How to visit Plitvice Lakes, Croatia

I had dreamed of visiting Plitvice Lakes in Croatia for years and years before I finally got to see it with my own eyes, and it did not disappoint. This beautiful area of cascading waterfalls and turquoise pools is one of Croatia’s top tourist attractions and an absolute must-see if you are in the region. An account of my trip there is below and I hope it helps you plan a trip to this beautiful place!

Getting There

We drove to Plitvice Lakes in a rental car we hired from Split Airport with Sixt car hire. The drive from Split Airport to Plitvice Lakes was two and a half hours and the roads were well maintained and very scenic. The Croatian countryside north of Split was dramatic and mountainous.

Along the way we stopped for a leg stretch in the lovely little town of Skradin, an hour north of Split. If you have extra time, Skradin makes a great extended or overnight stop along the way and provides access via a boat ride to Krka National Park. Krka National Park is a bit like a miniature version of Plitvice Lakes, but you are able to swim there, whereas you cannot swim at Plitvice Lakes.

Where to Stay

We arrived at the small town of Korenica in the late afternoon and checked in to Falling Lakes Hostel, which we had pre-booked online. The hostel was highly recommended online, in a good location, and felt clean and safe. The hostel had luggage storage, lockers, a shared kitchen and BBQ facilities, a terrace, free wifi, free parking and laundry services available for an additional charge.

As our stay was very short, we didn’t get a real feel for the hostel vibe. However, people rave online about the additional activities available at this hostel including organised hiking and kayaking trips. The hostel also offers shuttle transport to Plitvice Lakes and free evening activities.

The hostel is a 15-minute drive from the national park and a supermarket, and some dinner options are only a few minutes’ walk
from the hostel. Once we had checked in, we walked down the quiet road in the small village to a restaurant to have dinner.

Due to some heavy rains in the area over previous days, we read online that parts of the park may be closed as tracks required repair. The silver lining of this was that most of the park was anticipated to be open, and we knew the flows of water would be high with all the water coming through.

Visiting Plitvice Lakes

The following morning, we set off early to Plitvice Lakes, the oldest and largest national park in Croatia. In 1949, it was declared Croatia’s first national park and is also UNESCO heritage listed.

We had decided to start early as we had heard people recommend arriving early in the day or staying late to have more space to yourself. We also knew it was likely we would want to spend quite a few hours there.

The park opens at 8am and closes at 7pm, and the parking lots are open from 7am until 8pm. The park can be entered until 5pm. Based on recommendations online, we decided to enter from ‘Entrance 1’, which was at the Lower Lakes portion of the park. Starting at Entrance 1 would mean that we would walk ‘towards’ the waterfalls and also meant that we would see the most spectacular waterfalls first, before the park got too busy.

We found a spot to park in the very extensive parking area and headed to the park entrance. Parking at Entrance 1 was 7 kuna an hour or 70 kuna a day. Small change is required to pay for parking.

There was a queue to enter the park, even early in the day. There was also a cafe to buy snacks. You can bring a picnic into the park or buy food from food stations, but these are sparse and not always manned. The largest and best picnic spot in the park is above the Upper Lakes. There are also not many toilets in the park, so it’s good to take the opportunity to use them at the entrance.

Entry to the park can be purchased as a one or two day ticket. Having visited the park, I would say that a 1 day ticket is adequate for most visitors. I would only recommend a 2 day ticket either if:

• You are an avid photographer and want to spend a long time getting shots in different weather conditions / without people so therefore want to spend two days in the park or the end of one day and the start of another.
• You have bad weather on the first day so want another chance to see the Park in better conditions.
• You only arrived at Plitvice Lakes in the late afternoon and will only have an hour or two to visit the park on day 1. You should give yourself at least four hours to visit the Park in total, so this may require you having time to go back the following day.

When we visited, we knew we had the whole day ahead of us, so just purchased one day tickets. Off we headed, cameras ready and feeling pumped, to go exploring. Almost straight away, we came across Postcard View Point. I was so happy to be in the presence of such awe-inspiring nature. I had been waiting years to set my eyes on this place.

We then descended down winding stairs towards the waterfalls and made our way onto the boardwalk we could see from Postcard Viewpoint. It was exciting to walk right over the waterfall, and as the rains had been so high, it was more like we were walking in the waterfall than above it!

Crossing this boardwalk also meant we got a great view of the highest waterfall in the Park, Veliki Slap, up close. It was breathtaking, especially with a rainbow forming along it’s base.

Plitvice Lakes National Park is not only filled with the most beautiful waterfalls but also the most gorgeous lakes, which are an amazing blue and reflect the surrounding scenery. Walking amongst these pools feels like walking in a dream. You really get to feel as though you are in the nature, not only observing it, despite the fact you aren’t allowed to swim (in order to keep the park’s waters clean).

Sometimes I feel like carrying my DSLR camera on holiday is not worth the inconvenience, but it was definitely worth having it Plitvice Lakes National Park! It was so much easier to take great photos of the cascading water with a camera I could adjust manually. If you have a good camera and enjoy taking pictures, this is the sort of place you want to have it.

Your ticket into the park includes a ride on an electronic boat between the Lower Lakes to Upper Lakes sections of the park. Once we were done in the Lower Lakes, we jumped on the boat and this provided us with a nice chance to rest our legs and chat with some other travellers.

We then explored the Upper Lakes portion of the Park. The Upper Lakes has shorter waterfalls than those in the Lower Lakes, but you get to get right up close to them and they are really wide, which makes for a totally different and wonderful experience, as shown below.

Parts of the Upper Lakes are also more densely vegetated and also feel a little more spread out, so we could enjoy more moments to ourselves.

Eventually, we reached a clearing surrounded by forest where people rest and picnic before getting on the panoramic train that joins the two entrances to the top of the Park. This grassy patch with sheltered huts is the best location in the park for a picnic.

The trail to the upper-most lake was closed when we visited due to track conditions, but we felt we had seen the best of the park and we weren’t disappointed to put our feel up on the train. The one-way ticket for the train is also included in your park entry ticket.

The train provided wonderful views back over the park, as shown below.

We finished our visit of Plitvice Lakes National Park and made our way to the car, ready to travel onwards to Lake Bled, Slovenia that evening. I had come with such high expectations for this destination, and I was still completely blown away by the natural beauty.

Other activities

If you’re staying in the region and have visited the lakes, there are a number of other activities in the area if you have the time or the desire. The hostel we stayed at offers a range of great tours, and options in the region include hiking, river kayaking, rafting and cycling. The colour of some of the rivers near here are amazing, and even though you can’t swim in the Plitvice Lakes, you can swim in other rivers nearby.

Have you visited Plitvice Lakes? Do you feel inspired to go there? I’d love to hear from you so we can share travel stories.