Luža Square, Dubrovnik

Walk through the Pile Gate to enter the Old Town. The Stradun stretches from west to east to the far end at Luza Square and Polce Gate. Luza Square is relatively small, but it houses several key landmarks of the Old Town. It holds the Sponza Palace, the Clock Tower, the Church of Saint Blaise, Orlando's Column, and Onofrio's Small Fountain.

Also present on the square are the City Cafe (Gradska Kavana), Theatre Marin Drzic, the Rector's Palace, Dubrovnik Cathedral, and the facade of Saint Blaise's Church. The square is busy with tourists and events today, but it has been used in the past for proclamations, trials, punishments, and executions.

The Sponza Palace adjoins the Bell Tower, which connects to a gateway to the harbor. The City Guard building stands by Onofrio's Small Fountain. The bronze statue of Renaissance playwright Marin Drzic, the "Shakespeare" of Dubrovnik, sits before his eponymous theatre and the Rector's Palace museum.

The Cathedral and Treasury are near the entrance to the Gundulic Square morning market. Since the Middle Ages, Luza Square has been the venue for the Dubrovnik Summer Festival and the Feast of Saint Blaise. To avoid crowds, go early in the summer and late in the winter.