Waterfalls Waterfalls and more Waterfalls-Croatia Krka to Zagreb

If you have been following my blog from the beginning (thank you by the way), you will know I am a total sucker for a pretty waterfall...I love them all, from little trickles to big gushers. Throughout this journey we have, at times, hiked for hours just to catch a glimpse of one. The waterfalls in Croatia surpassed all expectations and were the most magnificent I have ever seen. The first park we went to was Krka National Park. We left Hvar at 4pm and made our way to our beautiful AirBnb just outside of Skradin, which turned out to be another gorgeous little town, with charming narrow streets and stunning scenery. Another one of Croatia's little gems, (we found out later that Bill Gates named Skradin as his favourite vacation place). What a shame we were not spending more time here. The next day we left for the park, boarding the boat at the harbour in town. A short ride along the river and you arrive at Krka National Park.

The boat to Krka

the view of Skradin from the water, this is where Bill gates parks his 300ft Yacht

 The boat drops you off and you have to walk about 5 minutes to have your first glimpse of the largest waterfall in the park...we were all speechless, it was THAT breathtaking.

what you cannot feel is how COLD the water was, like Canadian Lakes in May cold

Krka National Park is along the Krka river and is know for a series of 7 waterfalls. The park has very well maintained trails that lead you around some of the most picturesque landscape, it felt like you were on the set of Avatar, pictures do not do it justice, everything was green and mossy and there were cascades around every turn.

After a full day at the park we were on our way to Zadar, another city along the coast, with an old town, streets of marble, surrounded by a great wall with an 11th century cathedral in the centre, (can you hear the girls groaning now?). They also had a very cool Ancient  Roman museum.

this cathedral was built on roman Columns from 3000BC

The wall to the Old Town

Zadar has a unique tourist attraction, a Sea Organ and Solar Powered dance floor the lights up with multi colours (was a pretty cool sight to see at night). The Sea Organ is cut into steps along a section of the waterfront. These steps have underwater pipes in them, that play musical notes when filled with water and create a harmonica effect. I read somewhere, it sounds as if each wave is gently sighing. After exploring the town we spent a few hours at the Sea Organ as it proved to be an excellent spot to swim.

The giant dance floor

The three knuckleheads jumping in

Jumping in at the Sea Organ


Zadar was beautiful, however I would have made this a stop only, and continued on our way, as it was we stayed for a few days and had to time to relax and catch up on must needed homework (have I mentioned that homework is NOT going too well, that is another blog post entirely). Sometimes we are on the go so much, we almost appreciate the places we don't love so much so we can slow it down a little.

We anxiously left Zadar and headed to the much anticipated Plitvice Lakes national Park. I have wanted to come here since we landed in Croatia, and was so excited. 

If you google the most beautiful waterfalls in the world, undoubtedly Plitvice is on every list. It is Croatia's number one tourist destination (for good reason). It is known for a chain of 16 terraced lakes joined by waterfalls that extends into a limestone canyon. The most famous waterfall is the largest Veliki Slap. There are several hikes to choose from, and bus links you to many, (for those less inclined to hike)

an aerial view of the some of the many waterfalls in the park

parts of the trail were a little busy, but most of the time there were hardly any people around. I heard in the summer it is a gong show

 We chose to do the 6-8 hour hike so we could see all the highlights of the park. Sounds crazy to think we hiked for 6 hours but is was fairly easy as the scenery was spectacular, the time flew by. This was arguably the most beautiful park I have ever seen....thinking of all the places we have been, from  Banff,Vancouver, and the Canadian Rockies to the Oregon Coast, to the Redwoods in California, to the lush rain forests in Central America, to ALL of Hawaii, to the Sydney Harbor, to the beaches in Thailand, Lombok and southern Cambodia...this was a tough call... (if you ask me next month I may say somewhere else, but this park is definitely in the list of top 10).

After a very long but amazing day, we left Plitvice and headed to our last stop in Croatia- Zagreb. What a cool, modern city this is. I liked the vibe right away, it was very different from the cities along the coast. With culture, museums, architecture and restaurants and as Lonely Planet would say "all the things that make it a quality city. 

there happened to be a festival in the big park by our place...good timing!

what's a festival without face paint

The Croatian National Thetre

One thing I have become aware of since arriving in Europe is all the areas that are pedestrian zones, you just don't have that in Canada. (unless there is a festival or special even, most streets are vehicle friendly. There is something inherently romantic about an area full of restaurants, taverns, specialty shops, art work, installations... a place where kids can run and play without having to worry about the cars, people meeting, eating drinking on the streets, for no reason except to celebrate the beautiful day. I think that is something that Europeans have nailed and Canadians really need to follow suit. 

Ban Jelacic Square

On our last day, Livy and Johnny decided to go to the Tesla and Technology Museum (YAWN), Anneka and I walked the main street of Illca and enjoy people watching and window shopping. A great time had by all....

Ilica Street, (our Airbnb happened to be right on this street, perfect location for exploring the city)

After 19 days we sadly left Croatia. we had planned to visit other parts of this beautiful country, but to be honest we simply ran out of time. I have heard Istria is stunning, Pula, Rovinj, Rijeka, Brac...the list goes on and on. I can honestly say as a whole this was my favourite country. I loved the food, the people, the scenery, the culture...what an amazing place. If you have not thought about Croatia before, put on your bucket list...there literally is something for everyone, I absolutely LOVED it and hope to be back someday.