Sakarun sits at the northwestern shoulder of Dugi Otok, 40 kilometres from Zadar, where a 600-metre crescent of crushed shell and Dolomite sand slopes into water so pale it reads white under midday sun. The beach occupies a shallow bay sheltered by pine groves and limestone ridges, and until the mid-1990s it remained accessible only by unpaved track or fishing boat. A seasonal road was completed in 1998, but the majority of visitors still arrive by speedboat from Zadar, Zaglav or Bozava, because the island's ferry schedule restricts same-day returns. Dugi Otok translates to Long Island, and the name is literal: the landmass stretches 44 kilometres end to end, yet nowhere exceeds 4.5 kilometres in width. Sakarun occupies the narrowest waist, where the Adriatic and the Zadar Channel lie only two kilometres apart. The bay's unusual colour derives from a shallow limestone shelf that extends 80 metres offshore before dropping to 12 metres, scattering sunlight through the water column and rendering the shallows opalescent. The sand itself is biogenic, composed of pulverised mollusc shell mixed with fragments of coralline algae, and it remains cool underfoot even in July because the bay faces northwest and receives no direct afternoon exposure. Most Sakarun beach boat tour departures combine the beach with at least one additional site: Telascica Nature Park, the Blue Cave near Brbinj, or the submerged Cold War submarine tunnel at Bozava. The tunnel was excavated in 1980 by the Yugoslav Navy to shelter patrol boats from aerial reconnaissance and remains partially flooded, accessible only by guided tour. The Blue Cave, carved by wave action into the island's eastern cliffs, admits light through a submerged opening at 09:00 to 11:00, when the sun angle turns the interior water electric blue. Snorkelling equipment is included on most multi-stop excursions, and the limestone walls around Sakarun support populations of spiny starfish, sea urchins, and juvenile grouper. Dugi Otok's permanent population stands at 1,600, concentrated in eight villages along the sheltered eastern shore. The island produces olive oil, wine, and sheep's cheese, and until the 1970s earned most of its income from sardine fishing. Sakarun remained a local swimming spot until a Croatian travel magazine named it the country's cleanest beach in 2003, and visitor numbers have climbed each season since. The bay is now part of Telascica Nature Park's buffer zone, and parking fees were introduced in 2019 to fund seasonal waste collection and water quality monitoring.