Plitvice Lakes is probably one of the most recognizable places in Croatia. 16 karst lakes with a beautiful color, connected by a cascading, form a whole bunch of picturesque waterfalls – it has to be a fairytale view. Thinking little, we planned the route so we’ll be able to stop at Plitvice Lakes. Now we know that it is worthwhile to prepare yourself better than we do for sightseeing. In order not to make the same mistakes, please read our guide – Plitvice Lakes – what route to choose, how to explore, how much do the tickets cost?
Plitvice Lakes – what route to choose, how to explore?
To Plitvice Lakes lead two entrances. Depending on which one you choose, quite a lot depends on it. Before you choose, it is worth considering how much time you have for sightseeing, because the routes in the Plitvice Lakes start from about 4 kilometers until even 19. If you have little time, it is best to choose, in our opinion, entrance number 2, of course, because we start from the middle of the trail and we think that sightseeing this part of the park is much more intense. Not physically, but emotionally.
Entrance No. 1 – Rastovača
Here we start from the very beginning of the trail, which leads us to the famous waterfall – Veliki Slap and then we have to choose from 4 different routes. A big advantage is a large parking lot in front of the entrance, where there is always a place to park.
Route A TIME: 2-3h Length: 3.5 km
Route B TIME: 3-4h Length: 4 km
Route C TIME: 4-6h Length: 8 km
Route K TIME: 6-8h Length: 18.3 km
Entrance No. 2 – Hladovina
As we mentioned before, this is quite a cool option if you want to see a lot in a short time, because the tour starts from the middle of the trail. We have there waterfalls, boats, footbridges, small and large lakes. We were lucky that while standing in front of a sign and wondering which route to choose, we met a nice gentleman, who definitely recommended route E. And we also recommend this route if you don’t have all day to spend it on the Plitvice Lakes.
Route E TIME: 2-3h Length: 5.2 km
Route F TIME: 3-4h Length: 8.9 km
Route H TIME: 4-6h Length: 9.8 km
Route K TIME: 6-8h Length: 18.3 km
Plitvice Lakes – how much do tickets cost?
The biggest downside, in our opinion, is the fact that we cannot buy tickets online beforehand. Pre-sale takes place only on the spot, which in the summer causes gigantic queues to the cash register. UPDATE! From May 2019 vouchers for tickets can be bought online at this address. The Park authorities have also introduced daily limits for visitors, so it is not worth counting on luck. The purchase of vouchers is blocked when the limit of visitors is reached. Vouchers can be exchanged for tickets on the spot, 30 minutes before the planned trip. You can check the number of available tickets at this address. There are two types of tickets: one-day and two-day. These two-day tickets are not very attractive in terms of price, and one day is enough to walk the longest routes. Remember not to throw away the ticket – thanks to it we can freely use ships and buses, which often save tired legs. Also, the toilets throughout the park are free with a ticket.
Ticket prices for 1-day tickets – valid for 2019.
01.11 - 31.12 | 01.10 - 31.10 | ||
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| Adult | Po godzinie 16:00 150 HRK |
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| Student | Po godzinie 16:00 100 HRK |
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| Children 7-18 years old | Po godzinie 16:00 50 HRK |
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| Children up to 7 years old |
01.11 - 31.12 | 01.10 - 31.10 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Adult | Po godzinie 16:00 150 HRK |
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| Student | Po godzinie 16:00 100 HRK |
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| Children 7-18 years old | Po godzinie 16:00 50 HRK |
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| Children up to 7 years old |
Ticket prices for 2-day tickets – valid for 2019.
01.11 - 31.12 | 01.10 - 31.10 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Adult | |||
| Student | |||
| Children 7-18 years old | |||
| Children up to 7 years old |
01.11 - 31.12 | 01.10 - 31.10 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Adult | |||
| Student | |||
| Children 7-18 years old | |||
| Children up to 7 years old |
Plitvice Lakes – what else is worth knowing?
- The park is open until 8 p.m. and the car park is open until 10 p.m. The opening hours of the park can change depending mainly on the season.
- Swimming, walking outside of the footpaths and climbing is strictly forbidden in the park.
- The park is animal-friendly, you can take your pet with you.
- Buses and boats run every 30 minutes. Depending on the length of the line, between 7:00 AM / 8:30 AM up to 7:00 PM / 8:30 PM.
- Taking something to eat and drink with you is a very sensible decision. Shops are at the entrances and at a single point in the park.
- Prices in the shops next to the checkouts are quite exorbitant, remember to buy yourself some water and snacks in advance. We didn’t dine at Plitvice Lakes, but our friends advise against it, so it’s better to listen and drive a bit further for lunch or dinner.
- Advice for motorcyclists and more – taking comfortable shoes for a change is a very wise decision! Longer sightseeing tours, at Croatian temperatures, can be very unpleasant. The best option is to change your outfit at all. We changed our clothes in the parking lot and left our clothes next to motorcycles. Nothing was stolen to anyone. Overall Croatia seemed to us very safe and without much concern, we left our things behind, but maybe we were lucky.
- It’s also worth taking something for your head – a cap, a hat, a scarf. The Croatian sun can warm us up quite a bit.
- Some hotels in the Plitvice Lakes area refund the cost of entrance fees to the park. It’s good to consider a night next to Plitvice Lakes, visiting the park with the whole family we can save a lot of money.
- We have written about this before, but the information is quite important, so we will repeat it – do not throw away the tickets – they entitle you to use ferries and buses in the park.
- It is worth getting up in the morning, in the early morning, to avoid unnecessary queueing in front of the ticket offices and later squeezing each other on footbridges.
- Give up sightseeing during Sundays, holidays, May and all Polish public holidays. Why? Read below.
Are you looking for a place to stay near Plitvice Lakes?
We would be pleased if you could use our referral link to BOOKING.COM. You will appreciate the time we spend on running our blog and help us to expand it further. Below you will also find our suggestions for accommodation near Plitvice Lakes.
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Plitvice Lakes – what route to choose, how to explore? Is it worth it?
The very fact that the Plitvice Lakes were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List testifies to their beauty and uniqueness on a global scale. However, as in the case of other beautiful places, the more beautiful and well-known the more tourists visit them every year. Either we had terribly bad luck, or it only bothers us, because, among all the enthusiasm about the Plitvice Lakes, nobody mentioned the MASS of people, which effectively discourages and overshadows the beauty of the place. We were standing in line at the box office, we were standing in line at the boat, we were standing in line behind the boat, we were standing in line at the footbridges because someone is just taking a picture. Don’t you believe it? In the end, we took a photo that perfectly shows how we felt and how it looked (to be fair, we have to admit that the later as time passed, the number of people diminished). Answering the question, is it worth it? Maybe at a different time, at a different price, but in us, the Plitvice Lakes, which were supposed to be a miracle of nature, left us with great dissatisfaction. Perhaps one day we will give them another chance.
A bunch of useful links at the end
- By motorbike to the moon? It is possible only in Croatia!
- Motorcycle challenge and test of your technical driving skills? Read about Sveti Jure.
- An old Croatian saying says: “May you die on the roads of Hvar”. For us, it was not a malediction, but a promise of a great adventure! Check out our post about Hvar here!
- We have also developed a 10-day tour of Croatia. Have a look here, it might inspire you.
- The most beautiful Croatian routes? You can find our TOP5 here.
