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Croatia in 11 days: Krk, Rab, Velebit, Plitvice and Pag, day by day

Eleven days from the Kvarner islands to the great coastal mountain: Vrbnik and the town of Krk, the sands of Lopar, Goli Otok, the four bell towers of Rab, the Nehaj fortress at Senj, the Premužić trail along the Velebit ridge, the Plitvice Lakes, the underground base of Željava, the Paklenica canyons, the town of Pag and Nin.

Compiled by Kylian, updated on Oct 5, 2026

The great waterfalls of Plitvice Lakes and their turquoise water in the forest
  • 11 days
  • 51 places
  • 11 nights
  • fast pace
Start
Island of Cres, by the Merag ferry
End
Zadar
Main transport
Rental car, three ferries with the car on days 21 and 23, seven kilometers (4.3 mi) of track up to Zavižan, and a good deal of walking on the Velebit, at Plitvice and in Paklenica
Recommended season
July to September: the Zavižan track and the Velebit huts are only safe in summer, snow sometimes lingers in the sinkholes until June, and Manita peć cave only opens daily in July, August and September

What you get

  • The complete itinerary: 11 days sequenced Morning / Afternoon / Evening / Hotel
  • The card of every hotel, with the address and a direct booking link
  • Quota tickets, fixed-date tickets and surcharges flagged in advance
  • The country quick guide: weather, transport, formalities, budget
  • A PDF file of 26 pages

What the price does not include

  • Flights
  • Hotel nights
  • Tickets and admission fees
  • Travel insurance
  • On-the-ground assistance during your trip

The itinerary preview

The free day in full, with its hotel card. This is the sample.

Day 5

Plitvice, the Lower and Upper Lakes

Morning

Drive from Jablanac to Plitvice

Across Lika via Otočac, duration to be confirmed, entering by Entrance 1.

Lower Lakes and the Great Waterfall

Sixteen terraced lakes, separated by travertine barriers that the mosses and algae keep building up: it is this living process, and not erosion, that earned the site its World Heritage listing as early as 1979. From Entrance 1, the wooden walkways descend into the canyon of the Lower Lakes as far as Veliki slap, 78 m (256 ft), the highest waterfall in the country.

Šupljara Cave

A through-cave opening above Lake Kaluđerovac, which serves as a shortcut to the plateau. The German westerns based on Karl May were filmed here in the 1960s, which the park still recalls.

Afternoon

Crossing Kozjak by boat

The largest of the lakes is crossed on an electric boat included in the ticket, the only way to get from the Lower to the Upper Lakes without walking back round.

Galovac and Prošćansko jezero

The Upper Lakes are wider, more wooded and less crowded at the end of the day. Galovac strings together the park's most photogenic waterfalls; Prošćansko jezero, right at the top, closes the series at the edge of the forest.

Good to know

Timed-entry ticket, to be booked online in advance in high season; the park caps the number of entries per hour. Prices and opening hours on the park's official website. On site, payment in cash or by card, subject to remaining tickets. The walkways are one-way and slippery, swimming is forbidden everywhere, drones are forbidden. Arriving at opening time avoids the midday crowds.

Hotel · Night 5

Hotel Jezero, Plitvice

The park's hotel, at Entrance 2, run by the public institution. Sleeping inside the perimeter gives access to the trails before the tour buses arrive.

Address
· Josipa Jovića 2, 53231 Plitvička Jezera
Website
· np-plitvicka-jezera.hr (new tab)
Check-in
from 3:00 PM · Check-out before 11:00 AM
Book this hotel (new tab) affiliate link

Buy this itinerary

€39 incl. tax

that is €3.55 per day of travel

Billed in euros. If your card is in another currency, your bank converts at its own rate.

  • Secure payment through Stripe, bank card, Apple Pay and Google Pay
  • Available immediately in your customer account: online reading with clickable booking links, downloadable PDF for offline use
  • Method: what is checked, and when

A hotel in the itinerary closed or impossible to find, a place to visit permanently closed?

Within 12 months of purchase, email contact@etaperia.com

Itinerary corrected within 7 days, or refunded in full. Terms in article 12 of the terms of sale, on top of the legal warranty (new tab)

€39 incl. tax · 11 days

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A question before buying? Email Kylian, reply within 2 business days.

The day-by-day rundown

  1. Day 1 Across Krk, then the sands of Lopar Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  2. Day 2 Goli Otok, then the town of Rab Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  3. Day 3 Senj, the Uskoks, and the climb to Zavižan Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  4. Day 4 The Premužić Trail, on the Velebit ridge Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  5. Day 5 Plitvice, the Lower and Upper Lakes Free
  6. Day 6 Plitvice by its deserted trails Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  7. Day 7 Željava under the mountain, and the Cerovac Caves Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  8. Day 8 Velika Paklenica and Manita peć cave Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  9. Day 9 Mala Paklenica, the bunkers and the great wall Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  10. Day 10 Modrič Cave, then the town of Pag Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  11. Day 11 Northern Pag, then Nin and its salt pans Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF

1 day is free to read above. The other 10 unlock when you buy. Buy the itinerary, €39

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Country quick guide and logistics

The essentials of the country, scannable in ten seconds.

Weather and when to go

  • A stage written for the high season: the Zavižan track and the Velebit huts are only safe in summer, and snow sometimes lingers in the sinkholes until June. Northern Velebit National Park normally opens from May to November, depending on the snow.
  • Three climates in eleven days: Plitvice cool and damp even in August, the Paklenica coast crushed by heat, and Pag swept by the bora, which can close the bridge to high-sided vehicles.
  • On the ridge of the Premužić trail, on day 24, there is no spring: at least two liters of water per person, with the botanical garden as a fallback if the bora is forecast. Underground, 12 to 15 °C (54 to 59 °F) at Željava and about 9 °C (48 °F) at Cerovac and in Manita peć.

Transport and permits

  • Three crossings with the car: Merag-Valbiska (about thirty minutes) then Valbiska-Lopar (1 hr 20) on day 21, and Mišnjak-Stinica (twenty minutes) on day 23. On Valbiska-Lopar the ticket is a booking for a specific sailing and you must be at the port 45 minutes ahead.
  • The climb to Zavižan, on day 23, takes 1 hr 30 from Senj, including seven kilometers (4.3 mi) of track beyond the park entrance at Babić Siča: low-slung cars are not advised, and the track is slow going.
  • On day 27, a 1 hr 30 drive to the Cerovac caves, then an hour's descent to Starigrad: an early start from Željava decides whether the upper cave fits into the afternoon. Starigrad then serves as a three-night base for the two Paklenica canyons.

Formalities and safety

  • No visa: Croatia has been in the European Union since 2013 and in the Schengen area since January 1, 2023. EU citizens travel on an identity card or a passport. US and UK citizens need a passport valid three months after departure and may stay 90 days in any 180 across the Schengen area, which covers the full 66-day route; a UK passport must also be under 10 years old. The ETIAS authorization is planned: check travel-europe.europa.eu.
  • Your driving license is accepted (carry an international permit if the rental company asks for one). The UK GHIC covers state healthcare only and US visitors need medical insurance: take out travel insurance. Željava lies against the Bosnian border: carry your papers. Its surroundings are still mined: never leave the concrete runways or paved surfaces, and the guided visit is the condition of access.
  • Bookings to make: the timed ticket for Plitvice (day 25), bought online in advance in high season, the guided visit to Željava (day 27), the Goli Otok excursion from Lopar (day 22) and the caving trip in Modrič cave (day 30), from age 12.

Budget and meals

  • The euro has been the official currency since January 1, 2023. Cash is useful in the Velebit villages, at cave ticket desks and with small operators; the Manita peć supplement is paid at the cave entrance, in cash only.
  • The guide gives no meal prices for this stage: the konobas of Lika and the Velebit remain cheap, the tables of Pag and Zadar markedly less so.
  • Park tickets: €7 a day or €10 for two days in Northern Velebit, which covers days 23 and 24; in Paklenica a three-day ticket covers days 28 and 29; at Plitvice, guests of the Hotel Jezero pay for the first day only, provided they have the ticket extended at reception.

Frequently asked questions

What exactly do I receive?

Your Étaperia itinerary, available immediately in your customer account after payment: readable online with clickable booking links, and downloadable as a PDF for the trip. Every day is sequenced Morning / Afternoon / Evening and says where you spend the night, with the address and booking link for each place to stay. Timed-entry tickets are flagged in advance.

How is this better than what an AI gives me?

A generative AI composes a plausible list in seconds, without saying what was checked or when. At Étaperia, every itinerary is compiled day by day, with the booking constraints spotted before it is too late to get them. The Method page says what is checked, against which source and on what date.

Can I adapt it to my dates and my pace?

Yes. The days are self-contained blocks: you can shift the departure, stretch a stage or skip a day without breaking what follows. Only timed-entry tickets require adjusting the dates accordingly, and they are all flagged.

What if a hotel or a place in the itinerary has closed?

Email contact@etaperia.com within 12 months of your purchase. If a hotel in the itinerary is closed or can no longer be found, or a place to visit has closed permanently, the itinerary is corrected in your customer account within 7 days, or you are refunded in full. A hotel fully booked on your dates, a seasonal closure or a change in opening hours or prices is not covered. This guarantee comes on top of the legal warranty of conformity; details in article 12 of the terms and conditions of sale.

Module, classic or complete itinerary: which one should I choose?

A classic is a short trip built to stand on its own, designed for a first visit to the country. A module covers one region in depth. The complete itinerary crosses the whole country, and buying it also unlocks each of its modules in your customer account.

Can I get a refund if the itinerary doesn't suit me?

No. It is digital content delivered right away, and you waive your right of withdrawal at checkout. To judge before you pay, every product page gives one full day for free and the list of every stop. After purchase, the guarantee applies: a closed hotel or a permanently closed place is corrected within 7 days, otherwise you get a refund.

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In the same country

This module is one leg of the full itinerary: Complete Croatia itinerary: 66 days, hotels and bookings

The complete itinerary

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