Plitvice Lakes: photo, how to get there, opening hours, routes, ticket price 2021

The issue of the ecology of our planet, suffering from the results of aggressive human progress, affects almost everyone these days. Only an attentive and careful attitude to the corners of pristine nature, in which our smaller brothers live, can allow a person to feel like a part of the ecosystem for a longer time. Today, each country strives to preserve and increase its territories, where nature still occupies a dominant place in front of man. There are many national parks and reserves, and each is unique in its own way. One of them is in Croatia.

Story

The first written legend about the Plitvice Lakes was recorded at the end of the 18th century. About this place, as about mysterious, impassable places of inexpressible beauty, the priest from Otočac Dominikan Vukasovich told. Ancient legends ascribed to these lakes and the forest surrounding them a bad reputation. Not without reason, on the maps of the 17th – 18th centuries, this area was called the Devil's Garden. Today, historians have managed to explain the attitude of the ancestors to the impenetrable forest, as to a disastrous place.

Hidden in the heart of the Dinaric Highlands, the lakes have been a “bone of contention” for neighboring rulers for many centuries. Hungarians, Austrians, and Turks fought for these territories. At the end of the 17th century, the border of the Austrian Empire was fixed here, and the territories where the national park is located today became a cordon from Ottoman raids. Defending their land, many soldiers and civilians laid down their lives or disappeared without a trace in the impenetrable forests.

The end of the last century in these places was also marked by vague, bloody events. During the Yugoslav conflict, the Serbs formed the basis of the population here, and along the Plitvice Lakes there was a road between Serb communities. In a sparsely populated area, control of the “lifeline” was important to both belligerents. The spring of 1991 entered the history of the country as the beginning of the Yugoslav war, and March 31 of this year is now called the Plitvice Bloody Easter. And again, the Dinaric Highlands became a real arena of hostilities.

Park today

The trouble has passed. At present, the territory of the park has been cleared of mines, and the entire infrastructure has been completely restored. The national park, which received its status in 1949 and was taken under the wing of UNESCO in 1979, is again visited by thousands of tourists today.

Nature for this place is not stingy with fantasy and magic. The mountainous terrain allowed 16 lakes to form cascades of flowing crystal water, spreading the music of waterfalls around the area and creating clouds of wet cape. The nearby mountains are donors, constantly replenishing water supplies in unique lakes. And limestone rocks with ever-moving water help the sculptor-nature to sculpt intricate caves and backwaters. The color of the water will amaze even any skeptic: blue, green, dark blue. You will never guess what palette of the water surface will open to your eyes when you approach the next body of water.

Legend

An ancient legend, probably dating back to the times of paganism, tells that once these places suffered from a severe drought. The locals turned to the Black Queen, the evil mistress of the area, for help. She decided to do a good deed and began to ask the Gods for mercy for her land. The gods drove black clouds to the mountains, and a heavy downpour broke out, filling the stone bowls with divine water.

What can be seen in the park

Seeing the panorama of the national park, which opens from the observation platforms, any legends seem to be a reality. The Croats themselves call Plitvice Lakes their “Wonder of the World“. And for good reason. This is the only place in Europe where relict forests are still green and new waterfalls are born every year. There are “miniature Niagaras”, and nooks reminiscent of Japanese gardens, and a dense carpet of moss, which plays, surprisingly, a special role in shaping the landscape.

Visiting Rules

Plitvice covers an area of ​​about 30,000 hectares. Most of the park is reserved for the protected area, where tourists are not allowed to enter, and a third of the park is given for hiking trails for visitors. The territory of the walking zone of the reserve is well organized. Firstly, there are several entrances that allow you to start your walk from different parts of the world. Secondly, all paths allowed for passage are dressed in wooden platforms. Thirdly, before entering the protected area, everyone will be offered a map showing the routes and the schedule of the ferry (electric pleasure boat) plying the large lake. And finally, for the convenience of tourists and the opportunity to cover most of the park with their attention, a tourist bus (ecomobile) moves parallel to the main routes. Therefore, having walked along one of the routes on foot, the way back will be easier,

Tourist route

For adventure lovers, a special route has been laid among the Plitvice Lakes. Medvezhak (Medvjeak) – a mountain range that includes three peaks, each of which is about 800 meters high, attracts hardy daredevils. The ascent to the peaks can be carried out along two paths, and the time to spend is about 3 hours. The further you move away from the main tourist routes of the park, the more you feel that nature is the mistress here. Therefore, tourists always advance on distant routes accompanied by guides.

Visitors should not forget that Plitvice Lakes is a protected area. The bans apply to almost everything that one would expect from a tourist. You can't swim and even just enter the water, make fires, litter and walk through the wild forest, feed their inhabitants in the lakes. Here you can only walk, look and breathe. Believe me, this will be enough for you. Every step, every turn of the head lead to amazement from the surrounding “interior”.

When the sun begins to go down, the owners of these places become wild animals, whose peace in the daytime is partly disturbed by tourists. Among the silence, you can hear the flapping of the wings of a stork, and the hooting of owls. The legends about the owner of these places, the bear, give a special flavor to the stories of the guides. There is a belief that the existence of lakes is predetermined as long as bears live here. Brown giants really feel peace and security here. But they are in charge in remote areas of the reserve, and only brave biologists and ecologists, who go deep into the territory of impassable mountain slopes, have met with them. The fauna of Plitvice is very rich in the population of wolves, foxes, deer, wild boars, a variety of bird species and bats. The real indigenous people of these places.

Park opening hours

Tourist routes are only a small part of the park. Most of it is a protected “country”, which is open only to the initiated: rangers and biologists.

The national park is open to visitors all year round:

Best time to visit

The reserve is covered with snow from December to February. Especially a lot of snow falls in January days. At this time of the year, of course, there are not as many visitors as in summer. But the rumor about the fabulous winter landscapes of Plitvice Lakes has already spread around the world, and many tourists these days choose Croatia for their winter holidays.

Walking through the national park in winter is not only a journey through the winter forest. These are amazing pictures of a sleeping snow-white forest wrapped in a snow blanket, waterfalls bound by an ice shell and the air ringing from silence. In winter, a ski track is laid along the route paths. Not far from the park, in Mukinje, there is a winter mini-resort for skiers. It is an ideal place for family vacations and unattractive for thrill-seekers. The slope of the mountain here is relatively gentle, so the 500-meter long trail is perfect for beginners and for teaching children the basics of skiing.

During the warm seasons, the weather in these places is very changeable. The reason for this is the location of the park. It is located just on the border of climatic zones: continental and coastal. Therefore, the winds constantly bring moist air here from the sea. In one day, the weather can change several times: from heavy rain to rainbow sunshine.

Experienced tourists, when planning their route to where the vagaries of the weather are unpredictable, be sure to take raincoats and umbrellas with them. Since the mountains can always unexpectedly gather clouds around them, this advice is also relevant for walking in the Plitvice Lakes region.

Ticket price

Entrance to the park is paid, although you will not see any checkpoints or fences here. Rather, it is material assistance for the development of the protected zone, rather than the opportunity to get there only for money. The amount of such “help” varies from season to season: from 80 kunas in winter to 110 kunas from spring to autumn. For guests of nearby hotels and guest houses, there are one-time perpetual tickets that will only require a change in the date of visit by the hotel administrator. Free access to the park is allowed for children under 7 years of age, visitors from 7 to 18 years old, students and tourist groups have various discounts.

To accommodate visitors who arrived in Plitvice overnight or for several days, many small hotels (3 and 2) and two campsites, private houses and boarding houses are open on the territory of the park itself and its surroundings, mainly aimed at budget tourists.

There are many more unique lakes in the world. Be sure to take your time and read the article about Lake Nakuru in Kenya, where you can see a million pink flamingos. The picture is simply indescribable.

How to get there

The Plitvice Lakes Nature Reserve is located along the D1 highway connecting the capital of Croatia, Zagreb, with the city of Zadar (then it goes to South Dalmatia, to the cities of Split and Dubrovnik). The highway itself passes near two entrances to the park, where paid parking lots for cars and tourist buses are equipped. The road is not close: both from Zagreb and Zadar, the distance is about 200 km. But the quality of the road is good, there are no traffic jams, so this distance will not seem tiring. Of course, a more comfortable trip is independent, by car, when you can make a stop if necessary, and leave at a convenient time for you. But the movement of public transport in this direction is well organized.

There are many regular buses from Zagreb in this direction, but the fastest way is the Croatian Croatia Bus, which departs from the city bus station and makes the fewest stops. The cost of a ticket to Plitvice varies from $16 to $20. There are fewer regular buses from Zadar, their schedule varies depending on the time of year, and the travel time and distance to the stop you need will be a little less than from the capital.

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