Croatia (Zadar)

Croatia (Zadar) – What you should know

Zadar sits on the northern Dalmatian coast and has a reliably dry midsummer: 44 mm in July and 57 mm in August at 31 and 30°C. The counterpart is a very wet late autumn — November brings 143 mm and September 124 mm. Across the year, considerably more rain falls here than on the southern Dalmatian islands.

The Adriatic reaches 24°C in July and August and stays at 20°C into October. The swimming season is therefore slightly shorter than further south around Dubrovnik, but the offshore islands — the Kornati archipelago with its 89 uninhabited islets — are a short boat ride from Zadar and almost empty in June and September.

As everywhere on the Croatian coast, the bora deserves attention: this cold downslope wind from the Velebit range hits the Zadar area particularly hard, because the mountains press close to the coast here. In winter it can blow for days and disrupt ferries and the coastal motorway. In summer it is rare; the maestral, a dependable afternoon sea breeze, takes over instead.