The Best Sight in Pag Island, Northern Dalmatia

Lest you think the modern vacation homes lining the bay are all there is to Pag Town, park your car (or get off the bus) for a walk into the historic center, the narrow streets of which provide not only a rich sense of centuries past but also a refuge of shade on a hot summer day. Pag Town was founded in 1443, when Juraj Dalmatinac of Šibenik, best known for designing Šibenik's magnificent cathedral, was commissioned by the Venetians to build a fortified island capital to replace its predecessor, which was ravaged by invaders in 1395. Today a few odd stretches remain of the 23-foot-high wall Dalmatinac built around the town, and a walk around the center reveals several Renaissance buildings and palaces from his era, as well as Baroque balconies and stone coats of arms from the 15th to 18th centuries. Pag Town's compact main square, Trg Kralja Petra Krešimira IV, is home to three of the town's key landmarks, two of them original buildings designed in the mid-14th century by Juraj Dalmatinac. The bay stretches far, with sandy, shallow beaches aplenty—making Pag Island a great place to sunbathe and swim for a day or two, especially with children. The best and biggest beaches, amid pretty groves of pine and Dalmatian oak, are in Novalja.