Fužine and its lakes
This is where most of our homes in the hills are. Fužine is a small resort village beside Lake Bajer, with Lake Lepenica a few minutes away for swimming and paddling, and the Vrelo cave, a show cave with lit walkways, in the village itself. Walking and cycling trails run round the lakes. Rijeka is around half an hour down the motorway, and Rijeka airport about 50 minutes.
Best for: Families who want lakes, a show cave and the coast within reach
Not for you if: You want a beach week: the nearest sea is a 30 to 40 minute drive.
Plitvice and Lika (Rudanovac, Plitvice, Kuterovo, Gospić, Lovinac, Otočac)
Rudanovac is a village near Korenica, around 15 minutes from the Plitvice Lakes national park, and the other Plitvice homes are closer still. Kuterevo, near Otočac, has a refuge for orphaned brown bears. Gospić is the main town of Lika, with Nikola Tesla's birthplace at Smiljan nearby, and Lovinac is to the south below the Velebit mountains. Zadar airport is around an hour and a half from Plitvice, and Zagreb about two hours.
Best for: Visiting the Plitvice Lakes early, before the coach tours arrive
Not for you if: You want to be near the Kvarner coast: Lika is further south and inland, closer to Zadar.
Delnice, Lokve and Risnjak national park
Delnice is the main town of Gorski Kotar, with shops, a station on the Zagreb to Rijeka railway and trails up into Risnjak national park, whose entrance is at Crni Lug. Lokve sits beside Lake Lokvarsko, with the Golubinjak forest park on its edge. Brown bears, wolves and lynx live in these forests, though you are unlikely to see them. Rijeka airport is about an hour away.
Best for: Serious walkers and anyone after deep forest and cool air
Not for you if: You want evenings out: Delnice is the only proper town and it is quiet after dark.
Mrkopalj, Ravna Gora and Jasenak (the high plateau)
This is the highest and snowiest part of Gorski Kotar. Mrkopalj and nearby Sunger are small villages on a plateau with cross-country trails and a modest ski slope, and Ravna Gora is a little lower on the old road to the coast. Jasenak lies below Bjelolasica, the highest mountain in Gorski Kotar. In summer these villages are quiet bases for walking and mushroom hunting. Rijeka airport is around an hour away.
Best for: Snowy winter weeks and cross-country skiing
Not for you if: You want a proper downhill ski holiday: the lifts here are few and small.
The Kupa valley (Brod na Kupi, Čabar, Brod Moravice, Skrad, Vrbovsko)
The Kupa river forms the border with Slovenia here, and in summer people kayak, raft and swim in its green water. Brod na Kupi is a riverside village, and Čabar is upstream, closer to the source of the Kupa. Skrad has the Zeleni vir waterfall and the Vražji prolaz gorge walk, while Brod Moravice and Vrbovsko sit on wooded ridges above the river. Zagreb airport is around one and a quarter hours away.
Best for: Canoeing, river swimming and gorge walks
Not for you if: You mind poor phone signal and winding roads: the valley is remote and slow to drive.
Ogulin and Bosiljevo
Ogulin sits below Klek, a jagged limestone peak tied to local witch legends, and the town's castle holds a museum of the fairy tales of Ivana Brlić-Mažuranić, who was born here. Lake Sabljaci, just outside town, has a beach for summer swimming. Bosiljevo, to the north, is a village with a castle near the motorway. Zagreb airport is around an hour and a quarter away.
Best for: Fairy-tale history, a rock peak and a lake for swimming
Not for you if: You want mountain views from the door: Ogulin is a working town on the plain.
