Best Things to See on Ugljan Island, Croatia

What is St. Michael's Fortress and can you visit it?

St. Michael's Fortress (Tvrđava sv. Mihovila) sits on a 265-metre hill northwest of Preko. A Benedictine monastery dedicated to St. Michael, a subsidiary of Zadar's St. Krševan monastery, occupied the site from the late 11th or early 12th century (Source: Croatian Wikipedia). After Venice's conquest and destruction of Zadar, Venetian forces built the fortress here in 1202; the Dominicans later took over the monastery in 1570, and the fortress reached its current trapezoid form in the 14th century. The Croatian Wikipedia entry describes it as the largest medieval stronghold in Dalmatia outside city walls, though this specific superlative is that source's own characterization rather than an independently ranked measurement. A major tower and the medieval church were demolished in 1948. Today the ruin is reachable via a paved, roughly 3-kilometre road suitable for cyclists, pedestrians and cars, with views over more than 200 islands of the Zadar archipelago, Kornati National Park, Zadar, Velebit and Ravni kotari (Source: TZ Preko, official tourist board).

• 265m hill above Preko, on the island's northwest side
• Origins as an 11th/12th-century Benedictine monastery, fortified by Venice in 1202
• Reachable by a paved 3km road; suitable for walking, cycling or driving
• Free, open ruin rather than a ticketed monument; no opening hours to check

What is the monastery islet of Galevac (Školjić)?

Galevac, also called Školjić, is a small islet about 85 metres off the coast of Preko, roughly 300 by 200 metres in size (Source: Općina Preko, official municipal site). Franciscan Tertiaries arrived in 1446 after Zadar nobleman Bartolomeo de Milano gifted them the island, and built a monastery and church dedicated to St. Paul the Hermit. The church was repaired in 1516 and 1564 and consecrated in 1596 by the bishop of Nin, confirmed by a Latin inscription over the entrance. The 15th-century church and monastery inventory received protected cultural heritage status from the Croatian Ministry of Culture in 2013. Today the restored monastery hosts spiritual retreats and a Croatian-language school for the children of Croatian emigrants, with three friars in residence.

Why is Kali known for tuna?

Kali is a fishing village with fishing activity documented in 15th-century Zadar notarial records, and a tuna-fishing tradition tracing to the mid-19th century, when local fishermen worked the waters around Sestrunj and the western Zadar islands (Source: general historical reporting on Kali's fishing history). By the second half of the 19th century, Kali had become one of the leading fishing settlements in the Zadar islands. In 1996, two Croatian returnees from Australia established Kali Tuna, described by the company itself as the first tuna farm in the Mediterranean and a pioneer of farmed Atlantic bluefin tuna in the region (Source: Kali Tuna, official company history page, 2026). Many Kali residents also work as sailors on domestic and international shipping fleets.

What is Kukljica known for?

Kukljica is an older fishing settlement on Ugljan's southeastern side, noted locally as one of the pioneers of tourism among the Zadar islands. Its best-known beach is Zelena Punta, a pebble-and-concrete-slab beach shaded by pine forest, with a promenade running through the pines to the sea and views back toward Zadar (Source: Adriatic.hr beach guide). The Zelena Punta area also has a resort offering tennis, mini-golf, table tennis, diving, sailing, windsurfing and other sports facilities.

• Zelena Punta: pebble/concrete beach, pine-forest promenade, resort with sports facilities
• Kukljica village: older fishing settlement, early adopter of island tourism
• Coastal path continues toward the village center for walkers

How many olive trees does Ugljan have, and what are the cycling trails like?

Ugljan is described by the official Zadar Region Tourist Board as covered with an estimated 200,000 olive trees, giving it the nickname "the Zadar garden" (Source: Zadar Region Tourist Board, official site). Preko's official tourism page lists roughly 100 kilometres of cycling paths across the island, varying in difficulty, with the easiest routes suited to families, plus hiking trails through the olive groves to hilltop viewpoints and coastal coves such as Svitla and Prtljug (Source: TZ Preko, official tourist board).