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Orebić is a village on the western part of the Pelješac peninsula under Zmijina brdo with the highest point St. Ilija. Today, the settlement is known for tourism, while the cultural and historical core of Orebić tells a rather original story about the success of the settlers. Orebić takes its name from the Orebić family, who in the 16th century immigrated to the then settlement, which was under the administration of the Republic of Dubrovnik.

The settlement was extremely rural in character and had no characteristics of a city. What made it stand out and what Orebić is known for today is its architectural heritage, which is protected as a cultural asset, and whose development follows the development of seafaring and ship ownership by seafaring families from Orebić. As skilled sailors and captains of long voyages, the captains from Orebić acquired considerable wealth. A whole series of Orebić sailors rose from the rural average of the regiment with money and wanted to show their status by building great houses. The captains found inspiration for building houses in the country houses of the Dubrovnik lords, so they lined up their houses along the coast, which gave the original elongated shape of the settlement. All the houses were facing south, with a view of the sea, but their architecture and everything else were different from their country houses, because while the nobles of Dubrovnik rested and spent only their free time in their homes, the houses of the captains in Orebić were intended for continuous daily living. They all had gardens around them, and the captains, rich in money and eager for status, competed with each other in building houses, but also in purchasing and planting different plants in their gardens. As sailors on long voyages, they were very familiar with different plant species, which they planted in their gardens.

Captain's houses give Orebić recognition in construction and witness the rise of excellent captains and owners of sailing ships. It also testifies to the change that occurred with the steamship, when the fall of the captains begins. Later, the steamboat finished its run, and the houses that were built from the 16th to the beginning of the 20th century are standing, some completely unchanged even today as the basis of the identity of the settlement that was never planned in its creation and that slowly spread from the sea towards the fields under the hill. What is special about this development is the incredible fact that most of today's cultural monuments were created as private houses for the housing needs of the owners who equated useful and pleasant with tasteful. It is an incredible fact that the centre of the settlement was created much later and that the first planned communal building with a public function was built in 1845 for the needs of the municipal administration. The houses of various other classes, which arrived in the settlement for the needs of the wealthy captains from Pelješac, spread out in various directions towards the fields and under the hill.

Fun fact: During the construction of their grand houses, wealthy residents of Orebić paid great attention to the courtyards and gardens, so in their playfulness they created the last examples of Renaissance-baroque lawns in southern Croatia, paved with walkways decorated with fenced areas and flowers.