7 breathtaking natural wonders to check out in Croatia
- by croatiaweek
- in Travel
Krka National Park (Lucian Potlog/Pexels)
by Lana V
The 7 Wonders of the Ancient World were a collection of incredible constructions. From the Great Pyramid of Giza to the Hanging Gardens of Babylon and Colossus of Rhodes, the world is truly home to some amazing sites.
Some locals would often joke that the whole of Croatia was the 8th Wonder of the World, but jokes aside, Croatia has been blessed with some astonishing pieces of nature.
Here are 7 natural wonders in Croatia worth checking out.
7. Galešnjak Island
The small island, nicknamed Lover’s Island thanks to its amazing heart shape, is located in the Pašman channel between the islands of Pašman and the town of Turanj on the mainland. It became a huge hit around the globe when Google Earth revealed it a few years back in all its glory.
6. Velebit Mountain Range
Velebit
Velebit is the largest though not the highest mountain range in Croatia. The range forms a part of the Dinaric Alps and is located along the Adriatic coast, separating it from Lika inland. Velebit begins in the northwest near Senj with the Vratnik mountain pass and ends 145 km to the southeast near the source of the Zrmanja river northwest of Knin.
Zrmanja river
5. Blue & Red Lakes – Imotski
The amazing blue and red lakes are located in the small town of Imotski in the Dalmatian Hinterland.
The Red Lake is a sinkhole containing a karst lake and is known for its numerous caves and remarkably high cliffs, reaching over 241 metres above normal water level and continuing below the water level making it the third largest sinkhole in the world.
Blue Lake in Imotski (Photo credit: Diano Maya)
The Blue Lake lies in a deep sinkhole possibly formed by the collapse of an enormous underground cave. The total depth from the upper rim is around 220 meters.
4. Zlatni Rat Beach – Brač
The beach named the Golden Horn or Golden Cape is Croatia’s most recognisable beach thanks to its unusual shape.
What makes it even more amazing is that the beach changes in the shape. This phenomenon, thanks to nature, occurs once every two to three years. The pine tree grove which borders the beach is home to the remnants of a Roman villa rustica, which included a swimming pool. The promontory is protected as a geomorphological phenomenon.
3. Skradinski Buk – Krka National Park – Skradin
Krka NP (Photo: Antonio Batinic/Pexels)
Krka National Park is one of Croatia’s true natural gems. Skradinski buk has a is a large, clear, natural pool with high waterfalls at one end and cascades at the other. It is the lowest of the three sets of waterfalls formed along the Krka river.
Because of the wealth and variety of geomorphological forms, vegetation, and the various effects caused by the play of light on the whirlpools, it is considered to be one of the most beautiful calcium carbonate waterfalls in Europe.
Krka National Park (Lucian Potlog/Pexels)
2. Blue Cave – Biševo Island
Blue Cave (Photo: Zoran Jelaca/CNTB)
Modra špilja, or Blue Cave, is located in a small bay on Biševo Island near Vis. The cave is one of the best-known natural beauty spots on the Adriatic coast thanks to the glowing blue light that appears at certain times of day (best time between 11 am -12 pm).
The 24-metre long cave was formed by the wave action of the sea, as seawater eroded the limestone rock of which the whole island of Biševo is composed. The cave entrance is just 2.5 metres wide and 1.5 metres high.
1. Plitvice Lakes
Plitvice Lakes
The world-famous Plitvice Lakes National Park has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979 and is one of the oldest National Parks in Southeast Europe. It is home to lakes arranged in cascades and currently, 16 lakes can be seen from the surface.
The lakes are renowned for their distinctive colors, ranging from azure to green, grey or blue. The colours change constantly depending on the number of minerals or organisms in the water and the angle of sunlight.
Plitvice Lakes in autumn
