €8-10 per person.

The Best Speciality Coffee in Split: Kava2

Once we had dried out and dropped our bags at the apartment, we needed a proper coffee. We had visited another branch of Kava during a stop in Hvar Town, and I had been looking forward to trying the Split outpost.

It did not disappoint. I had a cortado that genuinely deserves to be called specialty coffee. Two coffees came to about €8 total. Croatia is not yet a famous coffee destination the way Lisbon is, but places like Kava are raising the bar. If you only have time for one good coffee in Split, this is where to have it.

Afternoon: Walking Tour of Diocletian’s Palace

This is the centrepiece of any 24-hour itinerary in Split, and it absolutely earns its place. Diocletian’s Palace is not a single building you queue up to enter. It is, instead, the entire core of Split’s old town: a working maze of restaurants, cafes, shops, apartments and ruins, all wrapped inside the walls of a Roman emperor’s retirement home.

We booked this great guided walking tour via Get Your Guide which cost €13 per person and ran from 15:30 to 17:00. There were about 12 of us in the group, and our guide, Karla, was excellent.

A quick personal aside: being a typical man, I think about the Roman Empire a good few times a day, and Diocletian is one of my favourite emperors. This is because he was the first emperor to retire and swap the hassle of empire management for the simple pleasure of growing cabbages, an impulse I strongly relate to. Walking through his palace with that context made the whole tour even better.

Karla took us through:

• The palace’s four gates (the Golden, Silver, Iron and Bronze)
• The Peristyle, the elegantly preserved central courtyard
• The substructure, an atmospheric basement maze that was used as a storeroom and rubbish dump for centuries before being rediscovered
• The Cathedral of Saint Domnius, originally Diocletian’s mausoleum and now the oldest building now operating as a Catholic cathedral
• The Venetian-era squares and the later French additions, including changes from Napoleon’s brief rule

The story she told was bigger than just Rome. It moved through early Christianity, Venetian Croatia, the French period, and right up to the modern day. By the end, you walk out of the palace gates with a much richer sense of why the old town looks the way it does.

💡 Walking Tour Tips:

• Book a tour rather than going in alone. The history is layered and a good guide brings it alive. €13 is excellent value.
  
• Wear comfortable shoes. The stone streets inside the palace are uneven and polished smooth by centuries of foot traffic.
  
• Go in the afternoon (3pm onwards) when the worst of the midday heat has passed and the light starts to soften beautifully on the stone.
  
• Bring water. There are taps inside the palace for refills.

The Best Pizza I’ve Eaten in Years: Dinner at Lui

After the tour, we wandered the old town for another hour, ducking in and out of side streets, watching the city slowly fill up for dinner.

By the time we sat down at Lui Restaurant I was very ready for a glass of wine. I ordered a pizza with simple Mediterranean vegetables, a rich tomato sauce, and what turned out to be a perfect crust. Honestly, one of the best pizzas I have eaten in years. Charlie agreed. We added two glasses of wine each and the bill came to about €28 per person.

After dinner we did a slow loop of the Riva (Split’s palm-tree-lined seafront), watched the lights come on along the harbour, and walked back through the old town to the apartment. Tired in the good way you only get after a properly full day.

Morning Departure: How to Get to Split Airport Stress-Free

If you have an early flight like we did, the simplest move is an Uber.

We ordered one in advance from near Diocletian’s Palace for 6AM. The drive to Split airport took 30 minutes and cost €25.

Public buses do run from the centre to the airport, but they take longer and you have to factor in walking time with luggage on cobbled streets.

TLDR: 24-hour Split Itinerary

For anyone who wants the at-a-glance version, here is what we did and what I would recommend you copy:

• Morning: Meštrović Gallery
• Morning Coffee: iced shakerato at Shakerato
• Lunch: Focaccia at Focaccina Sandwich Bar (or swap for a healthy bowl at Feel Green)
• Afternoon Coffee: cortado at Kava2
• 3:30pm: Guided walking tour of Diocletian’s Palace
• Early evening: Wander the old town and the Riva
• Dinner: Pizza and wine at Lui Restaurant

Planning Your Split City Break

Currency and Prices

Croatia uses the euro, so there is no need to faff with kuna any more. Card payment is widely accepted, though it is worth carrying a little cash for small bakeries and the occasional konoba.

Rough costs from our 2026 trip:

• Ferry from Šolta to Split, foot passenger: €4.50 per person
• Lunch for one at a healthy cafe: around €18
• Focaccia for one: €8
• A specialty coffees: €4
• Diocletian’s Palace guided walking tour: €13 per person
• Dinner for two with wine at a casual restaurant: around €55
• Apartment near the old town (shoulder season): around €100/night
• Uber from the old town to Split airport: €25

When To Visit Split

May, June, late September and early October are the best months for a 24-hour Split visit. The weather is warm but not punishing, the old town is busy without being unbearable, and prices are noticeably better than mid-summer.

July and August will give you guaranteed heat, the busiest version of the city, and the highest prices. The palace and Riva are absolutely beautiful in the long summer light, but you will share them with a lot of other people.

Getting to Split

Direct flights run to Split airport from many UK airports through the summer with carriers like Jet2, easyJet, British Airways, Ryanair and Croatia Airlines.

💡 Cheap Flights Tip! We use Skyscanner to compare prices and book flights. Select “full month” view when searching to easily spot the cheapest travel dates.

If you are arriving from the islands, the Jadrolinija ferry network connects Split to Šolta, Brač, Hvar, Vis and others. Foot passenger crossings are cheap and quick.

Is one day enough in Split, Croatia?

One full day is enough to see the highlights: Diocletian’s Palace, the Peristyle, the Riva, and a good meal. If you have an extra evening for sunset on Marjan Hill or a morning swim at Bacvice beach, even better.

Is Diocletian’s Palace worth visiting?

Yes, and ideally with a guide. The palace is not a single museum building but the actual living centre of Split’s old town, and a one-hour tour transforms a wander through pretty stone streets into a journey through Roman, Christian, Venetian and French history.

How do I get from Split to the airport?

The fastest, least stressful option is an Uber, which costs around €25 and takes 30 minutes. The airport bus is cheaper but slower and less flexible if you have luggage.

What is the currency in Split, Croatia?

The euro. Cards are widely accepted, but it is worth carrying a small amount of cash for bakeries, market stalls and the occasional small konoba.

Is Split a good base for visiting the Croatian islands?

Yes. Split’s ferry port is the main gateway to the central Dalmatian islands, including Šolta, Brač, Hvar and Vis. You can easily build a one-week trip that uses Split as your start and/or end.