Character
The route leads through hilly terrain. The climbs are never very long or steep. The stage lengths are moderate. Only on the second day from Fužine to Otocac should you start early. This stage is a little more strenuous due to its length. Always take enough provisions with you! The few catering facilities between the stage destinations are not always open.
Organiser
We travelled with the highly recommended cycle tour operator Inselhüpfen. They offer the tour of Croatia as an individual cycle tour. All overnight stays are booked and the return transfer to the starting point is organised. We also received a GPS loaner with the tracks of all the daily stages as well as the route descriptions in printed road books. Transfers from airports or railway stations can also be booked.
www.inselhuepfen.de, Tel. 07531/36186-0
Stages
1) Round trip Fužine - Risnjak National Park - Fužine (54 km, 954 metres altitude)
2) Fužine - Melnice - Otocac (85 km, 1164 metres altitude)
3) Otocac - Plitvice Lakes National Park (48 km, 650 m elevation gain)
4) Plitvice Lakes National Park - Slunj (48 km, 607 m elevation gain)
5) Slunj - Karlovac (68 km, 763 metres altitude)
You can find the GPX track for the tour here:
Best time to travel
From May to October. The climate in the mountains of northern Croatia is somewhat cooler than on the coast of Kvarner Bay. However, as the highest point of the trip is less than 1000 metres above sea level, the climate is not really harsh even in spring or autumn. However, it can get chilly in the evenings.
Information
Croatian National Tourist Board - Frankfurt, Tel. 069/2385350,
www.croatia.hr/de-de/homepage
Worth seeing
Risnjak National Park: the mountainous hiking paradise is the habitat of rare animals such as lynx, wolves and brown bears.
Plitvice Lakes National Park: made famous by the Winnetou films.
Rastoke in Slunj: a picture-book miniature landscape of streams, waterfalls and old mills.
Karlovac: one of the youngest towns in Croatia, designed as a fortress during the Renaissance. The baroque old town was badly damaged during the Croatian War, but has been largely restored.
Journey
By car via Salzburg - Villach - Ljubljana - Rijeka in the direction of Zagreb to Fužine.
By plane to Zagreb or Rijeka and taxi transfer to the starting point.
By train via Ljubljana to Rijeka. Journey time 10 hours. The most comfortable way to travel is by night train from
Munich to Rijeka.
Literature / Maps
Travel Guide Northern Croatia - Zagreb & Kvarner Bay, Michael Müller Verlag, ISBN 978-3-89953-709-3, 19,90 €;
Car & Leisure Map Croatia North, 1:200,000, Freytag & Berndt,
EAN 9783707904598, 9,99 €
