4 Best Sights in Central Dalmatia, Croatia

The obvious spot for swimming and sunning here is the glorious Zlatni Rat (Golden Cape or Golden Horn) Beach, complete with a café and snack bar, plus sun beds and parasols. Paddleboats and Jet Skis can be rented through peak season, when the beach can get crowded. Regular taxi-boats run from the Old Town harbor to Zlatni rat; walking distance is 20 minutes. Amenities: food and drink; showers; toilets; water sports. Best for: snorkeling; sunrise; sunset; swimming; windsurfing.

The largest beach area in Split, a 10-minute walk east of the Old Town, has a shallow swimming area and is one of the few sandy beaches on the Dalmatian coast. If you don't mind the crowds, you can rent beach chairs and umbrellas, and you can also enjoy a string of cafés and bars along this stretch of coast. Amenities: food and drink; parking (fee); toilets. Best for: swimming.

At this quieter rocky cove west of Split's Old Town, on the north side of Marjan Hill and a 20-minute drive from Diocletian's Palace, you can engage in a number of sports such as kayaking or tennis (there are courts). Bene is one of a string of beaches and coves dotting the Marjan Hill peninsula. Amenities: food and drink; showers; water sports. Best for: swimming; walking. 

This sandy beach sits in a cove on Brač's northern coast, offering a more low-key alternative to Zlatni rat that's worth a visit for its clear waters and views of the Dinaric Alps on the mainland. Crickets chirp from the surrounding pines, which also offer shade from the sun. Above the beach are ruins from the 5th-century Basilica of St. Lawrence, which pilgrims visit on August 10, the saint's feast day. The beach is a 10-minute drive (about an hour walk) east of Postira following the main road, which turns to dirt for the last few miles.  Amenities: food and drink; toilets. Best for: snorkeling; solitude; swimming; walking.