The fortified town of Ston lies further north from Dubrovnik on the mainland Adriatic coast, at the north-west end of the Stonski Kanal, and makes for a pleasant stopover on a Ston yacht charter.  At one stage it was Dubrovnik’s most important fortress, built to protect the city’s northern borders and its 14th century wall still stretch for 1 mile (3 km) across the rugged hillside behind the town. 

You can walk the v shaped circuit above the town and visit some of the defensive towers along the way, enjoying the views out over Ston’s salt pans – the town has an important salt industry - which make for a glittering checkerboard as the sunlight catches them. The town itself is a maze of narrow streets with Renaissance- and Gothic-style houses. A fifteen minute walk to the northeast across the isthmus brings you to the sleepy village of Mali Ston – once the outermost bastion of Ston’s defensive system - which overlooks Mali Ston Bay. 

Oyster beds fill the bay and the village has a reputation as somewhere to visit for excellent seafood.  In fact, it’s the romantic getaway of choice for the love-struck natives of Dubrovnik – something to do with the aphrodisiac properties of the oysters, apparently. There are several excellent seafood restaurants. Above the village there’s a crescent shaped fortress with a ledge from which there are good views. Be careful though – there are no railings and the drop is sheer so it’s not a place to bring young children.