# What are the best day trips from Zadar? > The best day trips from Zadar: Plitvice Lakes (about 2 hours by bus), Krka via Skradin (about 1 hour), Nin (20 minutes), plus Paklenica, Kornati and Ugljan. - Source: https://clevertourists.com/resources/day-trips-from-zadar - Authors: Evan & Clara, Clever Tourists (first-hand, from years of travel across 20 countries) - Published: 2026-05-06 **Plitvice Lakes, Krka National Park and the small town of Nin are the three best day trips from Zadar.** Plitvice is the big one: about 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours each way by bus, and worth the long day for the terraced lakes and boardwalks. Krka's waterfalls are about an hour away via Skradin, and Nin, with its sandy lagoon beach, salt pans and 9th-century church, is 20 to 25 minutes up the coast, close enough for an afternoon. We spent 3 days in Zadar in August 2023, arriving from Osijek and moving on to Šibenik for 2 nights, which is the honest alternative to doing Krka as a day trip. ## The short answer: ranked by payoff vs travel time • **Plitvice Lakes:** the best day trip from Zadar, about 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours each way. A full day. • **Krka National Park:** about 50 minutes to 1 hour 15 minutes by bus to Skradin, then the park boat. Half a day to a full day. • **Nin:** 20 to 25 minutes by bus. Half a day, or an afternoon on the beach. • **Šibenik:** about 1 hour 25 minutes by bus. Better as an overnight combined with Krka, which is what our route did. • **Paklenica National Park:** about 45 minutes to an hour to Starigrad. A hiking day. • **Kornati and Telašćica:** organised boat tours of about 9 hours. The only realistic way to see the Kornati in a day. • **Ugljan:** a 25-minute ferry to Preko. The shortest island escape from the city. Zadar's own sights, the Roman Forum, St. Donatus and the Sea Organ, fit into a day, so with 3 days you can spend one in the old town, one at Plitvice or Krka, and one on the coast or an island. Our [Zadar guide](https://clevertourists.com/guides/zadar) covers the city itself, and [how many days in Zadar](https://clevertourists.com/resources/how-many-days-in-zadar) has the full split. ## 1. Plitvice Lakes National Park **What it is:** sixteen terraced lakes joined by waterfalls and wooden boardwalks, in the hills between Zadar and Zagreb. It is Croatia's best-known national park and the reason many people base themselves in Zadar at all. **Getting there:** buses from Zadar bus station take about 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours over roughly 135 km, with a couple of direct departures a day in season. Driving takes about the same. Guided round trips from Zadar run about 9 hours door to door. **How long:** 4 to 6 hours inside the park. The ticket includes the electric boat across Kozjak lake and the panorama train within your chosen route. **Tickets:** from June to August, an adult ticket costs **€40 (≈ $45) before 16:00** and **€25 (≈ $28) after**; in September the cutoff moves to 15:00. Children 7 to 18 pay €15 (≈ $16.7) (€9 (≈ $10.0) after the cutoff). Visitor numbers per hour are capped in summer, so buy online for a fixed entrance and time slot rather than turning up. **Who it suits:** anyone who has not seen it. It is the one trip on this list worth a 4-hour round trip. **Tip:** take the earliest bus or slot you can. By late morning in July and August the lower lakes boardwalks become slow single-file queues. If you want the park at opening, sleep one night near the entrances instead of doing it from Zadar. ## 2. Krka National Park via Skradin **What it is:** a river canyon of travertine waterfalls, with the big cascade at Skradinski Buk and a boardwalk loop over and through the water. **Getting there:** buses from Zadar to Skradin take about 50 minutes to 1 hour 15 minutes, a few times a day. Buy your park ticket in Skradin and take the park boat up the canyon to the falls; it is included in the ticket from April to October. **How long:** half a day for the boat and the boardwalk loop, a full day if you add Visovac island or Roški slap. **Tickets:** €40 (≈ $45) for adults from June to September, €30 (≈ $33) if you enter after 15:00, €20 (≈ $22) in April, May and October. Our [Krka tickets guide](https://clevertourists.com/resources/krka-national-park-from-sibenik-tickets-guide) has the full price list. **Who it suits:** people who want waterfalls with a shorter journey than Plitvice, or who have already seen Plitvice. **Tip:** swimming at Skradinski Buk is banned now, whatever older blog posts say, so do not plan the day around a swim. Our route went from Zadar to Šibenik for 2 nights, and Skradin is only 20 to 25 minutes from there, which makes Krka an easier half day. ## 3. Nin **What it is:** a tiny island town in a shallow lagoon, joined to the mainland by stone bridges. It holds the 9th-century Church of the Holy Cross, often called the smallest cathedral in the world, the hand-worked Nin salt pans, and the long sandy Queen's Beach (Kraljičina plaža), one of the few proper sand beaches near Zadar. **Getting there:** local buses from Zadar bus station take about 20 to 25 minutes and run roughly hourly in summer. **How long:** two hours for the town and the salt pans, half a day or more with the beach. **Who it suits:** families, because the lagoon water is shallow and warm, and anyone tired of Zadar's rocky swimming spots. **Tip:** the lagoon mud near Queen's Beach is the kind people smear on themselves for its supposed health benefits; bring a towel you do not mind ruining. ## 4. Šibenik (better as an overnight) **What it is:** a steep stone town on a sheltered bay, built by Croatians rather than Romans or Venetians, with the UNESCO-listed Cathedral of St. James, built without mortar and ringed by 71 carved stone heads, and hilltop forts above the old town. **Getting there:** buses take about 1 hour 25 minutes to 1 hour 35 minutes, with several departures a day. **How long:** a full day as a day trip, but it is better as a stop. Our route did exactly that: 3 days in Zadar, then 2 nights in Šibenik, then 2 in Split. From Šibenik, Krka is a short hop. **Who it suits:** travellers heading south down the coast anyway, who can drop it in between Zadar and Split rather than going back and forth. **Tip:** climb to St. Michael's Fortress late in the day for the view over the cathedral roof and bay. Šibenik is in our [Croatia guide](https://clevertourists.com/guides/croatia). ## 5. Paklenica National Park **What it is:** two limestone canyons, Velika and Mala Paklenica, cutting into the Velebit mountains just above the coast at Starigrad. It is Croatia's main rock-climbing area and has well-marked hiking trails up the gorge. **Getting there:** buses towards Starigrad-Paklenica take about 45 minutes to an hour. The main entrance to Velika Paklenica is on the edge of Starigrad; ask the driver for the nearest stop. **How long:** a full day if you hike up the canyon; a half day for the lower gorge. **Who it suits:** hikers and climbers. If you want lakes and waterfalls, choose Plitvice or Krka instead. **Tip:** the canyon floor is shaded early but bakes by midday in July and August, so start early, carry water, and check the last bus back before you set off, because services thin out later in the day. ## 6. Kornati and Telašćica by boat **What it is:** the Kornati are a national park of bare, scattered islands south of Zadar; Telašćica is the nature park on the southern tip of Dugi Otok next door, with cliffs on the open-sea side and the saltwater lake Mir, where you can swim. **Getting there:** there is no practical public transport. Organised boat tours leave Zadar in the morning and return around 18:00, about 9 hours in total, usually with lunch and swim stops. **How long:** the whole day, mostly on the water. **Who it suits:** people who want a sea day and do not mind a group boat. **Tip:** some tours include the Kornati and Telašćica park tickets and some do not, which changes the real price considerably. Check the inclusions before you compare prices. ## 7. Ugljan, the island across the channel **What it is:** the long, green island you see from Zadar's waterfront. Preko, its main village, has small pebble beaches and a short boat ride to the islet of Galovac with its Franciscan monastery. **Getting there:** Jadrolinija ferries from Zadar to Preko take about 25 minutes, with many sailings a day in summer. **How long:** half a day is plenty. **Who it suits:** anyone with a spare afternoon who wants to swim somewhere quieter than the city beaches. **Tip:** come back on a ferry that lands in Zadar an hour before sunset, so you are on the Sea Organ steps when the light goes. ## Planning your Zadar base Stay on or near the old town peninsula if you are doing day trips by bus: the bus station is a short taxi or local bus ride away, and you come back to the waterfront for sunset. Our [where to stay in Zadar](https://clevertourists.com/resources/where-to-stay-in-zadar) guide compares the peninsula with the areas outside it. Zadar sits in the middle of the Croatian route. Ours ran Zagreb (4 days), Osijek (3), Zadar (3), Šibenik (2), Split (2) and Dubrovnik (3); see our [Croatia itinerary](https://clevertourists.com/resources/croatia-itinerary-zagreb-zadar-dubrovnik) and the full [Balkans route](https://clevertourists.com/resources/balkans-road-trip-itinerary-croatia-montenegro-albania). For food, see [what to eat in Zadar](https://clevertourists.com/resources/what-to-eat-in-zadar); for tipping, our [Balkans tipping guide](https://clevertourists.com/resources/tipping-etiquette-balkans). ## Frequently asked questions ### Can you do Plitvice Lakes as a day trip from Zadar? Yes. Buses take about 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours each way, and guided round trips run about 9 hours. Book a timed ticket online in summer: adults pay €40 (≈ $45) before 16:00 from June to August and €25 (≈ $28) after. ### Is Krka or Plitvice better from Zadar? Plitvice is the bigger sight and worth the longer trip if you only do one. Krka is closer, about an hour by bus to Skradin, and easier still from Šibenik, about 20 to 25 minutes away. ### What is the closest beach day trip from Zadar? Nin, 20 to 25 minutes by bus, with the sandy, shallow Queen's Beach. Ugljan, a 25-minute ferry to Preko, is the quickest island option. ### Can you visit the Kornati Islands from Zadar? Yes, on an organised boat tour of about 9 hours, usually with Telašćica and the saltwater lake Mir. Check whether the park tickets are included. ### How many days in Zadar for day trips? Three days covers the old town plus two day trips, such as Plitvice and Nin. We spent 3 days in Zadar and then 2 nights in Šibenik, which is the easier base for Krka.