Croatia - Northern Dalmatia: Road bike tours around the World Heritage city of Zadar
Christiane Bertelsmann
· 11.11.2022
The city of Zadar on the Croatian Adriatic coast in northern Dalmatia is the administrative centre of the county of the same name, i.e. a regional administrative unit. Many small and larger elongated islands and islets along the coast, a fertile plateau at least between Zadar and Nin, bordered to the north by the Velebit Mountains - this is how the region can be characterised. Anyone who was a child and fan of the Winnetou films in the 60s or 70s will be familiar with the Velebit Mountains - they were filmed there back then. The archipelago off Zadar stretches from north-west to south-east, as if the islands had been painted with a sweeping brushstroke. The largest in Zadar County is the largely treeless, narrow but 60-kilometre-long island of Pag, which is connected to the mainland by an impressive bridge. Opposite the medieval town of Zadar, situated on a peninsula, the islands of Ugljan and Pašman extend our tour area - you might think you can just swim there, but in fact they are almost half an hour away by ferry.
Dream roads by the sea
The region is more hilly than mountainous, but you can also gain a few metres in altitude around Zadar. There are few long, steep climbs, but there are short, steep ones, for example on the island of Pak, on Ugljan or inland. The route to the latter leads over long, straight stretches - but the often lonely little roads along the sea make up for this with great views. As far as the infrastructure for racing cyclists is concerned, there is still room for improvement, especially in Zadar: The route out of the city often leads along busy roads. Many cycle paths along the main roads - if there are any at all - end abruptly in gravel or at the edge of a pavement. The good thing is that many roads have been newly asphalted in recent years; we only occasionally encountered rougher surfaces and construction sites. And once you leave Zadar, the traffic dies down - but overtaking is often still a sporty affair. Tip Outside the high season in July and August, when it's too hot to cycle anyway, there is much less traffic.
