The story of Korčula

The old town of Korčula is built tightly on a small promontory guarding the narrow channel between the island and the mainland, and it is surrounded by walls. Look at its street plan: the lanes branch off the main street like the bones of a fish, in a herringbone pattern that lets the air flow freely while protecting the town from strong winds.

Building outside the walls was forbidden until the 18th century, and the wooden drawbridge at the town gate was replaced only in 1863. Almost all of Korčula's narrow streets are stepped, with one charming exception: the street running along the southeastern wall has no steps at all. It is called the Street of Thoughts, because there you did not have to worry about where you put your feet.

Around you are the Romanesque-Gothic Cathedral of Saint Mark, built from 1301 to 1806, a 15th-century Franciscan monastery with a Venetian Gothic cloister, the palace of the former Venetian governors, and grand 15th- and 16th-century palaces of local merchant nobles.