Split in Two Days

Two days in Split: the palace, Bačvice and the Riva on day one; Klis fortress, the Meštrović Gallery and a sunset boat to Šolta on day two. This is the length at which Split stops feeling rushed.

By Marin Perić

Why two days is the right number

One day is enough to see Split and not enough to feel it. Two lets you walk it slowly, get out to Klis for the view back down, and finish on the water — which is the correct way to leave. Two days is also where the city stops being a checklist and starts being a place you have been to, which is the difference between visiting and travelling.

Day one and day two

Day one is the city — the palace, a beach, the Riva at sunset, a konoba dinner. Day two goes out: Klis in the morning for the view that explains the city, the gallery in the afternoon for the thing that explains the culture, and the Šolta cruise in the evening for the perspective from the water. The two days together give you Split from above, from inside, and from the sea, which is all the angles.

More ways to see Split

Split in Three Days

Things to Do in Split in Spring

Things to Do in Split in Summer

Things to Do in Split in Autumn

Things to Do in Split in Winter

6 picks, in order

What we'd actually do

Ordered by an editor who lives here, not by who paid the most.

Diocletian's Palace

Day 1, morning. Take the guided version if it is your first day.

Diocletian's Palace is free: its lanes, the Peristyle, the domed Vestibule and the central passage through the cellars are open at all hours with no gate. You pay only for interiors — the side halls of the cellars (€10 for adults as of October 2026) and the cathedral, bell tower, crypt, treasury and Temple of Jupiter, ticketed separately. Built around AD 305, it is still full of homes, bars and shops.

Local favourite2 h

Bačvice Beach

Day 1, afternoon. Ten minutes on foot and there is sand.

Split's city beach, and the only proper sand within walking distance of the palace. Shallow for fifty metres, which makes it excellent for small children and the reason picigin — Split's own barefoot ball game — was invented here.

Local favourite

The Riva

Day 1, evening. One coffee, ninety minutes.

Split's palm-lined seafront promenade, and the city's actual living room. Locals walk it at seven every evening, coffee lasts an hour, and nobody is in a hurry. Free, always open, and the correct place to watch the light go orange on the palace wall.

Local favourite45 min

Klis Fortress

Day 2, morning. Bus 22, and go before the sun is high.

A fortress wedged into a mountain pass above Split, held by Romans, Croatian kings, Ottomans and Habsburgs in turn — and used as Meereen in Game of Thrones. Twenty minutes on the bus, and the view down to the coast explains a thousand years of fighting over it.

From €122 h

Meštrović Gallery

Day 2, afternoon. The Kaštelet is on the same ticket.

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.

From €121 h 30 min

Šolta Sunset & Swim Cruise

Day 2, evening. Back by nine for a late dinner.

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.

5 h

All of it on one map

Places on this map (6)

Frequently asked questions

Is two days enough in Split?

For the city itself, yes. Two days covers the palace, the beaches, a viewpoint and a boat without rushing. Add a third day for an island or Krka.

What should I do on the second day in Split?

Klis in the morning, the Meštrović Gallery in the afternoon, and the Šolta sunset cruise in the evening. That is the full second day, and the one that makes two days worth it over one.

Get out there

Tours that go here

Guided trips that include this stop, with live availability.

Boat trips

Blue Cave & Five Islands

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.

10 h 30 min

History

Diocletian's Palace Walking Tour

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.

1 h 30 min

Boat trips

Šolta Sunset & Swim Cruise

5 h