Krka National Park Guide
Known for the majesty of its waterfalls, Krka National Park is one of Croatia’s most popular national parks.
While Croatia’s coast is legendary for its beauty, you’ll find breathtaking scenery inland as well, whether you visit Plitvice Lakes National Park or Krka National Park, or both!
Krka National Park is worth visiting solely to admire the power and beauty of Skradinski buk, the park’s most famous network of waterfalls, but the park also boasts six other waterfalls on the Krka River, picturesque historic sites, and serene landscapes you’ll love to explore.
Brief Overview
Located in central Dalmatia, near the historic city of Šibenik, Krka National Park ranks among the best national parks in Europe.
The park was formed the protect the Krka River, and came into being in 1985.
About 42 square miles in area, Krka National Park is home to several waterfalls and lakes, and splendid scenery. It is one of the top places to visit in Croatia!
The park is home to a wide variety of flora and fauna.
More than 850 species of plants have been identified at Krka National Park. In season, you can see many flowers in bloom, from chimney bellflowers and stone bellflowers to Adriatic violets and Dalmatian pellitories.
Birdwatchers will love Krka: more than 200 species of birds have been spotted here. Look up to see if you can see raptors like osprey, peregrine falcon, and Bonelli’s eagle.
Some of the bat species in the park are endangered, and there are several fish endemic to the park. You may see amphibians and reptiles in the park as well.
Best time to visit
Krka National Park is located in an area that has mild temperatures in the winter, so it is a year-round destination.
That said, summer is high season in the park, and popular sights like Skradinski buk get extremely crowded during the day. If you want to swim in the river at the permitted locations, then summer is still your best bet.
The shoulder months of April-May and September-October are, in our opinion, the best times to visit Krka National Park. Boat services are still open, the weather is pleasant during the day, and the park is less crowded than in the summer.
If you visit in the winter, it is best to drive, or join a guided tour, unless you are okay with hiking from the entrances to sights in the park.
How to get to Krka National Park
Drive – The best way to get to Krka National Park is to rent a car and drive yourself. Some of the park is only accessible by road, and so without a car you’ll have to miss out certain spots along the way.
As the park has a number of entrances, you’ll need to decide where you want to visit first and follow directions there. Personally we’d suggest you arrive at the main Lozovac entrance and visit Skradinski buk early in the day to avoid the crowds.
For directions, we recommend using Google maps if you have mobile data or maps.me if you need an offline map. Google maps you can also save an offline map
The length of your journey to Krka will depend on where you’re coming from and which entrance you are going to. Make sure to look up journey times in advance of your visit so you can plan your day accordingly.
It’s easy enough to visit Krka National Park on a day trip from places like Split and Sibenik, but it’s too far from Dubrovnik to do in a day. The park itself is located in central Dalmatia in the Sibenik-Knin county.
Click here to find the best car rental deals for your trip!
Bus – If you haven’t rented a car and don’t want to take a tour, it’s also possible to visit Krka National Park by bus. To reach Krka you’ll most likely need to catch a bus to Skradin, where buses stop just a short walk from the national park entrance.
Buses run to Skradin from a number of cities across Croatia including Zagreb, Split and Zadar. For up to date schedule information and to buy tickets online, we recommend using Bus Croatia’s website.
If you’re staying in Sibenik you can reach the Lozovac entrance of Krka using regional buses. The timetable for these services can be found in Sibenik’s bus station.
Tour – One of the most popular ways to visit Krka National Park is on a tour, with many tours offered from Split and Trogir. Due to Krka’s popularity these tours often sell out – so we recommend booking as far in advance as possible! Fortunately, that’s easy to do online!
The best value tour we’ve seen also includes stops at the famous Skradinski buk waterfall, as well as Roški Slap, the beautiful Visovac Island viewpoint and Sibenik. Many other tours just include one stop in the park, but it’s nice to see more than just Skradinski buk so you can visit more than just one tiny section!
We recommend the Krka and wine tasting tour below! The wine is so good!
Things to see and do
Skradinski buk – For many, the main attraction of Krka National Park is the majestic Skradinski buk falls. This series of 17 waterfalls is spread out over a length of 800 metres, and has a total drop of 45 metres. At the base of the final waterfall you can no longer swim but it’s still fantastic to look at!
To truly appreciate the beauty of Skradinski buk, we recommend making it your first stop in the park. It becomes extremely busy as the day goes on, but if you arrive early you’ll be lucky enough to have the falls to yourself for a short time. By arriving early, you will be able to get photos with little to no people on them.
Beat the crowds by arriving to the Lozovac entrance just before opening time. Upon buying a ticket (if you haven’t already online), you’ll have the option to either walk downhill over a distance of 875 metres or take a free shuttle bus – although this shuttle only runs between April and October.
If you’re on a tour they still let you roam free!
If you are visiting between November and March you are able to drive down to the start of the trail, as the park is less busy during these months.
Once you’ve reached the bottom, one of the park’s walking trails will lead you on a 1,900 metre loop through some forest and down to the enchanting Skradinski buk falls.
Once you finish the loop, you can either walk back up the trail to the car park or wait for a shuttle bus if they’re running. We’d recommend waiting for a shuttle bus as the trail back to the car park is uphill, which makes it substantially tougher.
Manojlovacki slap – With a total drop of around 60 metres, Manojlovacki slap is the tallest waterfall in Krka National Park. Its picturesque location in the midst of a canyon makes it one of the most beautiful spots in the entire park. The largest single drop of the falls is 32 metres, sending water powering into the canyon below.
Located close to the Burnum entrance to the park, Manojlovacki slap is around a 45 kilometre drive from the Lozovac entrance. Due to the distance from the more famous Krka waterfalls, many people actually miss out this spot.
Unfortunately, the park has no transport to Manojlovacki slap, so you have no other option but to make your own way. If you’ve rented a car though, we think it’s definitely worth the extra time to visit this secluded yet impressive waterfall.
Krka Monastery – Around 4 kilometres from the village of Kistanje, the Krka Monastery sits in a peaceful location beside the Krka river. The monastery is regarded of as one of the most important Serbian Orthodox sites, with its history dating back to 1345.
As the monastery is still in use, guides are mandatory and it’s only possible to visit the orthodox church and the ancient Roman catacombs found beneath it. On top of this, it’s also possible to walk through the grounds down to the Krka River.
The Krka monastery can be reached by road all year round or by boat from Roški slap between the months of April and October.
Visovac – Another of the parks most scenic spots is the tiny island of Visovac. Located in the middle of the Krka river, the island is home to a monastery first established in 1445.
Visovac is best appreciated from a viewpoint by the monument to Croatian King Petar Svačić. There is no actual entrance at Visovac, as you only need to stop at the viewpoint for a few minutes to enjoy its beauty.
For those wanting to visit the island as well, you can do so by a 5-minute boat ride from either Stinice or Remetic. It’s also possible to visit from Skradinski buk, however the disadvantage of doing it this way is that you won’t get to appreciate Visovac and its surroundings from the viewpoint above.
Roški slap – The waterfalls at Roški slap are made up of 2 sections – the main falls and what is known to locals as the ‘necklace’. In comparison to Skradinski buk and Manojlovacki slap, the main falls are somewhat average in our opinion.
There is a relatively pleasant circular trail around the cascades known as the necklace, however we personally think your time is better spent elsewhere in the park.
For a better viewpoint of the necklace you can visit Oziđana pećina cave or climb a steep hiking trail. While the area has some lovely nature, we didn’t feel it was as special as other parts of the park – especially considering more people visit Roški slap than visit Manojlovacki slap.
You can reach Roški slap either by car or pay for a boat ride from Skradinski buk.
Getting Around Krka National Park
Ignore this section if you are on a tour as everything is included.
The easiest ways to get between points of interest within Krka National Park are to drive yourself, or make use of transport offered by the park. There are also some hiking trails within the park for those with more time to spend in Krka.
Driving – We recommend renting a car and driving around the park in order to see as much as possible. While the boats provided by the park are generally the more popular way to get around, there are a number of places in the park that are only accessible by road.
By driving you give yourself full flexibility in terms of exploring Krka National Park, and you aren’t limited as to where you can go.
Boats – There are a number of boat rides you can take between points of Krka National Park. While the ride from the entrance at Skradin to Skradinski buk is included in the price of the ticket, tickets for other routes cost between 50 and 130 Kuna.
There are 5 routes which can be taken in the park:
Skradinski buk to Visovac – A 2 hour trip including a 30 minute stop on the small island of Visovac before returning to Skradinski buk. This trip costs 100 Kuna (£12).
Skradinski buk to Visovac and Roški slap – A 4 hour trip including a 30 minute stop on the small island of Visovac and 90 minutes at Roški slap before returning to Skradinski buk. This trip costs 130 Kuna.
Roški slap to Krka Monastery –A 2 and a half hour trip including a 30 minute stop at Krka Monastery before returning to Roški slap. This trip costs 100 Kuna.
Stinice to Visovac – A short boat ride to Visovac island where you will spend half an hour before returning to your starting point. This trip costs 50 Kuna.
Remetić to Visovac – A short boat ride to Visovac island where you will spend half an hour before returning to your starting point. This trip costs 50 Kuna.
*These routes run between April and October, although schedules are set daily for all routes except those departing from Stinice and Remetić to Visovac.
Tips for visiting Krka National park
Arrive early to Skradinski buk
We’ve said it a few times already, but it’s one of the things we cannot stress enough if you want to enjoy the area without crowds.
Rent a car
The easiest and cheapest way to get around Krka National Park is to drive yourself. There are a number of spots within the park that are only accessible by road, so if you don’t have a car you won’t be able to see them.
Bring suncream in summer
Make sure you’re well protected during hot summer days!
Bring lunch and water
Although you’re able to get food at some places in the national park, it depends on the location. It’s cheaper to bring your own lunch, so we’d recommend doing that as well as making sure you have plenty of water for the day!
Save money by avoiding peak season
If you’re looking to save money, one of the best travel tips for Krka National Park is to avoid visiting between June and September. Entrance to the park costs 200 Kuna (£24) during these months, which is higher than any other time of year.
Instead, plan your trip outside of peak season and you’ll pay considerably less as well as having the benefit of the park being less crowded. Obviously this isn’t an option if your trip falls between June and September, but if you haven’t finalised your dates it’s a good way to save money!
We recommend booking one of the tours shown below.
Final thoughts
This Essential Krka National Park Guide has taken you through all you need to start planning a trip to Krka national park! You’ve got all the practical info sorted.
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