Plitvice or Krka? Or both?

During our three week long road-trip last summer, we absolutely had to make time for Croatia’s most famous national parks. We were not disappointed.

Plitvice National Park

Our first stop was Plitvice, Croatia’s most famous park. We arrived after exploring some of Croatia’s shoreline exhausted and after dark. We had booked a quaint room in a home-stay called House Marco. It was an easy walk from entrance #1 and included parking. We were able to book our home-stay on Airbnb, which made it very easy for us. If you are looking for more luxury accommodations, there are a few hotels nearby. We, however, were not planning on staying for very long, so Marco’s place was perfect.

We woke up about an hour before the park opened and grabbed a simple self-serve breakfast of meats, cheese, eggs, and bread at the home-stay across the street. Even half an hour before the park opened, a crowd had gathered for tickets, so Sean’s desire to get their before the crowds was futile. Admission is about $25 at the time of writing this post if you go in June (mid-season). If you have a student ID, bring it— prices for students are only half that amount!

Some Background

The most famous pictures of Plitvice are all shot from an overlook very close to the main entrance. We didn’t get to it until the end, so there are already throngs of people on the walkway! If you are hoping to explore the park in solace, try going during an off-season. Otherwise, you’ll likely be disappointed.

Plitvice has an sad and bloody history. It was the sight of the first gunfire in Croatia’s War of Independence from Serbia in a conflict known as Bloody Easter (1991).

Today, Plitvice is back up and running for tourists, but because of heavy tourist traffic, there are some strict rules. Plitvice’s ecosystem is very fragile and has recently come under duress. Tourists are asked to stay on one of a myriad of paths tailored to different people’s physical condition and time constraints. You can find some more information here.

Choices, Choices…

There are a number of different path choices, each labeled with a letter. We chose path E, which took us about 2.5 hours. It included many pathways through waterfalls, a short boat ride, and a scenic train ride at the end. Altogether, the walking distance was a little over 3 miles.

I think this was the perfect amount of time to see much of what the park has to offer. If you love waterfalls, you will be in heaven. The aqua blue and crystal clarity of the water is absolutely unreal.

However, the crowded aspect of the park made it less than enjoyable at times. There were a lot of people stopping suddenly in the middle of narrow pathways to take long, extended shots with expensive cameras, which was frustrating. If you want to enjoy the majesty of your surroundings in serenity, be warned that this is nearly impossible. By the end of the walk, Sean’s crowd-driven-anxiety was somewhere around boiling.

That said, if you get a chance to travel here, it’s still a must. Despite the throngs of people, I still felt immersed in a natural fairyland, complete with dragonflies, birdsong, and pristine lakes. I applaud the managers and staff at Plitvice for maintaining such a beautiful park.

Krka National Park

After a scenic train ride back to the entrance, it was time to head towards Plitvice’s lesser known sister, Krka. We hoped that Krka would be able to deliver something that Plitvice, despite its natural beauty, could not: peace and serenity.

For the most part, we were not disappointed.

Finally, a Little Fjaka

We decided to book an airbnb in the small town of Šibenik. It was right next to the park and, in fact, we were even able to take a short walk to a close by viewpoint. Our little airbnb was not easy to get to considering the fact that the directions were not in English and the road we were situated on was not well marked. However, once we got there, we absolutely fell in love! Away from the crowds, we were finally able to relax.

Fjarka is the Dalmatian concept of a relaxed state of mind and body. For the rest of the afternoon, we decided we’d give the to give it a go. For the afternoon, we spent our time ambling around the property and enjoying long meals at the close-by restaurant our host recommended called Konoba Vinko and drinking a bottle of delicious Croatian wine.

Krka National Park is a more expansive park than Plitvice with more sections to explore. A car was very helpful to help us really get the most out of our experience. After a relaxing evening, we were ready to explore every inch of Krka.

Skradinski Buk

We got up early to have the park to ourselves, and we were in line to get the first tickets (click here for prices) at the entrance in Šibenik. Instead of waiting for the bus to load, we elected to hike up the road, which cut across to a hiking trail and led to the beginning of the walkway to Skradinski Buk. If you’d rather not, the bus comes free with your admission.

While Skradinski Buk is the main attraction, there are a plethora of vantage points along the path from which to take pictures of the many waterfalls and mills.

Usually, the pictures you see of the waterfall has throngs of people bathing and splashing around. Since we were there so early in the morning, it was still pretty chilly and nobody was there yet. That didn’t stop Sean from taking a dip.

All-in-all, our little hike took maybe 90 minutes. As we were wrapping up, a bus full of tourists were being dropped off, which was perfect timing for us to hitch a ride back to the car (since your ticket comes with a free bus ride both ways).

Visovac Island & Monastery

Another well-known landmark in Krka is Visovac, the name of an island which is home to the Roman Catholic Visovac Monastery. The monastary itself dates back to the 14th Century, although it was rebuilt and renovated through the 1800s.

To get there, most people take a tour. We followed signs in our car, which led us to a very quaint dock in Remetic and a sign that stated that boats run every hour (see times here). The ride itself costs 50 kuna (about $8.00) and takes only 5 minutes. Be prepared to pay in cash.

Visovac Island itself is very small, and the monastery takes only a few minutes to tour. I walked around for a few minutes, then joined Sean to drink a beer while we waited for our boat to head back. This was not the most interesting part of Krka we visited, but it was still a pretty ride.

Roski Slap and Dining Al Waterfall

Our final destination was to check out Roski Slap. Our adventure took us to a small parking lot next to a mill and a series of waterfalls leading to the lake.

One restaurant offered up picnic tables right in the waterfall itself, so you could lunch while dipping your feet in the waterfall. This was an experience we couldn’t pass up!

A word to the wise: if you take your phone out to take a picture, don’t leave your purse on the edge of the table. While taking the following picture, I saw my purse begin to tilt in the corner of my eye. Before I could react to stop it, my purse had fallen into the water and was being sucked away— passport, money, kindle, and all!

Sean, not having seen what transpired, could not understand my incomprehensible cries for help. “It’s gone, it’s gone!” is all I could say while staring into the stream of water that had sucked down everything I needed to travel. Barefoot, I ran down the stairs, following the waterfall and peering helplessly into the raging water.

The falls ends in a lake, which is where I found my purse a few minutes later. I breathed a sigh of relief when I found my passport still zippered into the inside compartment and my money and credit cards attached to the coin purse. Everything else — kindle, external battery, sunscreen— was missing. (You can find the exact bag that was kind enough to take care of my travel necessities here; it is made by Baggelini.)

Croatian Hospitality

Relieved and victorious, I walked back to our table, purse in hand. Patrons, having at that point figured out what had happened, began clapping. Sean had found the owner, Bruno, who was in the midst of putting on wading boots.

“You found it!” he exclaimed. “Everything?”
“Pretty much!” I answered. “I’m feeling pretty lucky to be just missing a Kindle.”
“A Kindle? Like an iPad?,” he asked. I answered that they were similar, and before I knew it, Bruno was off to find my waterlogged Kindle.

I tried to explain that the Kindle was no big loss and was almost definitely worthless at that point, but Bruno’s wife explained that Bruno took great pride in finding lost items in the waterfall— this was something that Bruno apparently did on a regular basis! In sweatpants and boots, Bruno hopped from one section of the waterfall to another, searching the bottom for a waterlogged Kindle.

Sean even started looking for the Kindle, not wanting to be outdone. In the end, Bruno decided to take a break and let the Kindle turn up on its own. His wife insisted on getting my number, convinced that the Kindle would turn up and they would give me a call. We thanked them for their hospitality— which included some free shots to help fuel our search— and went back to the car.

The “Jewel” of Krka

Before we left, we took a walk upriver, where we found a set of staircases that led to some beautiful views of the river and waterfall below. It was a hot day, but the views at the top were worth it. Had we gone a little further, there’s also a set of caves to explore, but Sean hates caves, so we skipped them.

The cascades leading down to Roški Slap form a design in the water that locals call “the necklaces.” It was a great last view of a beautiful national park.

Tired and feeling pretty lucky that our next few days wouldn’t be spent at a U.S. embassy, we hopped back into the car, ready for our next destination.