Quiet, green and expensive, on the south side of Marjan hill. Villas, pine trees, sea views and almost no nightlife. It is a fifteen-minute walk to the Riva and a different city altogether.
Meje is the quiet, expensive, residential neighbourhood on the south side of Marjan — villas, pine trees, sea views, and almost no nightlife. It is a fifteen-minute walk along the shore road to the Riva, and it feels like a different city from the one inside the palace walls. People who live in Meje chose it for the quiet, and the quiet is what you get.
Walk the shore road from Meje into town in the morning — it is the walk the residents do, along the sea, past the Meštrović Gallery and Ježinac beach, and it is the best approach to the centre from the west. Swim at Ježinac, below the gallery, which is where the people who live in Meje swim — it is steep and deep and not a beach for a family, but it is the local one.
Kašjuni is the beach at the far western end of Meje, on the south side of Marjan, and it is the best beach in Split. The bus 12 runs there from the centre in fifteen minutes, or it is a thirty-five-minute walk along the shore. Do not drive — the parking is limited and fills by ten in July.
The gallery on that walk is the Meštrović Gallery, the best museum in Split.
The beach below it is Kaštelet-Ježinac, with deep water and a diving platform.
Meje does not have many restaurants, because it is residential. There are a couple of places on the shore road, and the Meštrović Gallery has a cafe, but the honest answer is that you walk into town for dinner, or you eat at Kašjuni's beach club for lunch. The point of staying in Meje is the quiet, not the food.
Kašjuni has the beach club and the clearest water within reach of the city.
Fifteen-minute walk along the shore road to the Riva, bus 12 along the same road to the centre and to the beaches. No nightlife to speak of, and the restaurants close earlier than in the old town. The trade is the quiet, the pines, and the sea views — if you want a holiday rather than a city break, this is the neighbourhood.
Get out there
Guided trips that include this stop, with live availability.
Boat trips
A full day on a fast twelve-seat boat: the Blue Cave on Biševo, the Monk Seal cave, Stiniva's famous cove, lunch on Vis and a swim off Budikovac's turquoise lagoon, finishing with a stop at Hvar town. Ten and a half hours, small group, no coach transfer.
History
Ninety minutes through the palace with a guide who lives inside it: the Golden Gate, the cellars, the Peristyle, the cathedral and the streets in between. Small group, no flag, and a proper explanation of why a Roman emperor retired to a cabbage patch in Dalmatia.
Boat trips
Five hours to Šolta and back on a ten-person boat: three swim stops in coves you cannot reach by road, an hour in Maslinica for dinner or a drink, and the run home across the channel as the sun goes down behind the island.
Within a short walk.
Culture
The villa Ivan Meštrović built for himself on Marjan's south slope, now the best museum in Split. Sculpture inside, a garden of bronzes with a sea view outside, and the Kaštelet chapel with his wooden reliefs five minutes down the road.
Adventure
Bolted limestone routes on Marjan's south face, fifteen minutes from the old town, with the sea directly below. Guided beginner sessions run all year; the rock faces south so winter is often better than summer.
Adventure
Three hours paddling the cliffs and hidden coves along Marjan's south shore, with two swim stops and a cave you can only reach by water. The best way to see Split from the side it was built to face, and easy enough for a complete beginner.
History
A thirteenth-century chapel on the Marjan staircase, halfway between Varoš and the ridge. Small, usually locked, and the terrace in front of it is the quietest good view in Split — most people walk straight past on the way to Vidilica.
Adventure
Board hire from Kašjuni and Bene for about €15 an hour, or a guided paddle along the Marjan cliffs. Flat water most mornings and a shoreline with no boat traffic close in — one of the easier places to learn.
Beaches
The best beach within reach of the city: white pebbles, clear deep water and pine shade on the south side of Marjan. A beach club at one end, empty rock at the other, and a sunset that faces exactly the right way.