A Family Break in Karlovac

Where is that famed town on the four rivers? Are there really four  rivers there? Can we swim in all of them? Or go rowing? How many fish species are there in the rivers? Do they sleep? And what if there’s still a dragon living in the old castle? How did we get schools? What does a river mouth look like? Is there an Homeland War museum? Why does Karlovac have a Star? I want to take a traditional boat ride! Daddy, can you row? Mummy, when are we going to visit this town called Karlovac? We could take my brother, too!

If you happen to have a similar discussion with your children regarding a trip to Karlovac, let them explore all the opportunities by themselves. Planning a family break there will be a joyous highlight of the week and a motivation to finish all your everyday duties and chores.

No matter if your family consists of children, your parents, just yourself or if you’re coming with a dog, a family trip to Karlovac is an ideal getaway from your busy life and weekly stress. If you like water, you’ll feel at home here. And if you like the colour green, you’ll get to know all its shades. If you like history… What else can we say other than – welcome!

Karlovac

Take a peek at the town’s rich history

And now imagine a day in Karlovac! Your starting point is the spot furthest away from the town’s historic centre, both spatially and historically. It is the Dubovac Castle, overlooking the whole town. It offers a breathtaking view you’ll never forget. The next historic dimension is going to take you to the Town Museum and the historic centre, the Star that will guide you to your next adventure. In the shade of the main belfry you’ll find the hidden entrance to the Franciscan Museum where the most precious Karlovac treasures are kept. Check it out for yourselves!

The last history lesson is going to take you back to the most recent past, to the Homeland War Museum in Turanj. This intriguing interactive museum will attract the younger visitors with its modern communication methods, while the older visitors will be reminded of the future-building times. You are allowed to feel sad, too… Occasions and time for that luxury are now so few and far between.

Relax, take a break… or go for an adventure!

If you’re tired of all that intricate history, relax on the patio of one of the many cafés in Karlovac. Whichever you choose, you’ll be surrounded by the shade of trees and have a view of the beautiful greenery around you. You might want to roll in the grass, sit on the soft green carpet of the Karlovac moats and feel like a child again. If you are visiting with your children, show them how it’s done! Return to the times when everything was so easy and carefree. And if that is not challenging enough, we’ll take you to the 4 Rivers Adrenaline Sports Park, so you can show all your skills there!

If you’re still thinking about the question from the beginning of this story, do the fish sleep, it is time to visit the Aquatica Freshwater Aquarium Karlovac. There you’ll find the answers to all your questions about fish and the water world of the Karlovac rivers, and you’ll also catch a glimpse of this peculiar underwater world.

After so many questions and answers, it’s lunch-time now! Choose what you like best and taste the traditional local specialties: mushrooms from the nearby woods, freshwater fish, beer bread, since, after all, this is the town with its own fifth river – the river of beer, or simply let a local masterchef serve a surprise selection of dishes. We guarantee they know what you like.

Also, you can change the whole plan at a moment’s notice and let the attraction of the beautiful rivers make you show off your rowing skills to the rest of your family. Row in Karlovac! Count all the fish among the river plants and check for yourself what you’ve learnt about the various species at the Aquatica. Or just drift along the river. Get on board of the historic Grain Boat on the Kupa river, get into a kayak on the Korana or go for a safari-rafting from one river mouth to the other. Use the opportunity to swim in all the four Karlovac rivers in a single day!

And at the end of the day, you’ll realize that just one day is not enough and that you still haven’t toured the area on a bicycle, gone over the pristine Mrežnica cascades in a kayak, and you haven’t even seen the sunset from a restaurant on one of the Kupa’s banks or the sunrise while standing on the old wooden bridge over the Korana river.

Plan a weekend full of possibilities

A whole day of exploring Karlovac will certainly open up a host of various new questions and inspire your wish to get all the answers. Where is the oldest music school in Croatia? What is the oldest tree in the town’s parks? Where do the town’s squirrels and owls live? Why does Karlovac have the best scent in June? Why is the town theatre called Zorin dom and did a Zora live there? Where are the locals taken on their final journey? Why has Karlovac given us so many famous explorers and who were they? How can we dive from the Foginovo River Beach tower? How do the locals live? Where did Nikola Tesla go to school and what inspired his inventions?

Just one day in Karlovac? Hmmm… Plan a whole weekend! Sounds much better! A weekend in Karlovac consists of numerous variations on a theme of your own choice: a weekend at Dubovac, a weekend at the Korana, a pilgrimage weekend, a gastronomical weekend, an active weekend, a green weekend, a weekend at a summer house. You can also combine the themes and colours, the tastes and activities, there are innumerable combinations for a high-quality escape from your routine. Or just join the locals and their habits and find out why they love their weekends. Hire a local guide or wander around on your own. Choose your points on the town plan and draw an outline of your Karlovac weekend. It is bound to make for an interesting drawing.

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