Zala Beach and the Coves of Stara Baška: How to Get There and What to Expect

Every summer someone asks us the same thing over dinner at Villa Marim: which beach is the one from the photographs? The answer is usually Zala — the small pebble bay just south of Stara Baška where the water turns a colour that people assume has been edited. Here is how to get there, what you will find when you arrive, and where to go on the days you want something even quieter.

Where Zala is

Stara Baška is the last village on the south-western coast of Krk. One road leads there, from Punat — about 42 kilometres and 45 minutes from the Krk bridge and Rijeka Airport. The village is small and old, a shepherds' settlement long before it was anything else, with a working harbour, a handful of restaurants and a camp at Škrila to the north. Villa Marim stands on its rock in the middle of it.

Zala lies just beyond the southern end of the village, where the paved coastal road stops. From the harbour below Villa Marim it is ten minutes by boat. From the village on foot it is a twenty-minute walk along the road. By car it is a few minutes.

How to get to Zala Beach

By car. Drive through the village and follow the coastal road south. The asphalt ends at Zala; a gravel car park sits about 50 metres above the beach, and a short footpath takes you down. The car park is small — that is not a flaw, it is the reason the beach stays quiet — and in high season a fee may be charged. If it is full, do not improvise on the verge: come back in the late afternoon, which is when Zala is at its best anyway.

By boat. This is how we go. Rental boats are moored in Stara Baška harbour next to the fishing boats; ten minutes along the coast and you drop anchor in the bay. You arrive from the sea, which is how this coast is meant to be seen, and you can carry on to the coves that have no path at all. Our guide to boat days from Stara Baška has the details.

On foot. Roughly twenty minutes from the village along the road. There is no shade on the way, so go early or go late, and take water.

What the beach is like

Zala is about 110 metres of fine pebbles, roughly 15 metres deep, with a gradual entry into the water and a uniform pebble seabed. That seabed is the secret: nothing stirs up, so on a calm day you look down through seven, eight, nine metres of water as if it were air. The bay opens to the south-west, which means partial shade in the morning and full sun from midday until the evening. There is almost no natural shade — low scrub, no pines — so bring an umbrella.

Facilities are minimal and seasonal. Do not count on a bar, toilets or showers: pack water, something to eat, sunscreen and a bag for your rubbish. Dogs are not permitted, and it is not a naturist beach. Compared with Oprna it is quieter, and even in August the small car park keeps the numbers down.

One honest note: this is a pebble beach, not a sandy one. Swimming shoes make the entry far more comfortable, especially for children, and they protect you from the sea urchins that live on the rocks at either end of the bay.

Oprna Bay — the famous one

Two and a half kilometres before the village on the road from Punat, Oprna is the beach most people mean when they talk about Stara Baška. You park on the roadside above and walk down a steep path — ten to fifteen minutes, longer coming back up in the heat. Two hundred metres of small pebbles, water in three shades of blue, sun beds, umbrellas and a bar in season. No dogs. From the village it is fifteen minutes by boat or a twenty-minute walk.

Oprna deserves its reputation, and in July and August it shows: the roadside parking is full by ten. Our advice is to go before nine, go after five, or go by boat.

The other coves

• Slatina — the village beach, about 130 metres of pebbles and the easiest to reach on foot from the harbour. Paid parking nearby.
• Zaglav — a quiet cove between Oprna and the camp with unusually fine sand for this coast, about 140 metres long, and the one beach here where dogs are welcome. Roadside parking above.
• Surbova — a kilometre beyond Zala along the dirt track, about 90 metres of pebbles. Reachable by bike, on foot or by boat, with parking a short walk away.
• Pokrive — 80 metres of pebbles under dramatic cliffs and no path at all. Boat, kayak or paddleboard only.
• Tišina and Črnikovica — tiny bays for one or two families, with some of the best snorkelling on the island. Črnikovica is less than ten metres long.
• Pečen — thirty metres of white pebbles, reached on foot from Oprna or by boat. Very peaceful.
• Škrila — the camp beach north of the village, with a bar, sun beds and the full range of amenities. The right choice for a day when you want everything on hand.

A boat day from Stara Baška

Rent a boat in the harbour in the morning, when the sea is glass. Head south past Zala and Surbova to Pokrive, drop anchor, swim, move on. The coves along this stretch face the open Kvarner Bay and the water is among the clearest anywhere on Krk — turquoise over white pebbles in a way that photographs cannot quite hold. Take everything you need with you; there is nothing to buy once you leave the harbour. Be back before the afternoon breeze picks up, and you will have had the best day of the holiday for the price of a tank of fuel.

Practical notes from the owners

• Swimming shoes for everyone. Sharp rocks and sea urchins are part of every pebble beach on this coast.
• Do not sit under the cliffs. Rockfall is a real risk on the steeper bays, and the signs are not decoration.
• Water and shade. None of the wilder coves has either. An umbrella and two litres per person is the minimum.
• Supplies. There is no bakery or grocery in Stara Baška itself — stock up in Punat or Krk town on the way in. The Škrila camp just north of the village has a good restaurant, a bar and a small grocery store.
• Timing. Zala faces south-west, so the light between five and seven in the evening is the best of the day, and the day-trippers have gone.
• Season. The sea is around 24°C in August and 18–20°C in May. June and September combine warm water with empty beaches; August is the busiest month, and the boat is the way to avoid it.

Staying in Stara Baška

Villa Marim is built on a rock directly above the sea in the village, with private sea access, a pool and a SPA area, four bedrooms and room for eight guests. Zala is ten minutes by boat from the harbour below the villa, Oprna fifteen. Most guests swim from the rock in the morning and save the coves for the afternoon. You can check availability and prices for your dates, or write to us and we will tell you honestly which weeks are still open.