Dalmatia 7 Day Itinerary: Šibenik, Krka, Trogir, Split and Zadar by Car

About an hour. Split airport is roughly 50 minutes from Šibenik by car; leave it in the Poljana garage on the edge of the old town, because the streets inside are pedestrian only. Entry to the cathedral is paid at the door.

It took more than a century to finish, from 1431 into the 16th century, and was built only of interlocking stone blocks, with no brick and no timber in the roof. Walk around the outside first: the apse carries a frieze of 71 heads carved by Juraj Dalmatinac, each with a different face, and tradition says the models were townspeople. It has been a World Heritage Site since 2000.

Quick stop, 15 minutes, free. Across the Trg Republike Hrvatske square stands the Renaissance loggia of the old Town Hall, arcaded at ground level and now home to a café.

It is the best angle to photograph the whole cathedral facade, and a table under the arches is the right place for a coffee before climbing the hill.

About 1h30. A ticket costs 11.50 euros, or 15 euros for the combined ticket that also covers the Barone and St John fortresses, from 26 March to 31 October; buy the combined one here and use the rest tomorrow. The climb from the cathedral takes about 10 minutes up stairways.

It is the oldest fortress in town, first mentioned in 1066, and the place where Šibenik was born. From the top you see the whole old town, the channel and the islands. In summer the courtyard becomes a concert stage, with the audience seated in tiers facing the sea.

About an hour, on yesterday’s combined ticket. Go up early, before the heat, by the stairs of the Varoš quarter. The fortress was thrown up in 1646 to defend the town against the Ottomans, and today it has an exhibition on that war and a café with a terrace.

The view is wider than from St Michael’s, because it takes in St Michael’s head on, the rooftops and the archipelago. St John’s, the largest of the four, is higher up and on the same ticket if you still have the legs.

Quick stop, 30 minutes. Walk back down into the old town; the garden hides behind St Lawrence’s Monastery, a few steps from Kalelarga, the main street.

The beds were laid out again on the plan of a medieval monastery garden, with aromatic and medicinal herbs in squares of low hedge. There is a café in the middle, good for a break before the afternoon boat.

About two hours, on the official trip only: 27.50 euros from June to September and 19.50 euros in April, May and October. The boat leaves from the Šibenik waterfront at Obala dr. Franje Tuđmana 4, and the visit is guided because conservation work is under way. Book ahead online, as there are only a few departures a day.

The Venetians built the fortress in the 16th century at the mouth of St Anthony’s Channel, Šibenik’s only access to the open sea, and it has been a World Heritage Site since 2017. On the way back, if there is time, the path along the channel is where locals take their evening walk.

Quick stop, 30 minutes. Skradin is 20 minutes by car from Šibenik, at the mouth of the Krka river. Parking here is private and paid; the Lozovac entrance has free parking and a park bus to the falls. From April to October the boat from Skradin to Skradinski buk is included in the ticket.

Arrive at opening, 8 am, and take one of the first boats: the little stone town on the river is still empty and the ride up the Krka already shows off the limestone walls.

Two to three hours. A ticket for all land sites of the park costs 40 euros from June to September, 30 euros after 3 pm in those months, 20 euros in April, May and October and 7 euros in winter. Buy online: the park says it cuts the wait considerably. The same ticket covers every land site on the same day.

Swimming at Skradinski buk is forbidden; old photos of people in the water predate the ban. What you do is the 1.9 km one way loop trail on wooden boardwalks right over the tiers of water, with old restored mills along the way.

Extra boats leave from the pier: to Visovac island and its Franciscan monastery, 15 euros and two hours, or to Visovac and Roški slap, 20 euros and four hours.

About two hours, on the same ticket. By car it is about 40 minutes to the Laškovica entrance, or come by boat on the four hour trip. The park only allows swimming in marked areas at Roški slap, Stinice and Pisak, from 1 June to 30 September, at your own risk.

It is a quieter stretch of river, with the main fall and a series of small cascades above it. Restored watermills show how wheat was ground here. Head back to Šibenik in the late afternoon, about an hour away.

About two hours, free. It is 25 minutes by car south of Šibenik. Park before the isthmus and walk in: the old town fills a rounded peninsula and its lanes climb to the church of St George at the top, with the cemetery facing the sea.

On the way in, look at the hills behind town: the Bucavac vineyards, dry stone terraces built by hand to grow the babić grape, are on UNESCO’s tentative list. For decades a story has gone round that a photo of them hangs at the UN headquarters in New York, but Šibenik’s own museum has never been able to confirm it. Try a glass of babić red in the village.

Quick stop, 30 minutes, free, 15 minutes by car south of Primošten. Zmajevo oko is a saltwater lake ringed by limestone cliffs and linked to the sea by underground passages.

Every so often the fish and jellyfish leave the lake through those passages and only return once the water renews itself, and scientists describe it as a natural bioreactor. You can walk around the rim, and on hot days locals swim there.

Two to three hours. It is 30 minutes by car from Rogoznica; park on the mainland side and walk across the bridge. The whole town fits on an islet between the mainland and the island of Čiovo, and it is a World Heritage Site.

St Lawrence Cathedral charges entry at the door, with the tower extra. Do not miss the portal carved by master Radovan in 1240, with Adam and Eve standing on stone lions. Then wander the lanes down to the southern waterfront.

Quick stop, 45 minutes. The 15th century Venetian fortress closes off the western tip of the islet; climb the walls for the waterfront and Čiovo. In summer the courtyard becomes a concert venue.

Stay for sunset on the waterfront and have dinner in Trogir. The drive back to Šibenik takes about 50 minutes on the A1 motorway, which is tolled.

About 1h30, 12 euros, open daily from 8.30 am to 8.30 pm. It is about 70 minutes by car from Šibenik; come here first, before dropping down into Split, because the pass is on the way.

The fortress runs along a rocky ridge and for centuries guarded the route between the coast and the interior, on the frontier against the Ottomans. Game of Thrones fans will recognise Meereen. From the top you see all of Split and the islands, the best map of what you will walk later.

The whole afternoon. Leave the car in a car park outside the centre and enter by the Bronze Gate on the sea side. The palace cellars cost 10 euros and open from 8.30 am to 8 pm; the cathedral and bell tower have their own tickets, sold on the square.

Emperor Diocletian had the palace built around the year 300 to retire in, and the medieval town grew up inside its walls: today there are homes, shops and bars among the columns. The Peristyle is the central courtyard, and the Cathedral of St Domnius occupies what was the emperor’s own mausoleum. It has been a World Heritage Site since 1979.

Quick stop, 20 minutes, free. Out through the Bronze Gate you are on the Riva, the harbour promenade that runs along the south front of the palace.

It is Split’s meeting point: palm trees, cafés with tables facing the sea and the boats leaving for the islands. Walk to the western end, where the climb up Marjan begins.

Quick stop, one hour, free. From the end of the Riva, climb the stairs of the Varoš quarter; in about 15 minutes you reach the first lookout on Marjan hill, with a terrace café.

From there you see the centre of Split, the palace, the harbour and the islands of Brač and Šolta. Stay for sunset and drive back to Šibenik afterwards, just over an hour away.

Quick stop, 30 minutes before boarding. It is 35 minutes by car from Šibenik to the island of Murter, joined to the mainland by a bridge at Tisno. Full day trips leave Hramina bay at 9 am and return around 6 pm.

A typical trip costs 65 euros and already includes the boat, the national park ticket, the guide and lunch. Book the day before at one of the harbour agencies and check each boat’s route, because the stops vary.

The whole day at sea. Kornati National Park groups some 90 islands and islets, almost treeless and made of white limestone, and can only be visited by boat. If you come on your own boat you pay per boat: 25 euros a day off season and 45 euros in season for boats up to 7 metres.

The best stop is usually Levrnaka: a short trail climbs to a lookout over the islands and drops to Lojena beach, with sand and turquoise water. Bring a hat, sunscreen and closed shoes for the trail, as there is no shade. The boat passes the cliffs that fall straight into the sea before heading back.

About 1h30, book ahead. Zadar is about 60 minutes by car from Šibenik; Foša sits by the Land Gate, the main entrance to the old town, facing the little harbour that gives the restaurant its name.

It is recommended by the Michelin Guide and cooks Adriatic fish and seafood, from lobster to octopus, with a Croatian wine list. The terrace over the water is the table everyone wants.

About an hour, free from outside. From Foša, cross the old town on foot in 10 minutes. The Roman Forum is open air, with columns and stone blocks scattered where the town’s main square once was.

The round Church of St Donatus, from the 9th century, was built on top of it and reuses Roman stones in its foundations. Next door, the bell tower of St Anastasia Cathedral can be climbed for a view over the peninsula.

About an hour, free, five minutes on foot from the Forum at the tip of the peninsula. Under the marble steps of the promenade are pipes that the movement of the sea makes sound, nonstop, every wave a different note.

It is the work of architect Nikola Bašić and opened in 2005. Sit on the steps late in the day: Zadar’s sunset is famous, and the line calling it the most beautiful in the world is attributed to Alfred Hitchcock.

Quick stop, 30 minutes, free, next to the Sea Organ. It is a circle of glass plates set in the ground, with solar cells that store the daylight and glow in colours after the sun goes down.

It is also by Nikola Bašić. Wait for dark to see the lights, then drive back to Šibenik, an hour away, or sleep in Zadar if your flight home leaves from the airport here.