'Is there anywhere more enjoyable to live!
Oh, crazy is everyone who touches your shores
Who may stay and he leaves.'
Marko Bruerović

Small, sleepy and car-free though it is, Lopud is the most developed of the Elaphites.  It is often called Insula Medio, the island in the middle, which holds true for its size, its location and its historical development. It has just one village, also called Lopud, with pretty houses, some gorgeous Italianate villas and lemon tree-filled gardens. There’s a pleasant sandy beach, too, some terrific restaurants with views of Šipan and a shady Renaissance garden that’s ideal for a cool afternoon stroll.

Lopud is full of surprises. Witness the Franciscan monastery, amazing cypress and pine parks full of Mediterranean and subtropical vegetation. It’s no wonder that in the time of the Republic of Dubrovnik this island was preferred spot of the patrician families to build summer residences. Throughout history Lopud has been known as an island of sea-captains providing the Dubrovnik Republic with many highly reputed seamen among them the illustrious captain Miho Pracat who is the only commoner (actually the only person) to whom the Dubrovnik Republic gave respect by erecting a monument.