A nearly 2-mile walk circumnavigating Zadar’s Old Town is a journey across a timeline that spans nearly every stage of Croatian history. And it’s a long history, dating back to the 9th century BC, when the Liburnians first settled this peninsular spit of land on Croatia’s spectacular Dalmatian coast.
Start your stroll on the northwest corner of the peninsula at the Morske Orgulje, or Sea Organ: a set of 35 pipes spread under a 70m section of the city’s seaside promenade, known as the Riva. Awarded the 2006 European Prize for Urban Public Space, the Morske Orgulje plays beautifully discordant melodies as the Adriatic laps the stone and pushes air through the pipes beneath — converting the walkway into an invisible, ethereal orchestra.
After the tidal concert, continue past the Greeting to the Sun installation (you’ll have a chance to linger there at the end of your walk) and around the Old Town’s northeast corner.
Continue southeast, walking along Zadar’s harbour-facing walls, constructed and reinforced between the 12th and 17th centuries as part of the Venetian Republic’s Adriatic defence network.
Before moving on, stop at the Garden Lounge, which sits atop the fortifications with views of ferries shuttling passengers to nearby islands, for a local Garden IPA (€3.50, or about $6.15), then walk along the walls until you reach the City Bridge on your left. Take a right through the Nova Vrata, or New Gate — an archway built during Italy’s pre-World War II occupation — and into the pedestrian-only Old Town.
