plitvice lakes national park.

Due to the nightmare we had getting out of Budapest, we were running a bit behind schedule. We had to stay overnight in Zagreb as we got there so late. However, all we saw of it was some rainy dark streets, and the inside of our hostel room, as we were there for less than 12 hours! 

In the morning we hopped on to our coach and headed to Plitvice Lakes National Park. The journey was beautiful - huge mountains in the distance, driving through rolling hills and lots and lots of trees. We even went through a town that had waterfalls coming out from underneath houses (see above!)

We caught a glimpse of the big waterfalls on the drive up to our guesthouse. It was magical. We finally figured out which place we were staying at and were welcomed by a lovely couple who gave us cake and brandy shots to wish Doug a happy birthday! After that it was straight out to explore the lakes.

After a bit of queueing we got the funny bus up to the top lake to make our way down. I was a bit scared of walking across the boardwalks - especially when there were people coming the other way! I was convinced I'd fall in, but I somehow managed not to. 

Unfortunately it started raining (we found out the next day that it had rained every day for 20 days!) but it didn't dampen our spirits at first. We continued walking around watching the waterfalls get bigger and more impressive with every lake. 

There were parts of pathway that were flooded, and we had to take our shoes and socks off to wade through the water! It just made the experience more exciting though! 

One part of the path was totally closed, meaning we had to walk all the way back around, or scramble up a hill to the road and walk back down to the main entrance. We chose the latter and rewarded ourselves with hot chocolate when we got there. 

Doug was keen to have a trip on the boat & go down to the big waterfall at the end, but once we got to the other side of the lake, it was clear that the rain was not going to let up & more paths were closed meaning we couldn't get there that way anyway. I was absolutely freezing and miserable by this time, so we made our way back to the small town & had dinner before heading back to our guesthouse for hot showers! 

BEST BITS:

• the lovely people at the guesthouse

• magical waterfalls!

WHAT I'D DO DIFFERENTLY:

• go when the weather forecast is dry! - this is what it could look like!!

See more of our European adventure! - Prague • Vienna • Bratislava • Budapest • Croatian coast •
















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