The Plitvice Lakes National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the oldest and largest National Parks in Croatia.
Founded in 1949, the park is in the mountainous Karst area of Central Croatia. The total protected area is about 297 square kilometers.
The Park
The Lakes in the park are arranged in cascades. You can see sixteen lakes from the surface. They are all interconnected and follow the water flow. Several small rivers and the Subterranean Karst rivers confluence and form the lakes in the park.
There are 12 Upper Lakes and 4 Lower Lakes and are separated by runoff from the mountains and are renowned for their distinctive colours. The colours range from azure to green, grey or blue. Depending upon the quantity of minerals and organisms in the water, the colours change constantly.
It is in a forest reserve area with lakes, waterfalls, caves and limestone canyons. Currently it is under threat from the Selfie-Taking tourists. In the peak season up to 15000 people visit the Park.
How to reach
The lakes have formed in a depression between Mala Kapela mountain in the west and the Pljesevica mountain in the east amidst the Dinaric Apls. The National Park is located at the National Route D2 Zagreb-Split between Slunj and Korenica near Bosnia and Herzegovina. You can reach there by road – driving or by bus from other parts of Croatia. There are no Airports close to the Plitvice Lakes. But you may fly to Zagreb or Zadar Airports and then go by road. There are tour operators and you could contact them and arrange your trip.
Read more about transport here
