Šibenik has a magnificent medieval heart, gleaming white against the placid waters of the bay, something that may not be immediately apparent as you drive through the somewhat shabby outskirts. The stone labyrinth of steep backstreets and alleys is a joy to explore. Šibenik is also an important access point for Krka National Park and the Kornati Islands.

There are multiple interpretations of how Šibenik was named. In his fifteenth century book De situ Illiriae et civitate Sibenici,Juraj Šižgorić describes the name and location of Šibenik. He attributes the name of the city to it being surrounded by a palisade made of šibe(sticks, singular being šiba). Another interpretation is associated with the forest through the Latin toponym “Sibinicum,” which covered a narrower microregion within Šibenik on and around the area of St. Michael’s Fortress.