--- title: "Old Towns, 10 walled cities people still live in | Wimup" description: "Ten old towns ranked by how much survives and how much is still lived in, from the car-free medina of Fes to Dubrovnik." url: https://wimup.com/old-towns type: Themed list updated: 2026-10-26 publisher: Wimup (https://wimup.com) --- # Old towns, ten walled cities that are still home to someone. By Wimup desk · 10 picks · 3 vlogs · ≈ 4 min read The 10 old towns we would send you to first, from a medina where donkeys still do the deliveries to a Baltic wall circuit, and the city guide that gets you there. We ranked these ten by how much of the historic town survives and how much of it is still lived in rather than restored for visitors, so the most famous names finish last. Sleep inside the walls if you can: the evening, after the day crowds leave, shows whether anyone still lives there. ## Old towns, ten walled cities that are still home to someone. ### 1. Fes, Morocco Fès-Meknès · Morocco Fes el-Bali, founded around 800, still works as a city, and Guinness lists it as the largest car-free urban area by population. Hire a licensed guide for the first morning; the lanes number in the thousands and no map keeps up. - **Best for:** Living medinas - **Budget:** $45–90 / day - **Go in:** Apr · May · Oct Links: [View the Top 10](https://wimup.com/city/fes.md) ### 2. Bukhara, Uzbekistan Bukhara Region · Uzbekistan UNESCO calls it the most complete medieval city in Central Asia, its street plan largely intact around the Kalyan Minaret of 1127. Families still live in the lanes behind the madrasas; walk them at dusk, when the Lyabi-Hauz pool fills with locals. - **Best for:** Silk Road cities - **Budget:** $30–70 / day - **Go in:** Apr · May · Sep · Oct Links: [View the Top 10](https://wimup.com/city/bukhara.md) ### 3. Évora, Portugal Alentejo · Portugal A whitewashed town inside its medieval walls, with a first-century Roman temple at the top and a university first founded in 1559. Students and families keep the centre lived in year round; come midweek, when the day trips from Lisbon thin out. - **Best for:** Slow weekends - **Budget:** $90–160 / day - **Go in:** Apr · May · Sep · Oct Links: [View the Top 10](https://wimup.com/city/evora.md) ### 4. Toruń, Poland Kuyavian-Pomeranian · Poland A Gothic brick town that came through the Second World War almost untouched, birthplace of Copernicus in 1473 and a university city today. The old town is where people shop and live, not a set; buy gingerbread from the bakeries, not the stalls. - **Best for:** Gothic brick - **Budget:** $50–95 / day - **Go in:** May · Jun · Sep Links: [View the Top 10](https://wimup.com/city/torun.md) ### 5. Gjirokastër, Albania Southern Albania · Albania The stone-roofed tower houses survive almost whole because the town was declared a museum city in the 1960s. Many families moved down to the new town since, but the ones who stayed still cook and hang washing in the bazaar quarter; stay in a restored house. - **Best for:** Ottoman houses - **Budget:** $40–75 / day - **Go in:** May · Jun · Sep Links: [View the Top 10](https://wimup.com/city/gjirokaster.md) · [Watch the Gjirokastër vlog](https://wimup.com/watch/gjirokaster.md) ### 6. Tallinn, Estonia Harju County · Estonia About 1.85 km of the medieval wall and 26 towers still stand around a Gothic town that never lost its streets. The lower town now leans to visitors, so climb to Toompea and the quieter lanes behind it, and walk the wall section by the Nun’s Tower. - **Best for:** Medieval walls - **Budget:** $95–180 / day - **Go in:** Jun · Jul · Aug · Dec Links: [View the Top 10](https://wimup.com/city/tallinn.md) ### 7. Visby, Sweden Gotland · Sweden A 3.4 km ring wall still closes the Hanseatic town, and over 200 houses inside keep medieval masonry. People live here all year, which is why it works out of season; come in June or September rather than Medieval Week in August, when beds sell out. - **Best for:** Summer evenings - **Budget:** €110–220 / day - **Go in:** Jun · Aug · Sep Links: [View the Top 10](https://wimup.com/city/visby.md) ### 8. Vigan, Philippines Ilocos Sur · Philippines UNESCO names it the best-preserved planned Spanish colonial town in Asia, and its stone-and-timber houses are still homes upstairs with shops below. Walk Calle Crisologo early or late; take a kalesa, the horse-drawn carriage, only for the outer streets. - **Best for:** Colonial streets - **Budget:** ₱2,000–4,500 / day - **Go in:** November to April Links: [View the Top 10](https://wimup.com/city/vigan.md) ### 9. Kotor, Montenegro Bay of Kotor · Montenegro The walled town and its fortress walls up the mountain survive in full, restored after the 1979 earthquake put it on UNESCO’s danger list until 2003. Few residents remain inside; climb the 1,300-plus steps to St John at opening, before the cruise passengers. - **Best for:** Fortress climbs - **Budget:** $80–140 / day - **Go in:** May · Jun · Sep Links: [View the Top 10](https://wimup.com/city/kotor.md) · [Watch the Kotor vlog](https://wimup.com/watch/kotor.md) ### 10. Dubrovnik, Croatia Dalmatia · Croatia The finest walls on this list, 1,940 metres of them, intact around the whole city. It finishes last because a 2016 count found 1,557 people living inside, against 5,872 in 1967; walk the walls at opening, then stay somewhere outside them. - **Best for:** Wall walks - **Budget:** €120–190 / day - **Go in:** May · Jun · Sep · Oct Links: [View the Top 10](https://wimup.com/city/dubrovnik.md) · [Watch the Dubrovnik vlog](https://wimup.com/watch/dubrovnik.md) ## FAQs ### What counts as an old town on this list? A historic centre that survives largely intact as a town, with its street plan, walls or houses in place. We then ranked by how much of it is still lived in, so a perfect shell full of rentals ranks below a rougher one full of residents. ### Why is Dubrovnik last? Its walls are the finest here, but the town inside has emptied. A 2016 count found 1,557 residents in the historic centre against 5,872 in 1967, as homes turned into holiday lets. ### Which old town on the list is car-free? Fes el-Bali in Morocco is entirely car-free, and Guinness World Records lists it as the largest car-free urban area by population. Goods still move by handcart and donkey. ### Are all ten UNESCO World Heritage Sites? Yes. Kotor and Dubrovnik were inscribed in 1979, Fes in 1981 and Gjirokastër, the latest, in 2005. Inscription protects the buildings, not the residents, which is why it does not decide the ranking. ### When is the best time to visit an old town? Spring and early autumn for most of the ten, when it is warm enough to walk and the summer groups have gone. Sleep inside the walls: early morning and evening are when you see the town as its residents do. ## Sources - Rankings are Wimup editorial picks. Prices, durations and budgets are editorial estimates, not live quotes; check the official site before you go.