In the heart of Croatia there is a place that will surpass your best dreams: mountains covered with beech trees, sky-blue lakes and waterfalls that encourage you to lose yourself in a unique traveling trance. Don't miss our tour of the Plitvice Lakes National Park.
Brief introduction to Plitvice Lakes
If you drop by the Lika region, in the central-eastern margin of Croatia, you may be pleasantly surprised. You may cross a fairytale bridge and come across tiny fish swimming in water of an incredible blue, of that hue that seems to be typical of a dream. And if you look up, you will see that the lakes are just the beginning, there is a set of mountains and ravines covered with vegetation and waterfalls that spring from everywhere. Welcome to Plitvice Lakes National Park!
Already declared National Park in 1949 and designated a World Heritage Site by Unesco in 1979 with an extension conceived in the year 2000, the Plitvice Lakes National Park is one of the great natural attractions as you pass through that magical country called Croatia.
An area of up to 30 thousand hectares of which 22 thousand are totally covered with forest, although the area that the traveler can visit encompasses about 8 square kilometers. A delight for the senses of those who come to Croatia looking for a picture that exceeds all their expectations.
Considered as one of the most beautiful places in the world (in fact, she was a candidate to be one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World), Plitvice Lakes National Park contains up to 16 lakes and 92 waterfalls, although 90% of its vegetation is made up especially of beech.
A unique orchard that invites you to take up to seven thematic routes that can become the best guide when it comes to getting lost in this paradise on Earth.
Visiting Plitvice Lakes National Park
When visiting the Plitvice Lakes, the two closest base cities to do so are Zagreb, located 138 kilometers, and Zadar, 150 kilometers. Both places are good when leaving for the park, either by bus (BusCroatia and its 20 euros round trip ticket is a good option) or by renting a car, since the distance is covered in 2 hours and in the park itself it is possible to park.
The natural park hours are from 8 in the morning until 6 in the afternoon, so getting to the place first thing in the morning is highly recommended, especially if you want to find a place in the parking lot and save long lines.
According to the best time to visit Plitvice LakesThis is spring or autumn, the latter especially because of the spectacle of color that the beech trees acquire.
And it is that the station is also closely linked to capacity, but also to the prices of the park. If you decide to visit it in the low season, between October and March, the price is 55 Croatian kuras (7.50 euros), while in the months of April, May, June and September the price is 110 kuras (14.80 euros) and in July and August 180 (24.22 euros).
El park It has two entrances and the ticket includes a boat trip on Lake Kozjak, the most important of the complex, as well as access by train that part until two accesses. In turn, the indicative map that they give you at the entrance includes the seven routes that you can take depending on your time and the attractions you want to visit.
In the case of opting for the first entry, you will be able to walk between the lakes of lower altitude until culminating in the waterfall of the Plitvice river, which with its 78 meters high is quite a spectacle. For its part, the second entry focuses more on the upper lakes, highlighting the Proscansko, the highest of all, or the Labudovacpor waterfall, both spectacular. In any case, the aforementioned train allows us to link both entrances or reach the one we choose.
Once inside, you just have to prepare yourself to enjoy a magical landscape in which waterfalls emerge from all sides, lakes evoke an unearthly blue and nature is full of a thousand enchanting nuances.
A visit to the enormous Plitvice lake, the main one, through which the famous electric boat plows through, or lose yourself in the silence invited by the wooden walkways that meander throughout the park, allowing you to get essential views of the lakes.
Stay in the park
From Dubrovnik, the distance to Plitvice Lakes is 400 kilometers, so the idea of stay in the park for a couple of days It seems perfect to you when it comes to discovering all its charms without haste and at your leisure.
In the case of doing so, it is possible to purchase a cheaper two-day ticket while you opt for Nearby hotels like Grabovac, one of the most famous lodges in the area. At the same time, the park itself has camping areas composed of bungalows from which you can get unbeatable views of the lakes and beech forests.
Finally, we cannot forget about the possibility of eat in one of the restaurants serving typical Croatian cuisine in the immediate vicinity of the lakes. Among them, it is worth highlighting the presence of the Kozjacka Dragga Buffet, a catering-type restaurant on Lake Kozjak ideal to recharge your batteries while completing your adventure.
As you can see, the Plitvice Lakes Natural Park is an ideal paradise in itself to visit during a trip to beautiful Croatia. Either from Dubrovnik, Zagreb or Zadar, or opting for two days lost in the middle of nature, visiting one of the most beautiful natural places in Europe deserves your full attention so that the adventure is perfect.
Would you like to visit the Plitvice Lakes National Park?