Getting to Plitvice Lakes

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Plitvice Lakes National Park is located very close to the Croatian border with Bosnia (see map below) and just a couple of hours’ drive from either Zagreb or Adriatic coast.

The nearest larger town to Plitvice on the coast is Zadar.

From both Zagreb and Zadar you can either take a bus to get there or drive. Note – there are no trains that go to Plitvice nor there are any airports nearby.

Getting to Plitvice by Bus

• From Zagreb, it takes just over 2 hrs to get to Plitvice by bus. There are 10 to 12 buses per day run by several bus companies. They all leave from Zagreb’s main bus station in the direction of Plitvice. Most of them proceed further towards the Coast (Zadar, Split, Dubrovnik…) Note: book your bus ticket in advance – so once in Zagreb just go to the main bus terminal and get your ticket from the ticket office. It cost about 85 HRK (approx 12 Euro).  Once on Plitvice, the bus will stop at the main bus station which is about 10 min walk from the main hotels. For detailed bus timetables search http://www.akz.hr/; for some nice photos see here
• From Zadar (the nearest larger town on the Coast) it takes about 3 hrs to get to Plitvice by bus. There are only 3 or 4 buses a day from Zadar so you have to plan a trip carefully. All buses, run by several companies, leave from the main Zadar bus terminal. Tickets cost about 100 Hrk (15 euro approx). For detailed bus schedules to Plitvice check  www.liburnija-zadar.hr
• From Dubrovnik: Read about getting from Dubrovnik to Plitvice article, with detailed instructions and advice on public transport to Plitvice.
  see more details here

Driving to Plitvice

It takes all together about 2 hours drive from Zagreb as well as from Zadar to reach the Park. The Plitvice national park is located about 1 hr drive from A1 main motorway.

• From Zagreb, take the south route towards Karlovac (about 1 hr). Once in Karlovac, take D-1 road (another hour) which leads right to the Park.
• From Zadar, take the north route on the A1 motorway to exit Naplatna Postaja Gornja Ploca. From there take an exit to D522 road. When you reach Udbine take D1 road which will take you right to the entrance of the Park. For an interactive driving map check here

Location Map of Plitvice Lakes:

View Plitvice Lakes National Park on a larger map

Additional info – Plitvice:

• about Plitvice Lakes
• Plitvicka Jezera travel forum
• Latest news, blog and info about Plitvice Lakes
• Photos of Plitvice
• 3d map of Plitvice Lakes National Park
• Other Croatian National Parks