It was 5am start out of Zagreb driving my hire car, a Mercedes C class 220! (no I hadn’t booked it, but got upgraded, woo hoo). Very comfortable, I could get used to it….:). Freeways have a speed limit of 130kms but I was the slowest in the right hand lane with others zapping past me at a breakneck pace. Some 10 or so bikies past and pulled in too sharply in front, causing my Merc to automatically brake severely, causing a seat belt ouchy! I’ll have to be on the lookout for those who don’t leave enough room pulling in front. GRRRR.

Anyway…on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 1979, Plitvice is a breathtaking park featuring 16 terraced lakes, cascading waterfalls and lush forests. With 1.3 million visitors a year, I booked the earliest ticket (7am entrance) to avoid as much as possible the busloads that would be descending on the day. 🙂

There are 7 walking routes split between the upper and lower lakes, graded in terms of difficulty, the longest walk being 8 hrs. And 2 entrances to the park. I went for entrance 1, the closest to Veliki Slap, the Great Waterfall @ 78 metres. Quite the sight as you get to the lookout platform viewing downwards into the valley and then across the valley floor to the waterfall in the distance. There’s a series of stairs, boardwalks and boats that take you around the incredible visual experience. NO DRONES though.

And I researched that if you drive to a village called Plitvice Selo, and walk 500m in from the road, you get to a slightly different viewpoint over the lower lake.

I feel very lucky to have experienced just a tiny bit of that fabulous landscape! Off to Zadar on the Dalmatian coast.