Active travel in Ston

What there is to see

The walls run 5.5km with about 40 towers and 5 fortresses, originally exceeding 7km. Three forts anchor the Ston section — Veliki Kaštio, Koruna and Podzvizd — with 41 towers, seven bastions and a water-filled moat. The Big Wall stretches 1,200m to Podzvizd; records say it was built in 18 months for 12,000 ducats. Podzvizd hill reaches 224m. Below sit the salt pans, spread over 400,000 square metres, worked since Roman times when the town was called Stagnum, meaning still water; the Ston diocese is recorded as far back as 877. Within the town, Ston follows a planned grid modelled on Dubrovnik, with a Placa street, St Blaise's Church and a Rector's Palace. Main streets measure 6m wide, the southern street 8m, and side streets 2m. The Field Gate (Poljska vrata) dates from 1506. The walls were built in limestone.

Walking and riding here

The Ston section of the walls can be walked in about 15 minutes; allow a further 30 minutes to continue up and over the hill to Mali Ston, climbing towards the Podzvizd fort at 224m. The full 5.5km circuit links Ston and Mali Ston across the isthmus. Footing is stone and steps, and the climb is exposed, so water and sun cover matter in summer. The salt pans below and Mali Ston Bay are visible for much of the ridge. For cycling and longer walking on the Pelješac peninsula around Ston,

László Szalai (Beyond silence) · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Getting there and moving around

Ston lies 53km from Dubrovnik, roughly a 55-minute drive. The nearest airport is Dubrovnik (DBV), a road distance of about 71km. FlixBus runs from Dubrovnik five times a day, taking around 53 minutes, and Libertas Dubrovnik serves the route four times daily. There is no direct bus from Dubrovnik Airport to Ston; services route through Dubrovnik Central Bus Station and take about 2h 36m including transfers. Ston and Mali Ston sit at opposite ends of the isthmus, walkable via the wall circuit or by road.

Bernard Gagnon · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Fees, hours and when to come

Adult wall tickets cost €10, children over 7 pay €5, and groups of 10 or more pay €8 per person. The walls are open daily from 08:00 to 18:00 (some sources list 18:30), and cards are accepted. The walls drew 60,690 paying visitors in the reported year. The salt harvest runs from April to September, when the pans are working; annual output is reported between 500 and around 2,000 tons. Summer brings heat and full sun on the exposed ridge, so early morning or late afternoon walking is easier. Spring and autumn are milder for the climb to Podzvizd.