Zadar and Split are Croatia's two great Dalmatian coast cities, both built around Roman ruins and Adriatic waterfronts, both jumping-off points for island tours. Picking between them depends on whether you want quiet ruins and sea views or a livelier palace-turned-city and buzzing nightlife.
Zadar's Roman Forum and St. Donatus Church sit atop ancient ruins, backed by the Archaeological Museum of Zadar and the Cathedral of St. Anastasia. Split's Diocletian's Palace is grander still — a Roman emperor's retirement palace where people still live, centered on Peristyle Square and the Cathedral of Saint Domnius.
Zadar's pedestrian Kalelarga Street leads to the waterfront Sea Organ and the light-up Greeting to the Sun, a nightly ritual found nowhere else. Split's public life centers on the Riva Waterfront Promenade, plus Narodni Trg and Marmontova Street, busier and more built-up than Zadar's.
Both cities run Old Town Walking Tours and Island-Hopping Boat Tours, a near-necessity on the Adriatic. Split adds the Diocletian's Palace Guided Tour, useful for untangling the palace's layered history, and the Blue Cave & Island Hopping Boat Tour, covering more ground than Zadar's low-key tour lineup.
Zadar's day-trip draw is singular but massive: Plitvice Lakes National Park, one of Europe's most photographed natural sites. Split counters with two: Trogir, a UNESCO-listed old town, and Hvar Island, known for lavender fields and vineyards — a broader spread than Zadar offers.
Choose Zadar for a smaller, quieter old town and easy access to Plitvice Lakes National Park. Choose Split for the scale of Diocletian's Palace, livelier streets, and day trips to Trogir and Hvar Island. Both work well as a Dalmatian coast base.