2 days in the Plitvice Lakes National Park, Croatia
Updated: Jan 23, 2020
To get to the Croatian National Park, The Boyfriend and I took a local bus from Rijeka bus station (Stand 1), changed at Karlovac, and then travelled on to Entrance 1 of the Plitvice Lakes. You can buy the tickets online but you have to pay the luggage hold fee separately: 7-10 kuna, depending on the driver.
We set off early the following morning to the see the park, arriving at just after 7am. By 8am, there was a queue for the ticket office and big tour coaches were depositing their loads by the dozens.
Because of how early we were, we managed to enjoy the views and wooden walkways pretty much on our ownsome. We paid for a two-day ticket (350 kuna) which, in hindsight, was a day too much, unless you're a serious photographer. We chose Route C which encompassed both the upper and lower lakes; this took us around 4 hours, including the chilly boat ride across the big lake and the bendy bus back to the start.
There is only one place to eat dinner around Entrance 1 if you are without a car: Licka Kuca. The food consisted of platefuls of grilled meats and potatoes, bread and homemade cheese served with live music. It's pretty reasonably priced given its monopoly of the area.
We took the 8.15am bus from Entrance 1 to Bihac in Bosnia. It would seem that only busradar.com actually sells the €3 tickets to Bihac! Departure is from Licko Petrovo Selo with the Autopromet Slunj bus cmpany. Wait by the bus stop on the same side as Entrance 1.