CLEAR RIVERS COUNTRY MULTISPORT

This multi activity adventure holiday will take you along the Mreznica River, through Plitvice Lakes National Park and to the Una River in Bosnia. You will explore this unique area on foot, by bike, on a Stand Up Paddle Board (SUP), from a kayak and raft. Our guides will seize every opportunity to steer you away from the busy everyday life ensuring a truly memorable experience which you will cherish for many years to come. The Mreznica is considered one of Croatia’s cleanest rivers, with plenty of great places for swimming, canoeing, stand up paddle boarding, kayaking and rafting. The river is 64 km long, and is special for its 93 waterfalls and pools of warm water between them, perfect for refreshment away from beach crowds. Clear green water, unspoiled woods and magical landscapes make it one of Croatia’s most desirable continental retreats.

The accommodation is a friendly, family-run, 3* hotel on the bank of the Mreznica River, approximately one hour drive from Zagreb and Rijeka airports. The restaurant overlooks an old mill close to a small waterfall and serves freshly caught fish, as well as home-grown vegetables. Barbecues are also a speciality of the house. All rooms are equipped with en suite bathrooms, TV, mini bar, telephone, air conditioning and have Internet access.

Arrival to Croatia. Our guide will be waiting for you at Zagreb or Rijeka airport, bus or train station. If previously arranged, the pickup may be at Karlovac or Zvecaj bus or train station. You will be transferred to your accommodation 70 km from Zagreb in Zvecaj village, by the Mreznica River. After settling into your room, you can have a drink on the terrace overlooking the Mreznica and its waterfalls, walk by the river, go for a swim or just relax. Meet the other members of the group over dinner and discuss the upcoming itinerary with your guide.

The day of water activities on the Mreznica starts with kayaking in front of the hotel. We use two-person sit-on-top kayaks which are easy and safe to navigate. After a short introduction to paddling, we push off upstream for a refreshing fun on the clear, warm and emerald waters of this river with numerous waterfalls. Due to its biological diversity and variety of habitats, the Mreznica area should soon be categorized as a Croatian Nature Park. It is home to many endangered and protected plant and animal species that you may get a chance to observe. These include 4 species of birds from the “red list” of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature – the Golden Eagle, the Lesser Spotted Eagle, the Western Capercaillie and the Great White Egret. After a light picnic, we’ll paddle back to the hotel.

In the afternoon we will change our kayaks with stand up paddle boards and discover the river bed from a different perspective. Starting with short introduction you will have an active yet easy afternoon to start of the week. The day will be filled with swimming, jumping off the waterfalls and enjoying beautiful nature. Later in the afternoon we will have some free time to rest and will end the day with a group dinner on the restaurant terrace.

(Please note that in case of high water levels we use rafting boats.)

Today you can be as active as you wish. You can relax by the river, swim, play beach volleyball or even take another optional bike tour on your own. Several optional trips will be proposed in case you are keen on discovering more beauties that Croatia has to offer: day on the Adriatic Sea, hiking in national parks, river canoeing and sightseeing.

We return to the river this morning in the upper Mreznica canyon. Our route takes us from the hotel to a point approximately 45 minutes away where we’ll start our expedition into the canyon. We travel through a gorge so narrow and deep that the sun enters for only a few hours each day, around noon, creating spectacular light effects. Paddling past cliffs of carved white rocks, lush vegetation and cascading waterfalls, we will arrive at a strong freshwater spring. We continue our journey to the second highest waterfall on the Mreznica (8m), a magical place ideal for swimming and a picnic. After a break, we continue and finish the adventure and finally return to the hotel in the late afternoon.

Please note that in case of very low water levels the trip can only be done downstream – in that case the duration of kayaking is 2-3 hours. In case of high water levels we use rafting boats (2 hours of rafting).