Judita Palace Heritage Hotel

This was the very first hotel of this type in Split where a private palace had been transformed into a stylish, very distinct boutique hotel. The whole city was talking about when it opened in 2011. It is located in a spacious 16th century aristocratic palace on the main city square, just 50 metres from the western entrance to Diocletian's Palace. Local Split residents were buzzing with talk of special hand created paints in the authentic blue used in the Renaissance period of "armies of heritage officials" overseeing the arrival of cranes and the like. And the buzz was spot on: the restoration of the building to a truly exquisite, luxury hotel was a true labour of love by the owner. Every tile, every piece of fabric - were checked for authenticity. Antique and hand-crafted furniture together with beautiful artwork completed the picture.

The result today is a unique hotel with just 19 rooms which is in huge demand with many regular visitors. Early booking is absolutely essential and the hotel is open most of the year, usually closing only in December and January so there may be more chances of being lucky in early Spring and late Autumn.

With such high-quality materials from floor to ceiling and including wall coverings, maintenance is key and Judita Palace was last refurbished in 2019. Unusually, and under strict conditions, a lift was permitted in this heritage building and this serves the upper floors. Many of the rooms are on the reception level which is accessed by some 22 outdoor steps located within an open courtyard which features a very pretty, small, café-bar owned by the hotel open to residents and non-residents. This is usually operative from April until the end of November.

Parts of the original, centuries-old stone walls and Renaissance beams are visible at various places and being located right in the centre of the old town, noise could be considered an issue. Not so here since all rooms are triple glazed-soundproofed. In fact, Judita Palace is a real oasis of calm amid the external buzz of hugely popular old town Split. The property is located within the walls of the vast former Diocletian's Palace so it can be said that guests staying here are effectively "sleeping in the palace".

The whole of the UNESCO listed historic core is car-free and pedestrianised. Narrow stone streets criss-cross into squares and piazzas and it is utterly charming. Guests arriving will be met at the closest possible place and brought to the hotel in a small electric buggy vehicle with the same procedure on departure. A concierge service including transfers to other parts of Split (example - train station, the marina or ferry port) is available.

The reception desk, dining room and lounge are all located on the same floor and the hotel offers accommodation on a bed and breakfast basis. The lounge serves a wide range of drinks and an excellent choice of restaurants is within an easy five-ten-minute walk. The dining room where a rich buffet breakfast is served deserves special mention: there is a part glass ceiling giving an atrium feel and the colours and decoration have been chosen following the style of dining rooms in the Renaissance period.

Accommodation

• There are 19 rooms including one deluxe suite with a spacious rooftop terrace and one family duplex with an old town view.
• All rooms have hand crafted furniture, high ceilings, while the suite has a sloped ceiling.
• Most of the rooms are deluxe doubles which are slightly larger than superior double rooms.
• Superior, deluxe rooms and suites all have king size double beds.
• Some rooms can be prepared as twin beds and should be requested at time of booking
• Only three rooms have a balcony and these are deluxe double rooms which are booked fast.
• Some of the bathrooms feature marble and most have a walk-in shower, just a few have a bath with a shower over it.
• A few deluxe double rooms have a large sofa that transforms into a proper single bed, suitable for three people occupancy of the room.
• Furniture and fittings are all different, very high quality with interesting lights featuring crystal and warm colour schemes of silver-grey, gold, ivory with splashes of colour. Bed linen is high quality Egyptian high thread cotton.
• Bathrooms have robes and slippers, extra-large towels and premium organic toiletries.

Amenities/Features

• Bar-café in open patio setting
• Spacious dining room for buffet breakfast
• Comfortable small lounge area
• Concierge service for restaurant reservations, buggy transfer
• Porter service for baggage
• Historic location within the walls of Diocletian's Palace
• Around five-minutes’ walk to the famous wide, pedestrianised 'Riva' seafront promenade
• Some rooms are in "clusters" so that two adjacent rooms may also have one entrance door providing a private hallway area before the individual doors to the rooms.
• Free WiFi throughout the hotel
• Lift to upper floors
• Offsite parking is available around five minutes’ walk, at a charge. Limited spaces and advance reservation is essential.

Superior room with Old Town view

Superior double room with king size bed, air conditioning, bathroom (walk in shower plus hairdryer, robes and slippers), telephone, satellite TV, mini bar and room safe. With view of the Old Town.