Zadar has been an important city since 900 BC in the struggle for power among various local rulers. During the 3000-year-old history of the city, it was in the hands of the Romans, the Byzantines, the Venetians, the Ottomans, the Croatian kingdom, the Austro-Hungarian empire, the Italian kingdom (until the end of the 2nd world War), and then the Republic of Yugoslavia.

The city has long been known for its beautiful sunset. The famous British film director Alfred Hitchcock even said that the sunset in Zadar is the most beautiful in the whole world.

The old town of Zadar is located on a peninsula and can be easily reached by a pedestrian bridge. One of the many sights in the old center is the church of St. Donatus from the 9th century, and the adjacent Roman Forum and St. Anastasias Cathedral. The St. Donatus church can be viewed from the inside; it is open to visitors in the morning and late afternoon / early evening.