The Krka Waterfalls & Town of Skradin

[duquephart]

Who has done this excursion out of Split? Please weigh in on the amount of walking/difficulty and the excursion overall. TIA.

[CCWineLover]

13 minutes ago, duquephart said:

Who has done this excursion out of Split? Please weigh in on the amount of walking/difficulty and the excursion overall. TIA.

Interested as well.  We've signed up for this in February/Saturn.

[JollyJacqTar]

We did this September 21, so it may not be exactly as we experienced it. We we warned in the previous evening’s port talk that some people might find it challenging as although it’s well laid out with wooden paths and bridges you do have to go downhill which inevitably means you have to come back uphill. My husband is very active and was able to navigate the rather steep stairs back up with ease, I am overweight and far less active but managed well enough by stopping periodically for a breather. However there were a couple people on the tour who were surprised by the level of activity and complained that they “hadn’t been warned” which was nonsense, I think the tour was well described in advance. It’s difficult to offer specific advice as everyone’s capabilities are different. Once back on the coach we headed for Skradin, which was all on a level as far as I remember .We parked in a side street and wandered down to the pretty harbour. There was some time constraint which meant we weren’t there long, but it wasn’t very big. Hope my opinion is useful.

[CCWineLover]

5 hours ago, JollyJacqTar said:

We did this September 21, so it may not be exactly as we experienced it. We we warned in the previous evening’s port talk that some people might find it challenging as although it’s well laid out with wooden paths and bridges you do have to go downhill which inevitably means you have to come back uphill. My husband is very active and was able to navigate the rather steep stairs back up with ease, I am overweight and far less active but managed well enough by stopping periodically for a breather. However there were a couple people on the tour who were surprised by the level of activity and complained that they “hadn’t been warned” which was nonsense, I think the tour was well described in advance. It’s difficult to offer specific advice as everyone’s capabilities are different. Once back on the coach we headed for Skradin, which was all on a level as far as I remember .We parked in a side street and wandered down to the pretty harbour. There was some time constraint which meant we weren’t there long, but it wasn’t very big. Hope my opinion is useful.

Thank you so much!  This helps a lot.

It's been our experience as well that people blindly go on excursions which they aren't capable of doing due to physical issues.  Sadly, not everyone pays attention to the various warnings.

[duquephart]

"Moderate" seems to be a broad description.

[JollyJacqTar]

After I posted the above I talked to my husband about it. We’re not 100% sure but there might have been parts of the uphill journey that you could walk up a road that snaked back and forth, so perhaps quite a bit longer but not as steep and tiring as the stairs. Google maps might clarify this. Also I’m sure the stairs had hand rails and the paths very well maintained. 

[TayanaLorna]

@JollyJacqTar thank you so much for your description and candid evaluation of your ability.  We signed up for the Falcony and Waterfalls one.  Although slow, I manage walking up stairs better then down them.  I can do this one!

[curmudgeon98]

I don't know the specifics of the Viking excursion.  When we visited a couple of years ago, we drove into Skradin by car, then took the boat up the river (pretty ride) to near the base of the falls, spent several hours walking the loop through the falls area, and then took the boat back.  It was quite scenic, though not really majestic in the way some big waterfalls are.  I'd put the amount of walking and steps on the stiffer end of "moderate", though that is of course in the eye of the beholder.  We probably did 15K steps that day, though you could shorten it.

[Messybill]

This is not an easy tour.  The Falconry Center is straightforward and absolutely worth doing.  The falls is OK but to be honest I would pay extra to skip it and just do the Falconry.   The falls is a long walk down beside some burbling moving water with various interesting bugs and huge numbers of other people moving in all directions.  Thinking about it now I cannot imagine why it appeals to anyone.   The walk back up (for us) was in the heat of the day and a significant uphill climb.  We are not young and spry, but in the end we waited 40+ minutes at the top in the sun for the rest of the group to make it back up the hill.  The bus was not there until the last minute so we spent our time looking for places to sit in the shade -- not very successfully.  

[CCWineLover]

1 hour ago, Messybill said:

This is not an easy tour.  The Falconry Center is straightforward and absolutely worth doing.  The falls is OK but to be honest I would pay extra to skip it and just do the Falconry.   The falls is a long walk down beside some burbling moving water with various interesting bugs and huge numbers of other people moving in all directions.  Thinking about it now I cannot imagine why it appeals to anyone.   The walk back up (for us) was in the heat of the day and a significant uphill climb.  We are not young and spry, but in the end we waited 40+ minutes at the top in the sun for the rest of the group to make it back up the hill.  The bus was not there until the last minute so we spent our time looking for places to sit in the shade -- not very successfully.  

Yikes!  Not a very ringing endorsement.  Maybe we'll cancel.

[millybess]

1 hour ago, Messybill said:

We are not young and spry......

Haha, speak for yourself 🥰 

 

But no, the falls in our opinion wasn't worth it.  It's probably something you could see at a park not too far from where you live.  

 

We could do the Falconry Centre over and over.  So worth it,  and if we were there again, we would do the Falconry Centre on a private tour without the falls.  

[curmudgeon98]

22 minutes ago, CCWineLover said:

Yikes!  Not a very ringing endorsement.  Maybe we'll cancel.

For CCWineLover, I might put it in California context; for visual impact Krka is nothing like Vernal Falls in Yosemite or Big Sur.  It might be more like doing a moderate loop through Pinnacles NM; somewhat interesting, but a bit of a workout for what you get. 

[OneSixtyToOne]

3 hours ago, CCWineLover said:

Yikes!  Not a very ringing endorsement.  Maybe we'll cancel.

I suggest time is better spent at the Diocletian Palace. We took the optional tour of the Meštrović Gallery and really enjoyed it.

[duquephart]

13 hours ago, millybess said:

Haha, speak for yourself 🥰 

 

But no, the falls in our opinion wasn't worth it.  It's probably something you could see at a park not too far from where you live.  

 

We could do the Falconry Centre over and over.  So worth it,  and if we were there again, we would do the Falconry Centre on a private tour without the falls.  

 

Does the falconry excursion include the same amount of walking at the falls or is it more of a drive by?

[millybess]

6 minutes ago, duquephart said:

 

Does the falconry excursion include the same amount of walking at the falls or is it more of a drive by?

It's more sitting down and watching.  The owner does let some people interact with a few different birds.  It was very informative and fun.

[duquephart]

I was asking about the falls portion of the excursion.

[millybess]

4 hours ago, duquephart said:

I was asking about the falls portion of the excursion.

The falls is a lot of walking down and then up.  If you have never seen a waterfalls before it would be worth it.  If you are going at a hot time of year, it's not pleasant going back up as there is no shade.  Going down to the falls there is a lot of shade, but there are many people choosing that path to go back up in the other direction, so you have to move off to the side.  If we had thought of it, and if you go, that might be the way to go back up as it is very shady and is a gentle climb.

 

The falconry is a short walk to a circle of chairs where you sit, watch, listen and participate.

[duquephart]

What I'm asking: Is the waterfalls portion of the falconry excursion the same amount of walking (up and down) or more of a drive by? Can the walk be shortened or avoided?

[Messybill]

15 minutes ago, duquephart said:

What I'm asking: Is the waterfalls portion of the falconry excursion the same amount of walking (up and down) or more of a drive by? Can the walk be shortened or avoided?

It is the same amount of up as down.  You get off the bus at the top (the bus goes away).   You walk down, then you can buy stuff at the bottom and then you walk up (to where you started).  Then you wait for the bus to come back.  You might choose to walk down a little way then turn around and come back, but then you get to wait in the sun for the bus to return. It is not a drive-by

Edited January 13 by Messybill

[curmudgeon98]

2 hours ago, duquephart said:

What I'm asking: Is the waterfalls portion of the falconry excursion the same amount of walking (up and down) or more of a drive by? Can the walk be shortened or avoided?

You could shorten the walk, and maybe hang out at the upper level.  There is a basic little cafe.

 

https://www.npkrka.hr/wp-content/uploads/SkradinskiBuk.pdf

[duquephart]

We'd like to see the falconry but fear the declines (her) and inclines (me) might be too much. Anybody have any luck with private tours to falconry?