Discover Plitvice

First impressions of Plitvice

Plitvice Lakes (Plitvička jezera) is one of those landscapes that genuinely earns its UNESCO listing. Sixteen turquoise and emerald lakes, separated by porous travertine barriers that the water is actively building in real time at about 1 cm per year, cascade down a forested limestone canyon for around 8 kilometres, connected by a famous network of wooden boardwalks and footbridges that put you right on top of the water. The upper section centres on the largest lake, Kozjak (4 km long), reached by an electric boat that's included in the entrance ticket; the lower lakes end at the spectacular Veliki Slap, Croatia's highest waterfall at 78 metres. Allow at least 5 hours to walk the full circuit; the well-marked H, K, and C routes range from a 2-hour stroll to a 6-hour serious hike. The park is staggeringly busy mid-July to mid-August (book entry tickets in advance and arrive at opening) but feels almost private in October when the beech forests turn copper, or January when the falls partly freeze. Brown bears, wolves, and lynxes still live in the surrounding forests; you almost certainly won't see them, but the park's bear sanctuary in nearby Kuterevo is a moving side trip.