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Waterfall at Rastoke Croatia is a taste of Plitvice Lakes

Rastoke a taste of Plitvice Lakes

October 15, 2015 By Jan Robinson 23 Comments

This post may contain compensated links. We may earn a small percentage if you book through a compensated link, but it won’t cost you any more by doing so. You can read our full disclaimer here.


Renting a vehicle is a good option for exploring Croatia and we picked ours up in Zagreb.  A little more than 100km south we came upon Rastoke, a historic town in the Croatian district of Slunj, which was to whet our appetite for the next day’s destination of Plitvice Lakes. I recommend that everyone who is physically able to visit Plitvice Lakes, but if you can’t, then consider Rastoke your own free sample.

Look behind this Rastoke waterfall and you will see more and more waterfalls.  It would be fair to say water is everywhere in Rastoke and that means lots of trees – Burr, poplars, aspen, willow trees, lime trees and alders.  These names are not familiar names to us in the north of Australia, although I do recognise the Poplars and Willows.

Spring in the north of Croatia is an overload of green.

Waterfall at Rastoke Croatia is a taste of Plitvice Lakes

 

The Slušnica (Slunjčica) and the Korana rivers meet here and traditionally mills were set up to use the abundance of water.  Where the rivers join, a travertine rock face 500 meters wide and 200 meters formed creating 20 or more low waterfalls no higher than 20 metres and a series of rapids and pools. Otters live in crevices in the travertine so keep your eyes peeled.

Rastoke Croatia 3

 

The Slušnica river flows underground for 20km before reaching Rastoke.  While it barely reaches a high of 16 degrees C, the Korana reaches 28 degrees C and the joining of the two covers parts of the town in fog.  The cool waters are perfect for growing trout for which the Slušnica is famous.  Local restaurants serve river trout as well as the local speciality of roasted Pork and Lamb, that can be seen cooking in roadside ovens from Istria to Plitvice and beyond.

Rastoke Croatia 4

In Croatian the word rastoke has dual meanings. One meaning is the branching of rivers and another is the rock known as Tufa or Travertine. The very nature of the travertine has created problems in the past.  In 1914 the Korana undercut the rock face and in the middle of the night the town dropped.  I can only imagine how terrifying that would have been.

Rastoke Croatia 5

 

Buk waterfall was purposefully damaged by explosives during the Croatian War 1991-5.

Rastoke Croatia Buk Waterfall

 

The Korana River connects Rastoke with Plitvice Lakes.

Rastoke Croatia 6

Rastoke Croatia 7

 

Rastoke Croatia 8

An attempt was made to destroy this bridge during the War but it was only minimally damaged and opened again within months.  Unfortunately some of the century old houses were damaged and/or completely destroyed.

Rastoke Croatia bridge

Rastoke Croatia

Stay.

The locals of Rastoke rent out their rooms.  A search on Airbnb revealed quite a few.

Eat.

Petro Restaurant with views of the river, fresh trout from the river (via a tank on the deck).

Play.

Swimming, canoeing, rafting (summer only). Nearby Caves of Barać.

Parking.

Turn left off the road from Zagreb and park along the river. You can see the Blue Parking sign at the top of the map below.  Although there are other parking areas this is the most convenient if driving from Zagreb.

Map.

Rastoke Info Map

Further Reading.

Rastoke was visited as part of our 10 Weeks in Europe 2015.

Every Thursday I link to Budget Travelers Sandbox for Nancie’s Travel Photo Thursday.  You can add your link below and read stories from all over the world.

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Filed Under: Croatia, Destination

About Jan Robinson

Jan Robinson writes about travel on her Budget Travel Talk blog. A solo traveller in her teens, for the last 40 years Jan has travelled through Australia, Asia, Europe, Turkey and New Zealand with her husband. They specialise in road trips, caravanning and Independent travel without spending a fortune. Her favourite destination is Turkey and she is currently dreaming of Myanmar and Mexico.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Life Images by Jill

    October 15, 2015 at 2:06 pm

    waterfalls and more waterfalls – even coming from under houses! amazing. And so green! I am always surprised by the green of Europe, nothing like our dull green over here in Australia.
    Happy travels and have a great week.

    Reply
  2. Corinne

    October 15, 2015 at 3:40 pm

    Jan, We loved using a rental car to go all over Croatia! I can’t wait to read your Plitvice post, one of my favorite places!

    Reply
  3. Muza-chan

    October 15, 2015 at 7:42 pm

    Lovely…

    Reply
  4. Phoebe @ Lou Messugo

    October 16, 2015 at 12:38 am

    I think we went to this town for a swim after visiting Plitivice lakes, but while the photos look familiar, the name isn’t. I wonder if there’s another place similar nearby. Anyway, it’s lovely to see and read about it and thanks for bringing back great memories.

    Reply
    • Jan

      October 16, 2015 at 7:13 am

      I found that Rastoke is sometimes called Slunj Phoebe, could that have been the name?

      Reply
  5. cindy

    October 16, 2015 at 1:07 am

    Wow! What a fabulous place. I can’t get over all those houses hanging over the waterfalls . . . guess I’ll have to plan a return trip to Croatia to visit here some day.

    Reply
    • Jan

      October 16, 2015 at 7:12 am

      I definitely think that Rastoke is an underrated destination in Croatia Cindy. I would like to revisit Croatia too and visit more of their islands. 🙂

      Reply
  6. Pinay Flying High

    October 16, 2015 at 3:34 pm

    That is absolutely amazing! It’s sad when beautiful and historic places are ruined by wars but I’m glad that this place was able to keep their head above the ground even after the turmoil and keep this place as it is. As much as they can at least. IT’s beautiful!

    Reply
  7. Kathy Marris

    October 16, 2015 at 4:41 pm

    What a pretty pretty place! So much greenery everywhere.I think I could see myself here exploring those rivers, streams and waterfalls.

    Reply
  8. Turkey's For Life

    October 16, 2015 at 6:22 pm

    Wooow, you’re not exaggerating when you say there is abundant greenery in springtime in this area. Just stunning with all the waterfalls, too. Definitely on our list – with a hire car! 🙂
    Julia

    Reply
  9. Pinky Poinker

    October 18, 2015 at 9:06 am

    There’s something about waterfalls that instantly captivates and calms me at the same time. I would love to visit this place and sit for hours looking for otters!

    Reply
    • Jan

      October 18, 2015 at 2:24 pm

      We were astounded by this town. Imagine sleeping in one of those houses with the water rushing past outside your window – and wondering if the town was ready to shift again during the night!

      Reply
  10. Red Nomad OZ

    October 18, 2015 at 5:34 pm

    Wow! After a few DRY days downunder, seeing so much green in one place almost hurts my eyes! My sister visited this area on a very dull day – even so, the photos still make it look magnificent! Have a great week!

    Reply
  11. Rachel Heller

    October 19, 2015 at 12:04 am

    Wow! So many waterfalls! It looks lovely, and I bet the rafting is amazing!

    Reply
  12. Nancie

    October 19, 2015 at 8:22 am

    Hi Jan. Those waterfalls are amazing. I love how green everything is too. I cannot imagine waking up one morning to discover that my house had dropped. That would be disturbing, to say the least.

    Reply
    • Jan

      October 19, 2015 at 10:56 am

      Yes that would be disturbing lol.

      Reply
  13. Mary {The World Is A Book}

    October 20, 2015 at 4:21 pm

    Absolutely beautiful! Wow, those waterfalls look never ending. I can’t believe this is only a sampler of what’s to come. I have wanted to got to Croatia for a long time and this just ignites my wanderlust. How neat to be living in those houses.

    Reply
    • Jan

      October 21, 2015 at 8:26 am

      Imagine the sound of rushing water that must just become normal after hearing it 24/7. 🙂

      Reply
  14. Michele {Malaysian Meanders}

    October 21, 2015 at 3:08 am

    I’ve heard of famous Plitvice Lakes but not of Rastoke. The countryside there is so striking. I’d really love to stand there myself some day. And I think I might get just as excited by a wild otter sighting as seeing those fantastic falls.

    Reply
    • Jan

      October 21, 2015 at 8:27 am

      I live in quite an arid area of Queensland Michele and I found all that green and water so captivating!

      Reply

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