Elevated path in Plitvice Lakes National Park, Croatia

© Alessandro Laporta/Offset by Shutterstoc

A hidden jewel in Croatia

Watch your step as we walk out into Plitvice Lakes, the oldest and largest national park in Croatia. This mountainous region is well known for its waterfalls and turquoise lakes and these wooden pathways meander for miles around and over them, alongside rivers and streams which disappear into the earth, only to burst through again somewhere downstream.

All 16 lakes here are connected by underground flows and separated from each other by natural limestone dams. Although the park is open all year round, winter is its slow season. If you are brave enough to venture down its slippery pathways in December or January, you may be rewarded with views straight out of a fairy tale.