The Plitvice Lakes are the oldest and largest national park in Croatia and are famous for their beautiful waterfalls, crystal-clear lakes and lush vegetation. Accordingly, it can get very crowded here. You can find out whether (and how) a visit is still worthwhile in this blog post.
Get up early and book your ticket online
The early morning hours are your best chance to experience the magic of this natural wonder.
We had booked our ticket online the day before and were in the park at first admission at eight in the morning. There were other visitors there, but after we left the falls behind us, we were able to walk alone along the turquoise water. Pink cyclamens bloomed along the path and added a lovely splash of colour to the turquoise of the water and the green of the trees. The falls are spectacular, you walk over lovingly constructed wooden walkways that are supposedly made of chestnut wood. It is a wonderful experience to walk over the crystal clear water while the falls plunge into another pool right next to you, separated by the famous sinter barriers.
Click on the first image to start the photo gallery:
time slots for visitors
These wooden walkways become a bottleneck when the rush of visitors is at its highest. Tourists crowd the walkways like in a subway station. The park has around a million visitors a year, which it tries to control with time slots, but at three in the afternoon we found it unbearable: people are queuing up on the walkways. The magic can quickly fall by the wayside.
The banks that do not lead directly to the major attractions are still easy to walk on. Here you can still find peace and quiet even in high season.
The ticket prices vary depending on the season. While in winter you pay just ten euros per day, in high season it is a whopping 40 euros! On top of that there is a hefty parking fee of two euros per hour. For two people in high summer it can easily add up to 90 euros.
hiking trails through the park
There are four excellent hiking trails from each entrance. Here is the link to the longest hike K on Outdooractive , where you can also find the GPS data (also for the shorter tours ).
You can find the park map with all other hiking trails here . There are electric boats and panoramic carriages in the park. You can use these for free with your valid entrance ticket. When we were there in midsummer, however, the queue was very long.
By the way, swimming in the lakes is strictly forbidden.
What makes Plitvice Lakes so famous?
Plitvice Lakes National Park is located in the hilly karst region of central Croatia, not far from the border with Bosnia-Herzegovina, and has been on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 1979. The park covers an area of more than 300 square kilometers. It is known for its cascading lakes, of which around 16 are currently visible on the surface. Others are underground. These lakes were formed by the confluence of several small rivers and by underground karst tributaries. The lakes, arranged along the flow direction, are separated from one another by natural barriers made of particularly unstable travertine (porous limestone). These are formed by the interaction of flowing water, air and vegetation.
The different climatic influences and the large differences in altitude within the national park result in a particularly diverse flora and fauna. Many endemic animal and plant species can be found in the protected area.
The photogenic park has often been a film location
The commercialization and tourist hype in Slovenia and Croatia are, to be honest, a bit off-putting. We set off for Una in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
I'll reveal whether we liked it better and my tips in another blog post - stay tuned!
info
You can find out everything about the national park on this page .
You can find more blog posts about my travels in the Balkans here.
Day tickets cost up to €40 per person in high season. They are cheaper in low season.
My tip: If you plan to visit the lakes in high season, be sure to book your ticket online in advance . Choose the earliest time slot and be there on time so that you can at least enjoy the lakes in peace for a short time.
The entrance fee does not include parking fees. In high season, these amount to two euros per hour for cars.
There are several campsites around the lakes. We slept at the Korana campsite , which is huge and you can park anywhere on the grass. In high season it wasn't overcrowded and the sanitary facilities were clean. You can also rent bungalows here.