Tureta Castle

Tureta is a Byzantine-era fortress on the island of Kornat, inside Kornati National Park, built on a hill above the bay of Tarac. Sources disagree on exactly when — estimates range from the 6th to the 8th century — but it's generally dated to Late Antiquity or the early Middle Ages, built to help monitor and secure shipping through the Kornati channel at a time when the Adriatic was far from safe. It's considered the most significant Byzantine-period structure found on the Kornati islands, and it's also the only fortification from that era on Kornati that was never dismantled for its stone — most likely because the surrounding area stayed uninhabited, so no one had reason to strip it for building material.

At the foot of the same hill are the remains of an early Christian basilica dedicated to St. Mary, measuring roughly 30 by 13 metres — a substantial church for such a remote spot, which is why historians believe the Kornati islands supported a sizeable population when it was built. The church left enough of a mark that the island of Kornat was known through the Middle Ages by names referring to it, including Insulae Sanctae Mariae — "islands of St. Mary." Ruins nearby have led to speculation, still unconfirmed, that a small Templar or Benedictine monastery once stood alongside the church. Whether the church or the fortress came first isn't settled either; no clear sequence between the two has been established.

Tureta can only be reached by boat, and reaching the ruins themselves means a steep, rocky climb from the shore — sturdy shoes aren't optional. The payoff at the top is the view: the fortress's weathered stone walls framed by the bare limestone islands of the Kornati archipelago and the sea stretching out in every shade of blue. The national park around it covers 217 km² and some 89 islands, islets and reefs, and Tureta is one of the more atmospheric stops for anyone exploring it by boat — many visitors combine a day of sightseeing with a private gulet charter along the Croatia coast.