Things To Do in Paklenica National Park

Paklenica is the Velebit’s best hiking territory and has many gorges, mountains, and caves to tempt adventurous explorers. 

The Zadar Archipelago

Ugljan, Pašman, Murter, and Dugi Otok are all part of what is sometimes called the Zadar Archipelago, a group of more than 300 islands. Three of the most popular with tourists are detailed below. Each has a distinct personality. All the inhabited islands in the archipelago are accessible by ferry only, with the exception of Murter, which is connected to the mainland by a bridge.

              Ugljan is the island closest to Zadar and one of the most populous, though it is never very crowded. It has been inhabited since prehistoric times, and was once the site of Roman habitation, as indicated by the villa rustica still found there. Today nearly 8,000 people call it home, including some who work on the mainland. Ugljan’s main industries are farming, animal husbandry, and fishing, though tourism is becoming a growing source of revenue.

              Pašman, like Pag, has both barren and fertile areas. Most of the sites on Pašman date from medieval times. The only occupied Benedictine monastery in Croatia (Sts. Cosmos and Damian) is behind walls atop a hilltop near Tkon. That and the island’s Franciscan monastery in Kraj both keep unreliable hours and don’t make great tourist destinations.

              Murter is south of Pašman and closer to Šibenik than it is to Zadar. However, it is mostly under Zadar’s jurisdiction. Murter doesn’t have much to recommend it except that it can be accessed from the mainland by a short bridge, and it’s just south of the islands that make up Kornati National Park. Murter’s largest and most interesting town, Murter Town, is the site of the Kornati National Park’s office. Murter is also the best place to book an excursion to Kornati, as its citizens own 90 percent of the park.

              Dugi Otok (www.dugiotok.hr) is the biggest island in the Zadar Archipelago and the farthest from the mainland. It also boasts the most irregular and “wild” coastline, which makes it particularly appealing to those who like adventure and who want to avoid the usual tourist haunts. Eleven villages are strung out along the northeastern side of the island; on the western side, Dugi Otok’s cliffs rise almost vertically from the sea. Dugi Otok holds the remains of several medieval churches, as well as a gorgeous white pebble beach on Sakarun Bay at the island’s north end. Ferry service reaches Dugi Otok from Zadar, but there is little transportation on the island itself, so if you want to thoroughly explore it, you will need a car. In the southern portion of Dugi Otok lie the cliffs and bays of Telešćica Nature Park (www.telascica.hr). If you want to visit  the park you should arrive on the island at the port of Sali (as opposed to Božava). From Sali, several agencies arrange tours of the park by boat.