Visiting the Seven Kingdoms! (Trsteno Arboretum)
In this blog I am going to write about our trip to the Trsteno Arboretum just north of Dubrovnik and opposite the island of Lopud, where our hotel was situated. It's a stunning gardens and from a Game of Thrones perspective is known for the Royal Gardens of King's Landing. This is where you will find the Tyrell's eating lemon cakes with Sansa, Varys trying to convince Shae to leave with a pouch of diamonds, etc. I'll share some of the locations we found and how we got to the Arboretum from the Old City.
The Trsteno Arboretum can only realistically be visited by car or by public bus from the Centre of Dubrovnik City. We decided to get the bus as didn't want to rent a car. Its a half hour drive but the bus does come reguarly. Its best taken from the main bus terminal at the Harbour, just down the hill from the Old City. You can get the timetable for the public bus from here. We took bus 15 and it wasn't very expensive at all. If you're a Game of Thrones fan it's well worth the trip!
The bus stop was just outside the gardens, so we went straight in. The cost of the Gardens was 40kn which is just under £4 or $6 USD dependant whats more relevant to you, so it's pretty good value! When buying the tickets we asked the guy if he knew where to go to see all of the Game of Thrones scenes, but he looked perplexed and just shrugged his shoulders at us! Undettered we ventured into the gardens!
You first enter the same pathway that you can see Varys the Spider frequenting in Season 3 and 4. In any location I always get excited like a little kid who has just seen an ice-cream van but the next location we saw was epic as it's exactly the same as what's seen in the show.
It's a beautiful location, with it overlooking the sea. This is where Shae and Varys meet, it's also where Tyrion tries to console Sansa after hearing about the death of her Brother and Mother in the first episode of Season 4. It is an extremely relaxing place and you can stare out onto the Adriatic sea and get lost in the moment. We did stand there in turns and reinact when Shae was looking across the narrow sea!
The next location used in the series, is again somewhere instantly recognisable. It's located in the centre of the Trsteno Arboretum and also overlooks the sea. It's used by Olenna and Margaery Tyrell, when they invite Sansa to discuss Joffery and her feelings towards him. It's also used when Varys comes to visit Olenna Tyrell to discuss Sansa's potential marriage to Loras Tyrell before the Lannisters cotton on to their idea and replace Loras with Tyrion as Sansa's husband.
We also found the fountain where Sansa and Loras Tyrell talk when the Tyrell family are planning to marry them to unite the two families. The fountain is hundreds of years old, and at the far side is a statue of Neptune. It's also used for the scene early in Season 4, where Maergary Tyrell talks to Brienne of Tarth about Renly's death.
In the picture below, you can see the part of the gardens which was used to film the scene where Sansa is given a necklace by Ser Dontos, which is then used to poison Joffery at his wedding! It's a secluded part of the gardens so works well for the scene!
The Trsteno Arboretum is a beautiful place and is a great destination for fans of Game of Thrones and anyone looking for a relaxing stroll in a relaxing gardens. They also have a pathway which goes down to the sea, and there's a beautiful pier which looks centuries old. It's worth visiting for that, alone.
Keep an eye out for my next post on Dubrovnik which will feature details on the filming locations for the Purple Wedding, and Qarth, 'the Greatest City that ever was, or will be!'
Thanks for reading!
