Hotel Plitvice (Lodging)
Address and Website: Plitvička jezera bb, 53231, Plitvička Jezera, Croatia; Phone: 385 53 751 400; www.np-plitvicka-jezera.hr/en
Location: The hotel’s location is why you stay here. Other than the park hotels, there aren’t hotel options close to the park. We walked right down to the lake and the park’s bus stopped right in that area, as well. There may be some B&B’s a distance outside the park, but nothing is as close. Also, the hotel had a restaurant for meals which was a benefit as there isn’t much else in the area for food other than the park's few restaurants.
Overall: This hotel is definitely old and outdated. However, it is in an ideal location for exploring Plitvice Lakes, and for one night, it's fine. Honestly, by default, this hotel is your best bet; it is nicer than most of the park’s other hotels and has the most reasonable price to value ratio. Everything in the place reminded me of the 1970s from the color scheme to the light fixtures to the dining staff in their uniforms trying to make the place feel formal when it most definitely was not. The common areas weren’t too bad, but the dining room area and the rooms were like a step back in time. The A/C in our room didn’t do very much, and it was relatively warm, but I didn’t open any windows because of mosquitoes (no screens). Eating in the restaurant was worth it just to not have to go out and find something to eat--there isn't much around. We booked our room with half board, which included dinner. However, even if you booked the room without it, breakfast was included, and I found out later that they had an ala carte dinner menu that anyone could order off of which seemed to have a lot more variety than the 3 options we were given with the fixed menu for half-board. So you might be better off just eating off of that menu (it will cost a bit more but provide more variety). The food we had wasn’t all that wonderful, but it was edible. Breakfast didn’t have a huge variety, but there was enough there to fill up on for a morning of hiking (oatmeal and cereal and some hot items), tea, coffee, etc.
Hotel Staff: The staff were friendly enough. The front desk helped us with getting our pass stamped so that it was good for multiple days instead of one (if you are staying in the park, your pass will work on the days you are staying as opposed to only one day). They also assisted us with any questions we had about the exchange rate or check-out.
Room: Our room was so-so. The good: The bathroom and room itself were both rather large (I paid for an economy double). In fact, we had an extra ½ bath, as well. We had a little balcony that we could go out on if we chose to (nothing too exciting), and we had a little area we could sit and watch the tiny TV. The not so good: The bedspread looked VERY old. We didn’t even use it. The mattress had also probably seen better days. The room seemed clean but definitely dingy. The carpet, the lamps, the TV, everything felt very outdated. It was fine for one night, but I wouldn’t want to spend an entire vacation there.
Hotel Plitvice Restaurant (Restaurant)
Address and Website: Plitvička jezera bb, 53231, Plitvička Jezera, Croatia; Phone: 385 53 751 400; www.np-plitvicka-jezera.hr/en
Location: The restaurant’s location is the reason why you eat here. If you are staying in Plitvice Lakes, particularly at this hotel, it is really convenient, and there isn’t much else within the park. After a long day of hiking (or driving to get here), the last thing you will feel like doing is driving miles and miles to find something else. So as a one-night option, it’s edible and convenient.
Overall: Overall, it was so-so. I booked the half-board with our room reservation. For 12 Euros you got a small salad, an entrée, and a small dessert. While this was not a bad value, there was only a prix fixed menu to choose from with 3 options for the entrée and 2 for dessert. If I had known the half board was a prix fixed menu, I probably would have just chose to go ala carte. That menu, while a bit more expense, was more extensive, and some of options I would have much preferred to ours. For our entrée, we both had the grilled pork. It was ok, but I didn’t particularly like the flavor. It came with some chopped potatoes on the side. For dessert, there was a choice between fruit (a slice of watermelon) and a slice of cake. None of the portions were huge; for a full grown man who has been hiking all day, it may not be enough to truly fill him up.
Atmosphere: The restaurant (and the whole hotel) felt like a step back into the 1970s. The staff wore tuxedo vests and bow ties and acted very formal (everything was brought out on a serving cart, serving you from the correct side, etc). It felt very out of place given the casual way most people were dressed for dinner. The decorative lights at the entrance were also typical 70’s style—colored chandeliers and strangely shaped bulb covers. It was definitely different. For one night, it was fine. The dining room is also where they serve the included breakfast in the morning which was basic but enough to fill you for a morning of hiking.
