The majestic Dolomites, the charming Viennese coffee house culture, and the paradisiacal National Park Plitvice Lakes – they are all part of a particularly exclusive “club” – the UNESCO World Heritage Site. UNESCO has made it its business to preserve natural and cultural sites for the future as best it can – so that the next generations will also have enough of these architectural and cultural delights to see. If you look in the direction of Croatia, more precisely to Dalmatia around the old town of Zadar, you will notice that it is surrounded by a large number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Therefore we will take you on a journey through the UNESCO-marked regions of Dalmatia today.
01 // Fortress of Zadar
The city wall was built in the 16th century as protection against hostile takeovers. With a total of 3,000 meters, it encircled the city – the impressive fact is that 3/4 of the wall still exists. In order to experience the history behind the walls, there are special guided tours along the city walls with many insights into the events of that time.
02 // Plitvice Lakes National Park
Of course, the oldest & most visited national park of the country is on the UNESCO list. Besides the beautiful lakes and cascaded waterfalls, many different animal species romp around here. Not too long ago we dedicated a blog article to this beauty – so if you are looking for more information about the National Park Plitvice Lakes – just click on the link and you will find highlights, opening hours & co. at a glance.
03 // National Park Paklenica
Let’s go to the next pearl of nature – the National Park Paklenica in the Velebit Mountains. Three-quarters of an hour drive from Zadar, you will find beautiful mountain scenery and the impressive Paklenica gorge, which resembles American canyons. That is why it was also used as a backdrop for a Winnetou movie in the 60s. On 150km marked hiking trails, you can get to know the diversity of the park.
If your interest was aroused, there is more information on our blog – here we explored the National Park Paklenica in a separate blog post.
04 // split with imperial flair
Less than 2 hours away from Zadar is the second-largest city in Croatia. The impressive thing about it is that it is the only old town in the world that was built into a Roman imperial palace – that is, a town within a palace – quite clever from the ruler’s perspective. The Roman emperor Diocletian built or rather had built, a great “retirement home” near his birthplace with this ancient building complex. So Split offers the possibility to admire the splendid buildings of the palace between comfortable strolling in the city center. A rather unique mixture.
05 // Coastal town Šibenik
From Zadar you can reach the beautiful coastal town of Šibenik in an hour’s drive – two UNESCO World Heritage Sites await you here: The incredible sea fortress of St. Nicholas – which looks really impressive from an aerial perspective and the famous cathedral of St. James – which exudes Gothic & Renaissance architecture.
06 // Trogir and its old town
Between Sibenik and Split is Trogir – by car about 1 hour 30 minutes from Zadar. The old town was, what a surprise, also declared a UNESCO world heritage site. The reason is that Trogir is one of the best-preserved Romanesque-Gothic architectural complexes. In the historical center of the town, there are ten churches, a preserved castle, a tower, and a number of palaces waiting to be discovered.
As you can see, there are a lot of beautiful natural and cultural sites around Zadar, which are just waiting for your visit – either for a spontaneous vacation in the late season (now) or to catch the first rays of sunshine in spring 2021. Thinking about next year’s destinations already puts you in a vacation mood, at least mentally – and voilà, it puts a smile on your face and gives you a positive vibe 😉
If you still need the right accommodation – we will of course be happy to help you with some hotel inspiration. Well then, apply for vacation, and off you go on your trip to the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Dalmatia. ✌️
