Split, Croatia Travel Guide Part 1: History, Food and Football

Updated October 2026.

Croatia has its own unique character, shaped by a mix of Balkan and Mediterranean cultures and a complex history with layers from the East and the West. Having been part of empires, kingdoms and monarchies, the roots and heritage of modern-day Croatians are an interesting blend of Roman, Byzantine, Slavic, Central European and Mediterranean influences.

A Quick Look at Croatia’s History:

• Roman-era Croatia (11 B.C. to about the 5th century A.D.)
• Duchy of Croatia (800–925)
• Kingdom of Croatia (925–1102)
• Union with Hungary, Venetian rule and Ottoman expansion (1102–1527)
• Croatia in the Habsburg monarchy (1527–1918)
• The first Yugoslavia (1918–1941)
• World War II and the Independent State of Croatia (1941–1945)
• Socialist Yugoslavia (1945–1991)
• Republic of Croatia (1991–present)

This rich cultural history has been a great muse and influence on what Croatia is today, from architecture and fine arts to cuisine.

Split: A City of History and Culture

Split, the second-largest city in Croatia with about 160,000 residents, is a must-visit for history and culture lovers. Its historic center, built around Diocletian’s Palace, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The city feels like an open-air museum, with statues, palaces, cathedrals, temples and stone pillars at every corner.

Founded as Aspálathos, a Greek settlement, in the 3rd or 2nd century B.C., and known as Spalatum during the Roman era, Split is full of history. Walking through its narrow streets feels like stepping back in time.

Diocletian’s Legacy in Split

The Roman ruins of Salona, located approximately 5 km from the old town of Split

Everyone knows Nero and Caesar, but what about Diocletian? Born in or near ancient Salona (today’s Solin), Diocletian was a Roman emperor who ruled for over two decades (284–305 A.D.). He made a lasting impact with his military, administrative, financial and religious reforms, and on Split with his palace.

Diocletian’s Palace in Split was built as a retirement villa for the emperor.
Its other purpose was to be a military fortress, protecting those inside from intruders. Architecturally, the place features a peristyle, “a continuous porch formed by a row of columns surrounding the perimeter of a building or a courtyard”, a style used in the ancient Greek and Roman eras.

Before

Image from Tourdesksplit

After

The palace forms half of Split’s old town and is full of restaurants, shops and apartments. Today roughly 3,000 people live within the palace grounds.

In addition, the palace was used as a Game of Thrones filming location, and it’s a hub for live music.

Every now and then people gather at the palace to listen to live music

A City of Contrasts: Art and Reality

Art is one of the best ways to understand social phenomena. Split’s street art reflects both its history and its present. The Ethnographic Museum and the Gallery of Fine Arts are worth visiting to dive deeper into Dalmatian culture and history.

One artwork that caught my eye was “An Artist Who Cannot Speak English is No Artist” by Mladen Stilinović. It was a powerful statement about the dominance of English in the art world.

Mural Možda, “Maybe it would be better if you weren’t here”

Croatia has a distinctive history as a crossroads of Eastern and Western cultures and civilizations. Located in the very center of the old town, the Ethnographic Museum and the Gallery of Fine Arts are good spots to dig deeper into the city’s vivid history, as translated by art.

The Ethnographic Museum of Split has a collection on local cultures, customs and habits of the Dalmatian hinterland and the Adriatic, with traditional costumes, jewellery, art, weapons and furniture.

The Split Gallery of Fine Arts, opened in 1931, presents artwork from the eras of the Venetian Republic, Austria-Hungary, Socialist Yugoslavia and the Republic of Croatia.

Something I noticed, though, was a kind of mockery of capitalism, and I wanted to understand it better. I found an article, From Chaos to Capitalism: Telling Tales of Croatia’s Transformation, which digs deeper into this aspect.

“In the last 30 years, we have made the transition from a phase of severe nationalism, the dismantling of socialism and the opening of the doors to capitalism to a phase of consolidation of advanced capitalism and becoming a polite European ‘post-conflict’ society in which tensions are still, unfortunately, lingering beneath the surface”

As the article explains, the country has made a tremendous transition very fast, in just a few decades, which is a matter of seconds for a country with roots in the Roman Empire.

Something you don’t really see in the old town of Split is poverty. Almost 1 in 5 people in Croatia live below the poverty line, yet it’s hardly visible in the historic centre. I’m not saying poverty should be on display in Split, no, but it’s a contrast worth acknowledging while visiting the city. When you take a bus 15 minutes away from the charming old town, you’ll see a totally different world. Split isn’t just about cute cafés and colorful doors; it’s a real, somewhat harsh yet truthful reflection of what the city is also about. It’s a split between past glory and echoes of post-socialism.

In my experience, the city is safe and clean, an interesting combination of history and tourism. You see and hear English everywhere. Locals speak it close to perfectly, whether you’re talking with a hotel cleaner, a hotel manager, a museum receptionist or someone queuing for football tickets. Everyone does it, except, in my experience, an Uber driver and a bus driver (when I was heading to the Mosor mountains). I was very surprised by this.

Then there are people from different social and economic circles living their everyday lives. The closer I get to 40, the more I think about these aspects. So I was a bit torn over whether the whole city of Split reflects the old town, or whether there is another “reality” somewhere. I had to find out, and luckily I did, as it broadened my perspective on the city.

Informative (English) signs literally everywhere.

On Ulica kralja Tomislava you’ll find probably the weirdest museum ever, a frog museum called Froggyland, which calls itself the “Museum of the best taxidermy in the world”, and just a few blocks away you’ll enter the magnificent Diocletian’s Palace. I kept walking down the streets.

On a day trip to Trogir, whose center is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, I got to know Guatemalan-born Luna and his British father Steven. We started chatting while waiting for our boat and ended up spending a few hours wandering around the town together. In the evening, back in Split, we went to a very nice restaurant, Uje Oil Bar, which turned out to be a gem (I don’t understand why it’s listed as #81 out of 445 restaurants in Split, as it was such a brilliant place).

I enjoyed the olive oil experience, which consisted of fresh bread with layers of olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. It was such a delicious moment. For the main course I ordered black risotto, which turned out to be one of the greatest risottos, if not the greatest, I have ever had. I bought cherry vinegar (plus lavender spices and marzipan and lavender teas from a lovely spice and tea shop, Harissa). I will definitely repeat the experience at home.

A few days later I went for a quick bite on the Riva promenade and found a burger place there (I don’t recall its name), where I saw a server put my macho burger (yes, I was macho hungry, so anything smaller than a macho wouldn’t have been enough) in a microwave to warm it up. Total dealbreaker. I ordered some “Belgian fries” to go with it, which turned out to be the most basic fries I’ve ever had. I’d be upset if I were a Belgian there.

Football: More Than Just a Game

Football is a big deal in Croatia. I was lucky to get tickets for the Hajduk Split vs. Varaždin game at Poljud Stadium.

The game was incredible, and the cheering was beyond anything I could have expected. Fans set off colorful smoke flares, which I had never seen before. The exciting game ended in a 2-1 win for the local team. There were families and friends, and I even bumped into a fellow Finn I knew, Merja, who happened to be traveling in Split at the same time as me. Small world indeed.

Last but not least: Frane Matošić is regarded as one of the greatest players in Hajduk Split’s history, being the club’s all-time leading goalscorer.

Closing remarks

Split is a city of contrasts—ancient and modern, polished and rough. It’s not just about pretty streets and cute cafés. The city reflects Croatia’s complicated history, from Roman emperors to socialism and capitalism. It’s a place that makes you think about the past and the present at the same time.

Hope you enjoyed reading! In my next article, I’ll share my experiences from Marjan Hill, Trogir, Krka, and some island-hopping adventures.