Background: known as Nacionalni Plitvička Jezera. Became a UNESCO world heritage site in 1979. The park includes sixteen lakes connected by a series of gorgeous waterfalls. The waters are amazing shades of turquoise, teals, greens and blues and often the colors fluctuate due to the minerals in the water.

Travelling here: Located between Zadar and Zagreb. Day trips are available with tour groups from most major cities. We rented a car and drove to the park from Split (a roughly 3 hour drive through the gorgeous Croatian country side; be sure to save time for a stop at Krka–we didn’t and I may have to return!).

Cost: 180 Kuna ($26 or £17 or €24). This includes transportation throughout the park. Also, note that there is a fee for parking a car but as you enter the park area you’ll notice loads of cars parked along the main road (for free).

Tips: the park is a major tourist site these days and can often be crowded in the warm, summer months. Aim to start your day at the park early to beat the crowd. We made it to the park just about the time a major rain storm did, which made for a wet, but beautiful, experience and cleared out most of the crowds. We stopped at a grocery store in the town right outside the park and grabbed some food for a quick picnic before the hike, but there are a few cafes available in the park (near both entrances and at the top).

See it all! We followed Path H through the parks, predicted to take roughly 4-6 hours. You take a bus from near entrance 2 to the top of the mountain and follow the path hiking through the upper lakes, of course stopping at every turn for amazing photos. At the bottom of the path, you take the ferry across Kozjak Lake to follow the path through the lower lakes ending at park entrance 1. Make sure you follow the path through to the see the big waterfall at the end. At the top of entrance 1, you can catch a bus back to entrance 2 where you began.

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