Zadar and Northern Dalmatia Feature

Zadar's Churches

Even discounting its size and the fact that 60% of the Zadar was destroyed in World War II, Zadar has an astonishing number of churches of key significance to Croatia and, more broadly, to Europe—from the Crkva sv. Donata, the country's most monumental surviving early Byzantine church, to Katedrala sv. Stosije, Dalmatia's largest basilica.

Islands

Much of Northern Dalmatia—and certainly the natural wonders associated with it—consists of huge archipelagos, from the more than 100 barren but beautiful Kornati Islands in the south to the Telascica Nature Park, the splendorous, indented bay at the southern end of the Zadar archipelago's largest island, Dugi Otok. A visit to one of these places—whether a quick ferry ride to the island of Ugljan, right across from Zadar; a day or a night or more in Sali or Murter; a more substantial excursion by boat to the heart of one or both of these parks; and/or an all-out Robinson turizm stay in a stone cottage on one of the Kornati Islands—will prove unforgettable.

Inland Beauty

Their names may sound similar, but in fact they're some distance apart, and technically, neither one is in Northern Dalmatia. But both Paklenica National Park—with its extraordinary karst features towering over the sea at the southern end of the Velebit range—and Plitvice National Park —that most famous of all Croatia's parks, with its crystal-clear connected lakes and waterfalls, enveloped by rich forests and teeming with wildlife—are both easily accessible from Zadar.

Nin, Pag & Their Beaches

Today an unassuming little town with a 17th-century historic face, Nin was once one of the most important Dalmatian towns of all. Beyond this rich legacy, for miles around the town you will find the only major stretch of sandy beaches on this part of the Croatian coast—some of the best swimming in all of Dalmatia. Though farther from Zadar, Pag has even more in the way of sandy, sheltered beaches, as well as Pag Town with its attractive historic center.