When I booked my trip to Croatia, I knew that a visit to Plitvice Lakes would be one of the highlights of my trip. For years I had dreamed of going there, to see with my own eyes what is probably one of the most beautiful places in Croatia.

The Plitvice Lakes are part of the Plitvice Lakes National Park, which has an area of about 300 km2. The Park has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979 and is mainly divided into two parts: the upper lakes and the lower lakes, totalling 16 lakes.

Most people choose to visit the Plitvice Lakes in just one day (as I did!). One day allows you to see the main points of interest without having to rush around 😊

However, if you really want to enjoy it even more calmly, I suggest spending a night inside the park (or in the various accommodations available nearby). This way, you can let yourself be enchanted a bit longer by the beautiful landscapes of the Plitvice Lakes National Park.

However, the only real recommendation is this: you should at least try spending one full day in the park. Spending half a day or less at the park will seem like nothing.

The park is open all year round. However, the weather conditions vary widely throughout the year so that the experience of visiting the Plitivice Lakes will be very different depending on the various seasons.

If summers are known to be hot and less likely to rain, on the other hand the number of visitors is much higher and so is the ticket price. In winter, don’t be surprised to find many parts of the park covered in snow.

Every season brings a different kind of beauty to the Plitivice Lakes, that’s for sure! However, if I had to recommend a time to visit the Plitivice Lakes I would suggest May, June, September and October. These months are less crowded and in May and October, you’ll also be able to save on the ticket price 😉

In Croatia, roadtrips are very common and thus many people travel by car to the Plitvice Lakes. The Lakes are not too far away from some of the main Croatian cities: Zadar (1h30), Šibenik (1h50), Zagreb (2h), Rijeka (2h) or Split (2h30).

Alternatively, given the popularity of the Plitvice Lakes, there are also several bus connections from some of the major cities in Croatia such as:

• Zagreb (the trip takes between 1h45 and 2h50): Flixbus, Autobusni Promet
• Zadar (trip lasts about 2h): Croatia Bus, Prijevoz Knežević
• Split (trip lasts about 3h30): Prijevoz Knežević

There are several timetables available, so you can choose the one that interests you most 😊

💡 EXTRA TIP: Most buses stop at both entrances of the park! However, I recommend that you confirm before booking your trip whether the two stops actually exist!

There are several accommodations near the Plitvice Lakes and even inside the park itself! However, I will tell you about the accommodation where I stayed at – Camping Plitvice.

Although it is a campsite with space for caravans and even for those who travel only with a tent, Camping Plitvice has other options available, such as their mobile homes. And that’s exactly where I stayed 😊

The mobile homes are very comfortable and can accommodate up to 6 people. They have two bedrooms, two bathrooms and, if you wish, there is a third removable bed that can accommodate two additional people. The houses also have a very pleasant outdoor space for sunnier days and a fully equipped kitchen.

In terms of the common areas, there are several places worth mentioning:

• Restaurant
• Pool
• Children’s playground
• Sports field (including crossfit)
• Barbecue area
• Changing rooms

Regarding the restaurant, besides the normal meal service during the day, you can also choose to include breakfast in your room rate. We tried this option and found the service very complete and with quality products! In addition, the service at reception was exceptional 🥰

Finally, one of the most important parts when it comes to choosing accommodation when visiting the Plitvice Lakes is its location. And Camping Plitvice is merely a 7-minute drive from entrance 1 and 9 minutes from entrance 2! For those who intend to visit the Plitvice Lakes early morning, this is an excellent option.

In order to preserve the space and given the high number of people visiting the Plitvice Lakes, there is a restricted number of visits per day (although there is a large number of visitors accepted daily!). Therefore, and especially in high season, I strongly recommend buying the ticket in advance directly on the Plitivice Lakes website. Tickets can be purchased up to the day before the visit.

The price to visit the Plitvice Lakes is significantly different depending on the time of year. I recommend you check the most up-to-date price list, but as of June 2022, these were the prices for a daily adult ticket:

• From January to March and from November to December: 80 kn (about 11€)
• From April to May and in October: 180 kn (about 24€)
• From June to September: 300 kn (about 40€)

It may seem like a high price in high season (and indeed it is!), but the park is truly amazing and this price already includes the use of the shuttle and the boat crossing inside the park.

💡 EXTRA TIP: From June to September, there is a slightly cheaper option (around 200 kn), but it involves entering the park only from 4 pm (or from 3 pm in September). Considering that the price difference is not that significant and that you would be limiting the time of your visit quite a bit, I would not recommend this option.

There is also the possibility to buy a two-day ticket, and the price for the second day is much cheaper 😉 By the way, if you stay in some of the accommodations inside the park (for example, the Hotel Jezero or the Hotel Plitvice), the 2nd day entrance fee is offered.

The operating period of the Plitvice Lakes Park is quite large. In high season, the park opens at 7am and closes at 8pm. However, during  other times of the year, it tends to open later and close earlier. To be safe, I strongly recommend you check the most up-to-date park opening times here.

Since there are no alternatives, the car parks next to each of the park entrances are paid (and very pricey!). Prices also vary depending on the time of year and these were the rates for cars in June 2022:

• April to May: 8 kn/hour (~1€)
• May to September: 10 kn/hour (~1,3€)
• October to November: 8 kn/hour (~1€)

Again, I recommend you check the most up-to-date information about the parking prices here.

💡 EXTRA TIP: In some cases, it may be worth staying in one of the accommodations inside the park in order to save the park fee. However, in my case, the price of the accommodations clearly would not compensate for a full day of parking. So assess well before deciding 😊

Since the Plitvice Lakes Park has two entrances available, the question often arises at which of the two entrances one should start the visit to the park.

Although there is not necessarily a correct answer I would recommend starting near entrance 1. Entrance 1 is closest to the Lower Lakes and the most famous waterfall in the park (Veliki waterfall). If you have limited time available to visit the Plitvice Lakes, this might be the best option.

Also, this way you will walk most of the time with the waterfalls in front of you and not the other way around, as happens in some parts of the trail if you start at entrance 2.

There are 8 trails available in the park: 4 start at entrance 1 (and are marked green) and another 4 start at entrance 2 (marked orange). Each of these trails has different durations and cover different parts of the park.

Ideally, you should read carefully the detail of each of the trails on the official Plitvice Lakes page. Anyway, I leave here a brief summary of the duration and distance of each of the trails:

• Program A (3,5 km; 2-3h)
• Program B (4 km; 3-4h)
• Program C (8km; 4-5h)
• Program E (5,1 km; 2-3h)
• Program F (4,6 km; 3-4h)
• Program H (8,9 km; 4-6h)
• Program K (18,3 km; 6-8h)

In my case, I opted for a combination of several trails so I could visit the Lower Lakes, the Upper Lakes, ride the boat and the shuttle, as well as enjoy incredible views over the lakes in some viewpoints already outside the “official” park area. And now I’ll explain you how to walk that trail 😊

I arrived in Plitvice at 9:00 a.m. and started the trail at the entrance 1. From there I followed all directions to the most majestic waterfall – Veliki Slap. Right at the start of the trail, you immediately have good opportunities to photograph the waterfall in all its splendour.

After the Veliki waterfall, I continued to follow the A/B/C/K trails (properly marked throughout the park). At one point we took a diversion to visit the Šupljara Cave. 

You only have to climb a few steps to visit this rather dark cave and at the top they have interesting views over the lakes!

After this short diversion, we continued towards Kozjak Lake until we found a bridge over the lake. There we turned left towards the panoramic bus station (look for signs indicating the station – ST1). We took the opportunity to rest a bit while waiting for the bus!

From there we continued to ST3 station (note that although it does not indicate ST1 station, the bus goes to ST3, stopping first at ST2). 

💡 EXTRA TIP: The panoramic bus connects 3 different points of the park (St1, St2 and St3) and runs every 30 minutes. I remind you that the trip is already included in the price of the ticket! You can check its working hours here.

When we got out at the ST3 station, we started looking for the signs indicating route H towards Lake Kozjak. Here we were already in the part of the Upper Lakes.

The walk to the lake is still a bit long, so somewhere along the way it can be a great idea to stop for lunch (if you bring a snack, of course!). It’s hard to find a restaurant with a more beautiful view than this 😉 There are a few benches along the way where you can sit and have lunch.

We then continued to the station, where we took the boat to pier P3. The ride is almost idyllic and you could barely hear the people on the boat despite it being full. It seemed like everyone was there simply enjoying the moment 🥰

Next to pier P3 they have one of the biggest restaurant areas, with several tables and chairs. We took the opportunity to have a coffee while we rested a bit more!

And now it was time to make a short diversions “outside the park” to go visit the best viewpoints of the Plitvice Lakes. With the pier in front of you, basically you have to walk left towards entrance 1.

You will come to a paved street and at some point there is a junction. Again, we turn left following the sign indicating “Selo Plitvica”. A few meters ahead, we reached a part of the road where cars pass and as soon as we saw an opening in the vegetation, we entered. 

The route through the vegetation runs parallel to the asphalt road and there are several viewpoints along the way. It is not very difficult to find them as you just have to follow the openings through the vegetation.

At the last viewpoint there are some steep stairs up to the Veliki waterfall. However, when I visited in June 2022, the stairs were closed, which meant we had to turn back and walk a significant part of the way back to entrance 1. Anyway, I recommend a walk through these viewpoints. In total we covered about 12 km and it was a very pleasant walk (difficulty level: easy).

• Water to ensure you stay hydrated
• Lunch and snacks (however, if you prefer, there are some cafés and bars at some points of the trail)
• Comfortable clothes and shoes
• Rainproof for rainy days
  Sunscreen (especially in summer)
• Backpack to store all the above, but also to collect any rubbish you produce (there are some bins along the way)

• Bad news for drone lovers: the whole park is a “no drone zone”! But don’t worry you can get equally spectacular views of the lakes from some viewpoints along the way
• It is totally forbidden to bathe in the lakes
• There are several toilets along the trail. These are usually located at points where there are also cafes and at the shuttle and/or boat stops
• Animals are welcome in the park 😊
• There is a luggage storage place near the entrance, in case you are travelling with bags and have nowhere to leave them
• The park is one of the most popular attractions in Croatia so the earlier you can get to the park, the better. Most of the paths are narrow and with people travelling in both directions, making it difficult to overtake at peak times.

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