7 days Road-Trip in Croatia

From Sunday 24 October 2021 to Saturday 30 October 2021

Our Croatian adventure is still going strong! After a 6 days road-trip in Slovenia, we are about to repeat the experience in Croatia. Renting a car for a few days is a great dose of freedom. Not only does it allow us to visit places that are difficult to reach by bus, but above all, it gives us the freedom to visit at our own pace.

And it is at the wheel of a Ford Focus (a little dented) that we will continue our journey!

Also, after our last painful experience in a dormitory, we will prefer the small private accommodations that we can find on the website Booking and that are sometimes cheaper than the youth hostels.

Day 1 : Rijeka & Kastav

After a fast exhausting stay in Zagreb (remember: we slept two days in a "party hostel"), we go to the bus station to take the shuttle to the airport, where we will recover our rented car. And it seems that in Croatia, the Uber costs less expensive than the shuttle. The calculations are quickly made: here we are squeezed, Victor, my bag and me, in the back of a Twingo (we do not have the place to put our two bags in the trunk). The driver is very relaxed, he speaks to us in different languages (English, Portuguese, Latin and a little French). We had already been impressed when we arrived in Zagreb by the fluency with which Croatians speak English. The government is very conscious of the fact that the language of the country is very little spoken abroad and encourages children to practice English from kindergarten. As not all television programs are translated, the population is also much more likely to hear Shakespeare's language spoken on a daily basis.

Once we arrived at the airport, we quickly found the car rental agency. However, the rental agency is a bit slow to find the keys of our future car, which is waiting for us, quite wisely, on the parking lot. The employee seems annoyed, he calls, in vain, all his colleagues one after the other; looks in the papers of the other cars to see if he finds ours. And apparently, many Audis are currently available. So to lighten the atmosphere, Victor tries to joke, and makes him understand that it is not serious if he does not find one, that we are ready to sacrifice ourselves and take any other available car, like an Audi for example. But you don't win every time, do you? The keys were right there, hidden in a drawer.

We leave Zagreb in our new Ford Focus, with a good hour of delay on our schedule. We arrive in Rijeka, our first destination, in the early afternoon, just in time to have lunch with a friend of Victor.

Rijeka, located in the northwest, is the second largest city in Croatia and has the largest port in the country. We are delighted to discover it, especially since Victor's friend is accompanying us. Nothing better than to discover a place with a person who lives there since many years!

We go to the castle of Trsat. Perched on a hill, it culminates at 138 meters of altitude, and offers us an incredible panorama on the city of Rijeka. We are surprised that it is so well preserved. Originally built by the Romans in the 13th century in anticipation of attacks by the Ottomans (who never attacked), it was completely renovated in the 19th century.

After a coffee (or tea for Victor) break in the castle courtyard, we go back down to explore the city. All the stores respect the sunday break, the streets are very quiet. Here also, we can see the multiculturalism in the architecture, born from the different Italian, Austrian, Yugoslav dominations.

It is now time to say goodbye to our guide for the day and to head for Kastav, a small town a little further inland, which is full of old buildings built in Roman times. We have to go up a little bit, to the center of the town to have a magnificent view on the valley and the sea. The colors of the sunset make this moment magical.

It only remains for us now to return to our accommodation for the night. Bad luck: the bank card of Victor remains stuck in the machine of payment of the tunnel which we have just passed. We pay in cash, the barrier opens, but the machine does not return us the bank card for as much. Obviously, we are honked… Fortunately, the assistance arrives 25 minutes later (after two calls of our share) and Victor gets back his card. From now on, we shall pay in cash!

Day 2: Istria region

We get up early this morning, it is a big day which awaits us. Today, we hope to be able to go down all the Adriatic coast on the west side until Pula, to then go up by the east side.

We begin by the city of Motovun, which means in Celtic "a city on the hill". And it is indeed about that: a medieval city located at 270 meters of altitude. You can see it from afar! What interested us the most in Motovun finally, it is the famous tunnel of the Parenzana road (the road of health and friendship) which crosses the basement of the hill.

We then head to Porec, where there is a Euphrasian basilica dating from the 6th century.

Rovinj, our next stop, is very nice. Its center, completely pedestrian, allows us to walk calmly, to stroll in its narrow paved streets.

And Pula is extraordinary with its very well preserved Roman amphitheater, its old forum and its temples.

Day 3: Velebit national park

Today, we put ourselves in hiking mode: Victor found some beautiful pictures taken in the national park of Sjeverni Velebit. That immediately gave us the desire to go to see with our own eyes.

The geology of this place is so particular, a landscape really different from what we had the chance to see until now. Rainwater has shaped the rocks, creating caves and crevasses (on this site, there are more than 112 crevasses per km2, we better be careful where we put our feet 😅).

The paths are narrow and tortuous, our feet slide on the stones, fortunately we do not suffer from vertigo!

I am afraid that there are snakes (Victor put in my head that there were quite a few in the area). So I try to reassure myself by telling me that the weather is too cold for them (for me as well). But it works only halfway: I remain on the lookout for the slightest movement.

We have enough energy to make two summits: the end of the second summit looks more like climbing than hiking, but the reward is there. From there, we see the Adriatic sea and its numerous islands. The colors of the sea melt in the colors of the sky, a light mist gives a mystical side to this amazing landscape.

The return journey is hard, the wind has risen, our hands and ears are frozen. The way seems to us interminable. The sunset is close and we hurry to avoid having to finish with the headlamp. We are very happy to arrive at the car, to eat a clementine before joining our accommodation for this night.

We didn't meet a soul during all the journey of this hike.

Days 4 & 5: Plitvice’s lakes national park Parc national des lacs de Plitvic

We heard about the Plitvice Lakes long before we even set foot in Croatia. Everybody talks about it as the national park to do. It was important for us to be able to make an idea by ourselves. While most people only stay there for one day, we preferred to spend two days there to better enjoy the landscape. Taking more time allowed us to walk all the paths offered by the park as well as all the elevated viewpoints in the surrounding mountains.

Our lodging, located 1.5 km from the park entrance, is ideally positioned to access the lakes on foot. There is plenty of accommodation in the area, the next town over is a dormitory town for tourists and staff.

Visiting the park out of season is an undeniable price advantage since the price of the entrance ticket is reduced by 10 euros between the months of August/September and October. The ticket is even cheaper from November 1st.

To begin this first day, we start with a hike indicated on the park map. And, apart from some educational panels on the fauna and flora of the region, we quickly realize that this hike has little interest: it offers us no view on the lakes or the waterfalls that make the reputation of the park. We are frustrated and have the impression to have wasted our time a little. Of course, it was a nice walk in the forest, but we didn't pay the entrance fee to the park to do this kind of walk. So we decided to do only the trails (not the hikes) proposed by the park.

We spend our afternoon doing all the elevated viewpoints in the mountain. And as a bonus, we discover other viewpoints not mentioned on the map. After 26,5 km of walking, our heavy legs and our burning feet scream us to return at home. Then we carry out. And as much to say you that the 1,5 km which separate us from the house never seemed so long to us!

***

The second day, we get up very early to admire the sunrise on lakes and waterfalls. Here we are at 7:15 am, ready to live an incredible experience: the mist on the water, the perfectly calm water, the ducks sleeping on the shore, the golden hues of the trees that melt into the blue of the lakes and the light of the sun that rises little by little. And above all: no other noise than the sound of nature (and Victor's heavy footsteps). At this moment, we hardly realize where we are and how lucky we are. It is one of the most calming moments I have experienced so far. It is difficult to let go of the landscape of the eyes. To enjoy a little more, we undertake to make the tour of the big lakes which constitute the park.

It is obvious that after this second day in Plitvice, we are more and more delighted by the wealth of the landscapes that Croatia wants to offer us. Magnificent and all very different.

At 2pm, we are in the car, direction Zadar. On the road, we are stopped by the police: they check our passports, the papers of the car and especially, they check in the trunk that we do not hide migrants. There are many Bosnian migrants in the area of Plitvice park.

We arrive in Zadar at the end of the afternoon. And it is not this evening that we will visit the city, we are very tired. The early risings, it is great to appreciate all the beauty of the nature, but if we want to hold physically in the duration, it is also necessary that we rest.

Day 6: Zadar

The next day, we go along the port of Zadar to reach the old town. The sun accompanies us. It is much hotter than in the mountains, at 11 am, we are already in t-shirt.

During our walk, we discover that the Roman vestiges are everywhere in the old city: the cathedral Saint-Anastase, the forum and its column of the shame which still carries the chains of the punished persons, the convent saint-Catherine, the church Saint-Donat, the place with the 5 wells...

We are very surprised to discover a sphinx in the garden of the former house of an artist. The story goes that he had it built as a tribute to his wife, some time after her death.

We enjoy the seaside and the atypical structures that we find there: the organ of the seas which allows to hear the music of the waves thanks to a judicious assembly of pipes and the work Greeting to the sun which are solar panels laid out on the ground and playing with different lights at night.

We will not have the opportunity to see this famous play of light, because we do not sleep in Zadar this night. We take the road towards Skradin, a village located at the entrance of the Krka River National Park.

Day 7: Krka national park

It is along the Krka river that our Road Trip will end. And for this last night, we stay in a small house at 10 minutes of the entrance of the natural park of Krka. It is the best lodging that we could have since the beginning of our adventure and Victor is happy: there is all the necessary utensils to cook! We already imagine the good small dish which we shall cook the next evening. In addition to that, there is a washing machine, it is exactly what we needed!

They are beautiful surprises that the river Krka offers us: between waterfalls, lakes, canyon, cave and Roman amphitheater, the day is as interesting as varied.

We start with the Skradinski Buk waterfalls as soon as the facilities open. This will allow us to avoid the tourist buses for the rest of the day.

Then we go on with the waterfall of Roski (also called the waterfalls in necklace, for their atypical shape), then that of Manojlovac. On the road, we stop to have a look at the vestiges of an ancient amphitheater, which was also used as a military training camp by the Romans.

On our way, we meet a family from La Rochelle with whom we share the rest of the day (Rozenne the mother, Nicolas the father, Lou the daughter and Maël the son).

The last step of this day is the island of Visovac, which is on the river Krka. Victor found a very unknown point of view and for good reason: after several kilometers on a bumpy dirt road (we had to abandon the car which was rubbing on the rocks to go up with our new friends, who have an SUV) we finally arrive at our destination, to realize that we could have a superb view on the island if only the reeds were not so high. We see absolutely nothing! It's a flop!

It takes more than that to give up: we take the car again, go back up for about 30 minutes and we finally find an interesting viewpoint. Too bad the sun is already hidden behind the mountain.

This is not the only thing that our determination will have allowed us to find this evening: at the edge of the pines, mushrooms. Nicolas and Maël think that they are perhaps ceps, but the doubt remains. Given our poor knowledge as regards mushrooms, we would like to make analyze them by a specialist before tasting them. The pharmacy closed, we fall back on Google (not terrible, but we make with the means of the edge). It seems that it is yellow boletes of pines. Well, friends, the yellow boletes of pines with gnocchi, it is very good :)

This is how our 7 days road-trip in Croatia ends. We will return the car tomorrow in Split where we will stay for a few days before finishing in Dubrovnik.