Bus from VUKOVAR to PLITVICE LAKES

Vukovar is a city in eastern Croatia. Due to the fact that Vukovar has the largest river port in Croatia, located at the confluence of the Vuka River and the Danube, Vukovar has improved its economy by establishing tade with surrounding countries, which has also significantly contributed to the developing tourism. The city got its name from the river that flows through it, the Vuka River, which originates from the Slavic word 'vuk', meaning 'wolf'.

The highlight of its tourisms, while it may seem odd, are its turbulent history and the consequences left after the war and siege of 1991, which left Vukovar with destroyed economy, culture, infrastructure, civic harmony and soul. The damage caused by these events makes it hard for tourist to imagine Vukovar as it was before the war, a pretty place on the Danube, with roots stretching back to the 10th century and a series of elegant baroque mansions, bustling with art galleries and museums.

Since the return of Vukovar to Croatia in 1998, there has been much progress in repairing the damage, and the locals put a lot of effort to use the remains in the best possible way, like the former Water Tower on the road to Ilok and many desolated buildings which are a testament to destruction.

Vučedol Culture Museum : Located 4km downriver from Vukovar, this newly built museum sits on one of Europe's most significant archaeological sites and in less than a year drew 50,000 visitors. The 19 exhibit rooms on two levels give an insight into the rich, ancient Vučedol culture you've likely never heard of, referred to as the European Troy. The exhibition offer a peak at ceramics, replicas of furnaces where copper was cast, skulls and bones, earthen bowls and trays, wooden canoes and fishbone needles. Visitors can also make a detour to the Megaron. Which is a five-minute walk away from the museum – a bunker-like building with skylights that houses skeletons in a sand pit, including a grave of a deer that was used on shamanic journeys. The Megaron's rooftop attracts visitor with its view over the river and its leafy surroundings.

Vukovar Hospital 1991: This multimedia museum recounts the tragic events that took place in the hospital during the 1991 siege. The stirring tour takes you through a series of sandbag-protected corridors, with video projections of war footage, bomb holes and the claustrophobic atomic shelter where newborn babies and the children were kept. There are small cubicles where you can listen to interviews and speeches by the victims and survivors.

Castle Eltz: Closed for several years following the war, the 18th-century Eltz Palace reopened its doors after renovations in 2014. It now showcases four levels of exhibits, many with interactive multimedia features and all marked in English. Don't miss the moving 3rd-floor exhibit about the siege of Vukovar.

Ovčara Memorial: Around 6km out of town, en route to Ilok, there’s a turn-off to the Ovčara Memorial, another 4km down the road. This is the hangar where 194 victims from Vukovar's hospital were beaten and tortured after the town's surrender in November 1991. Inside the dark room are projections of victims’ photos, with a single candle burning in the middle. The victims met their deaths in a cornfield another 1.5km down the road, now marked with a black marble gravestone covered with candles and flowers.

Ada: This sandy island on the Danube is a favorite gathering place during summer months, when both locals and tourist can be seen swimming, sunbathing, or just simply enjoying a drink in numerous cafes along the beaches. For those who like to sail, there are free boats that depart from the restaurant Vrške.

While Vukovar may not be the place of your dreams, it is worth visiting to honor the town that got back on its feet thanks to its proud citizens who didn’t let it become just another destroyed city in the wake of the war. Today, thanks to its connection with other major cities, Vukovar can be easily reached, either by bus or via river, and a lot of tourist use these ways to come here and witness the reborn city.

Plitvice Lakes National Park is one of the oldest national parks in Southeast Europe and the largest national park in Croatia. The national park is world-famous for its lakes arranged in cascades, and 16 lakes can be seen from the surface.

The national park was founded in 1949 and is situated in the mountainous karst area of central Croatia.

The Plitvice Lakes originate in the south of the park area at the confluence of Bijela Rijeka (English White River) and Crna Rijeka (English Black River). These rivers originate south of the municipality of Plitvički Ljeskovac and unite at one of the bridges in this village.

In 1979, Plitvice Lakes National Park was added to the UNESCO World Heritage register.

The protected area extends over 296.85 square kilometres (73,350 acres). About 90% of this area is part of Lika-Senj County, while the remaining 10% is part of Karlovac County. The lakes are separated into an upper and lower cluster formed by runoff from the mountains, descending from an altitude of 636 to 503 m (2,087 to 1,650 ft) over a distance of some eight km, aligned in a south-north direction. The lakes collectively cover an area of about two square kilometres (0.77 square miles), with the water exiting from the lowest lake forming the Korana River.

The name Plitvice was first mentioned in a written document in 1777 by Dominik Vukasović, the priest of Otočac. This name was designated due to natural phenomena that have created the lakes. Nature formed shallow basins (Croatian pličina or plitvak, plitko means shallow), which have been filled with water. For centuries, water has changed the limestone and thus the landscape of this area.

The overall water body area of the national park is about 2 km2 (0.77 sq mi). The two largest lakes, Prošćansko jezero and Kozjak, cover about 80 percent of the overall water body area. These lakes are also the deepest, with a depth of 37 and 47 metres (121 and 154 ft) respectively. On Lake Kozjak, low-noise and ecologically-friendly electric boats are being used. None of the other lakes in the park exceeds 25 metres (82 feet) in depth. The altitude drop from the first lake to the last is 133 metres (436 feet).

The 16 lakes that can be seen from the surface are grouped into the 12 Upper Lakes (Gornja jezera) and the four Lower Lakes (Donja jezera).

The Plitvice Lakes national park is heavily forested, mainly with beech, spruce, and fir trees, and features a mixture of Alpine and Mediterranean vegetation. It has a notably wide variety of plant communities, due to its range of microclimates, differing soils and varying levels of altitude.

Scientists have so far listed 1,267 different plants out of 109 species that can be found within the area of the national park. 75 plants are endemic, which means that they have first been defined and classified in this area of the world or not far from it.

For reasons of the poor industrial development of this region and early introduced protection measures, a nearly untouched landscape has been preserved. In the partially primeval beech and fir forests various rare species, such as the brown bear have survived. At the Plitvice Lakes, all species continue to exist that have already existed before the coming of man. This is a rare case worldwide.