Medieval Mediterranean Gardens of St. Lawrence

In the heart of Šibenik's old town, tucked behind the old Franciscan monastery of St. Lawrence, is one of Croatia's most delightful hidden gems — a lovingly restored medieval Mediterranean cloister garden that recreates the exact plant layout of a 15th-century monastic 'hortus conclusus' (enclosed garden). Reopened in 2007 after decades of neglect, the garden is arranged in the classic quadripartite plan around a central fountain, with 42 rectangular beds containing over 200 species of the medicinal, culinary and aromatic plants that Franciscan monks would have grown here: sage, rosemary, laurel, oregano, rue, hyssop, aloe, saffron, plus fruit trees including quince, medlar, pomegranate and a stunning 400-year-old olive. A small on-site café serves excellent teas and light lunches using herbs from the garden — try the honey-lavender ice cream. The garden hosts occasional lectures on medieval Mediterranean medicine, cooking workshops, and a lovely open-air book market on summer Saturday mornings. The adjacent Franciscan monastery has a small museum with a 15th-century breviary handwritten by a Šibenik monk. This is the perfect place for a shaded 90-minute break in the middle of a hot summer sightseeing day, and one of the most romantic corners of the old town in the evening.