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Route · 7 days · round-tripYacht charter route · Zadar

Zadar via Kornati & Krka.

Sail seven days from Zadar through Telaščica, the Kornati islands and Krka's waterfalls, mooring in sandy bays like Sakarun and Vrgada.

The route

Day-by-day route

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Božava
Day 1

Zadar → Božava Bay (Dugi Otok)

About 22 miles out of Zadar past the olive slopes of Ugljan to Božava, with a swim stop at sandy Sakarun on the way.

Distance

11 NM

Sailing

~2.2h at 5 kn

At a glance

Route at a glance

Best season

May – early October (peak Jun – Sep)

Duration

7 days

Departure

Zadar

Sailing area

Zadar

Route summary

Click any day to jump back to the map and see its photos, narrative and mooring tip.

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The full story

Day-by-day journey

Named anchorages, mooring notes and things to do for every leg of the week — the map follows along as you scroll.

Day 1 / 7
Božava
1
Day 1

Zadar → Božava Bay (Dugi Otok)

The Sea Organ groans and sighs under the Riva as you cast off, which is as good a send-off as any harbour gives. From Zadar it's a steady reach of roughly 22 miles, first past Ugljan's terraced olive groves, then around the northwest shoulder of Dugi Otok. We usually break the passage at Sakarun, a rare stretch of white sand where the bottom shelves so gently the whole bay glows pale green. Drop the hook there for lunch and a long swim before carrying on the last mile into Božava. The village is tiny: a stone church, a couple of konobas, boats nodding at the quay. Order the grilled sea bream and eat late, the way the locals do. Above the mast the swifts wheel until dark.

Things to do

Anchor and swim at Sakarun beach

Climb the Veli Rat lighthouse tower

Grilled sea bream at a Božava konoba

Hear the Zadar Sea Organ at departure

Mooring tip

Božava's little marina and quay fill fast in July and August, so radio ahead or plan to lie at anchor. Sakarun holds well on sand in 4-6 m but empties out if the northwesterly gets up, so treat it as a daytime stop rather than an overnight one.

Telascica
2
Day 2

Božava → Telaščica Bay

Leave Božava after breakfast; it's an easy 14 miles south along the seaward side of Dugi Otok, though keep an eye on the swell where the cliffs meet the open water. Telaščica opens up like a long protected finger of the sea, ringed by more than twenty coves. Tie up and walk across the neck of land to Mir, a saltwater lake that runs a few degrees warmer than the Adriatic and saltier too; the mud along its edge has a local reputation for good skin. From there the path climbs to the top of the Stene cliffs, which drop close to 160 metres straight into the water. Sit up there a while. On the way down you'll likely meet the park's half-wild donkeys working the scrub for shade.

Things to do

Swim the warm saltwater Mir lake

Hike to the top of the Stene cliffs

Watch for the park's wild donkeys

Lunch at a Telaščica bay konoba

Mooring tip

There's a park entry fee collected at the buoy. The bay is one of the safest overnight spots in the region, but the buoy fields fill by late afternoon in high summer, so reserve through one of the konobas or arrive early.

Kornati
3
Day 3

Telaščica Bay → Kornati National Park (Levrnaka, Piškera)

Only about 8 miles today, but it's the heart of the trip. Kornati is 89 islands of pale, treeless rock, no villages, no roads, nothing much but stone and sea. The seaward cliffs, the ones the locals call the crowns, face the open Adriatic and take the full weight of the swell. Moor at Levrnaka and swim off Lojena, one of the few sandy beaches in the whole park. If you've the legs for it, the climb up Metlina on Kornat gives you the entire archipelago laid out below. By evening we generally settle near Piškera, where an old fishing chapel still stands among the ruins. Book a table ashore, grill whatever the konoba landed that morning, and watch the sky do its thing once the generators go quiet.

Things to do

Swim sandy Lojena beach on Levrnaka

Climb Metlina viewpoint on Kornat island

See the Piškera fishermen's chapel

Dinner at a Kornati restaurant buoy

Mooring tip

You'll pay a daily park ticket on the way in; buy it online ahead of time, as it costs less than at the boat. Restaurant buoys at Levrnaka, Piškera and Vrulje are free if you eat ashore, so book the table and the mooring comes with it.

Zlarin
4
Day 4

Kornati → Zlarin

After the raw stone of Kornati, Zlarin feels almost lush. It's a gentle sail southeast toward the Šibenik archipelago, the maestral usually filling in by midday to give you a proper beam reach for the last stretch. No cars run on the island, so the pace drops the moment you step off the boat. Zlarin has traded in red coral for five centuries, and the small Centre for Coral Tradition lays out the tools and the story. Wander the lanes behind the harbour, past workshops where a few craftsmen still polish the stuff by hand. Come evening, grab a bench by the water with a glass of local rakija and watch the old men slap down cards at briškula. Šibenik's forts glow gold across the channel as the light goes.

Things to do

Visit the Centre for Coral Tradition

Walk the car-free harbour lanes

Local rakija on the waterfront bench

Watch a game of briškula

Mooring tip

The town quay at Zlarin is short and best treated as a day berth; get in before mid-afternoon in season if you want a spot. For a calm night, anchor just outside the harbour on sand in 5-7 m and go ashore by tender.

Krka
5
Day 5

Zlarin → Skradin (Krka National Park)

Today you leave the sea behind. The route runs into the Šibenik channel, under the bridge, and up the green throat of the Krka river, with a strict slow-speed limit once you're in the gorge, so take your time and enjoy the reflections. Skradin sits where the river widens, a compact town of stone arches and shaded courtyards. From the quay, the national park's own boats run up to Skradinski Buk, the tiered waterfall complex that made Krka famous; wooden boardwalks thread between the cascades and the pools. Save room for the food ashore. Skradin risotto simmers for the better part of a day, and the local pršut and cheese make an easy lunch on deck. Cyclists can pick up a park trail that follows the water upstream.

Things to do

Boat up to the Skradinski Buk falls

Walk Skradin's medieval stone lanes

Try slow-cooked Skradin risotto

Cycle a Krka riverside trail

Mooring tip

ACI Marina Skradin sits right at the river mouth and is the practical overnight choice; book well ahead for July and August. The town quay is short-stay only, and anchoring isn't allowed in the river or Prokljan lake, so don't count on dropping the hook here.

Vrgada
6
Day 6

Skradin → Vrgada

Retrace the river down to the coast and point the bow northwest; it's around 18 miles to Vrgada, a low green island off Pirovac that most charter routes skip. That's rather the point. The bay at Luka shelves onto genuine sand, which is scarce along this part of the coast, so the anchorage glows the same pale blue you got at Sakarun. Ashore there's not much: a scatter of houses, pine woods, footpaths and no cars. Walk one of the tracks over to the far beaches and comb the tideline. In summer a couple of family konobas open up, and if brudet is on the board, order it; the fishermen's stew here is unhurried and honest. The island fills a little in August and empties again by September.

Things to do

Swim the sandy bay at Luka

Walk the no-car island tracks

Beachcomb the quiet far-side beaches

Brudet fish stew at a family konoba

Mooring tip

Vrgada has restaurant buoys off Luka bay that come free if you dine ashore. Holding is good on sand in 4-6 m if you'd rather anchor and keep the evening to yourselves; it can turn rolly with any southerly, so tuck well in.

Zadar
7
Day 7

Vrgada → Zadar

The last day is a straightforward 22 miles up the Pašman channel, and there's no rush if you leave Vrgada mid-morning. Fit in one more swim wherever the water tempts you off Pašman or Ugljan. Aim to be back in Zadar by late afternoon so you can hand over the boat and still have the evening. The old town rewards a slow walk: the round church of St Donatus, the Roman Forum stones scattered underfoot, columns worn smooth by centuries. Stay out past sunset. The Greeting to the Sun, a big disc of solar cells set into the Riva, wakes up as the light fades and throws colour around your feet while the Sea Organ plays the swell. Toast the week with a Maraschino, the cherry liqueur Zadar has made for two hundred years.

Things to do

Final swim off Pašman or Ugljan

Walk the Roman Forum and St Donatus

See the Greeting to the Sun at dusk

Taste Zadar's Maraschino cherry liqueur

Mooring tip

Marina Zadar at Borik is the usual charter base for the drop-off, though some fleets return to Marina Dalmacija at Sukošan, so check your paperwork. Either way, book your fuel slot a day ahead; the pontoons back up on Friday and Saturday turnarounds.

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