Ravni kotari
SUGGESTIONS
Embark on the enchanting hiking and trekking adventures through the local landscapes and attractions of the region. Explore the Homeland Museum located in a medieval castle in Benkovac, which will narrate the story of the people and life of this area through the centuries. Nearby, historical towns from the UNESCO World Heritage list await your discovery, along with those yet to be explored, all within your reach. Four national parks and three nature parks are within easy reach, each with its unique story and beauty.
LOCAL TOURS
CULTURE HOME BENKOVAC
Located in the very center of Benkovac, the Cultural Center is an unmissable place for all lovers of art and cultural events. This cultural center brings together local and visiting artists throughout the year and offers a diverse program that enriches your stay in Bukovica and Ravni Kotari.
Visitors can enjoy concerts, theater performances, film screenings, exhibitions and numerous other events that showcase the richness of local tradition and contemporary creativity. The Benkovac Cultural Center is not just a place for events - it is a space for meetings, inspiration and an authentic experience of the community. If you are looking for a special cultural atmosphere and an opportunity to get to know the local identity through art, be sure to visit the Cultural Center and become part of its lively atmosphere!
HIKING & TREKKING
The beauty of the hidden paths and view of the cultivated fields, olive groves and vineyards on the karstic land of Bukovica and fertile Ravni Kotari tell us tirelessly about the local people's history. While hiking or just walking along the marked paths, you can discover hidden corners and unimaginable beauty, and maybe even get to meet modest and hospitable local people. Explore the hidden gems and enjoy the views of our region's unforgettable landscapes.
A divine combination of sea and mountains, and karst and fertile fields, will fill the hearts of every visitor that will surely come back to this country and people.
Walk through the untouched nature, forget about the time and satisfy your genuine curiosity.
MUSEUM
Heritage Museum Benkovac developed from a small heritage collection in the medieval Fort Benković, that dominates over Benkovac. Within the stone construction under a hundred-year-old chestnut tree, you will feel a special vibration of the place while getting closer through an impressive lapidarium that tells you about the Liburnians and the arrival of the Roman Empire.
Besides the museum value and exhibition, the Fort became a starting point for learning about this area's past and a place for gathering all information necessary for independent exploring of the valuable cultural-historical heritage monuments of Ravni Kotari and Bukovica, from the prehistory to the modern times. The rare mould showing the she-wolf suckling the founders of Rome Romulus and Rem or the three-barrel cannon, unique in the world, that matches the drawing of the Renaissance genius Leonardo da Vinci, as well as the Liburnian-Roman gravestones called Cipus, are just one part of this area's remarkable history traces.
PARKS
There is a wide range of various natural beauties within these parks. If you wish to reach the mountain peaks through the rocky canyons or the primaeval beech forests from UNESCO's World Heritage List or walk along the karstic river, head towards the NP Paklenica and NP Velebit. If you wish to sail among the unforgettable 89 islands, islets and reefs, visit NP Kornati and remember what the famous Nobel Prize winner George Bernard Shaw said after he had visited Kornati: "On the last day of the Creation, God desired to crown his work, and thus created the Kornati Islands out of tears, stars and breath." The deepest bay in the Adriatic Sea that protects the islands with 150-meter-high cliffs is in the Nature Park Telašćica. If you wish to enjoy the abundance of waterfalls from the source to the mouth of the magical river Krka, visit the national park of the same name. Within the Plitvice Lakes, the oldest national park in Croatia and protected by UNESCO's World Heritage Convention, there is an infinite flora and fauna untouched for decades. With their glorious cataracts, Plitvice Lakes connect and divide 16 amazing lakes of the river Korana to the biggest waterfall in the country, that is, with its 87-meter-height, simply called the Big Waterfall. Nature Park Vrana Lake, the biggest freshwater lake in Croatia, with its narrow dug-out passage to the sea, is a heaven for bird lovers because their Ornithological Reserve was enlisted as a Ramsar site according to the 1971 Ramsar Convention and is very proud of 251 bird species that live, nest and/or spend winter in the Park.
