Diving Northern Dalmatia | Kornati, Zadar & Dugi Otok

About Northern Dalmatia – Zadar & Kornati

Northern Dalmatia stretches from the historic city of Zadar northward to the Kornati and south to the Šibenik archipelago, a labyrinth of more than a thousand islands, reefs and sea channels. It is a region of extreme clarity and dramatic topography: the Kornati National Park is a stark, near-uninhabited archipelago of sheer cliffs plunging into the deep blue, while Telašćica Nature Park on Dugi Otok holds some of the clearest water in the Adriatic. Wreck divers come for the Michelangelo cargo ship off Veli Rat and the Boeing 737 fuselage sunk as an artificial reef near Vir, and the Cathedral on Premuda is a spectacular light-filled cavern. The offshore islands of Dugi Otok, Iž, Silba and Olib offer pristine walls, macro reefs and tranquil, uncrowded diving. Zadar itself is a cultural highlight with its Roman forum and sea organ. Northern Dalmatia is where the Dalmatian island-hopping adventure truly begins, with visibility that frequently tops 30 metres and a genuine sense of remote, wild water.

Highlights

• ✓Kornati National Park: sheer cliffs and walls dropping into the deep blue
• ✓Telašćica Nature Park: exceptionally clear water and dramatic sea walls
• ✓Michelangelo wreck (Dugi Otok): a 1943 cargo ship now a grouper haunt
• ✓Premuda Cathedral: a glowing underwater cavern with light beams
• ✓Zadar wrecks: the Jadran fishing boat and the Boeing 737 artificial reef

Getting There

Fly into Zadar Airport (ZAD), which sits right on the coast and is the natural hub, or into Split (SPU) to the south. From Zadar, ferries and catamarans reach the islands of Dugi Otok, Iž, Ugljan, Premuda and the Kornati; a rental car plus a few ferry reservations is the most flexible way to tour.