What better way to get out of your comfort zone than a morning jumping off rocks into moderately cold rapids with the Croatian sun blazing down on you? Our kids were really excited for this day trip from Omis so, if you’re visiting and you’re looking for an adventurous but child-friendly activity, canyoning the Cetina River is one heck of a lot of fun.
Please note kids must be over 8 years of age.
Enlarge
How To Book Canyoning Canyoning the Cetina River In Omis
We booked our trip from Dalmare Travel Agency in Omis. Their website states this activity is good for children aged over 8 years.
This activity cost us €42 each.
Enlarge
Collection Vs Meeting Point
You can either meet the group leaders near the minibus in Omis Town and be transported over to the gorge or you can arrange to meet them at the drop off point in the village of Zadvarje.
If you drive, do be aware that the meeting and finish place are in different areas of the gorge – obviously. You’d need to arrange that there was space in the minibus for them to take you back up to the start.
Enlarge
Enlarge
What Should You Wear And Take With You?
The Cetina River temperature is approximately 15-20*c in the summer. It isn’t the warmest but it’s also not that cold. You should take with you:
- Wear your swimwear as I’m unsure if there are changing rooms.
- Our kids wore swimwear and long-sleeved rashies (like this one).
- Supported trainers; no open toes.
- A bag to leave in the minibus with a towel, your clothes and something warmer to put on if necessary, like a hoodie.
- Bags for holding your wet clothes and towels.
- Dry shoewear and socks.
- Snacks & drinks.
Enlarge
Enlarge
Equipment You Borrow
You will be given the following:
- Wetsuit
- Helmet
- Lifejacket
The kid’s wetsuits were too big for them and they had to roll them up, so if you have kids wetsuits, definitely take them with you. Ours weren’t adversely affected by it, it just meant they had to periodically stop to let water out and re-roll them.
Enlarge
Enlarge
Hiking Whilst Canyoning the Cetina River
You need to be relatively fit and active to do this activity because there’s a bit of hiking, scrambling and jumping to be done and that’s before you’ve even got in the water!
The activity starts at the top of the valley and you need to scramble and jump some rocks to start with. There are rope supports too but you do need to be generally fit and eager.
Enlarge
Enlarge
Canyoning The Gorge
The temperature of the water took me by surprise at first. If you’ve ever been to Croatia you’ll know that the summer months are hot, especially near Split. After a bit of a trek to the water, you get a bit hot and sweaty and the first dunk is the river is more than refreshing.
Canyoning is a whole lot of fun and even though I am not that fond of cold water, even I had an excellent time.
Enlarge
Enlarge
Jumping Into The Rock Pools
Jumping is not compulsory and although there are lots of opportunities to put your adventurous spirit to the test, there are other options for those not so brave!
We went with a group of 20-something young males who were all eager to show off to each other which made it hilarious fun. They were all trying to jump from higher places and one admitted later that he’d been terrified but exhilarated.
Our group were very supportive of the kids, who did jump from various places, and the guys cheered them on which was really nice and quite unexpected. My kids jumping was probably no surprise really given their jumping history in Indonesia!
Enlarge
Enlarge
There’s Also A Tiny Bit Of Caving
There’s even a section where you leave the river and traverse a man-made shute and although it doesn’t last for long, it’s incredibly dark.
Enlarge
Enlarge
Get Ready For The Swimming
All of our kids are very confident in the water and can swim well. They were given a lifejacket to help keep them buoyant however if your kids are not confident in the water you should know that there would be times when the water goes over their faces, they go underwater for a few seconds and at the end there is quite a lengthy swim through the flat river.
Enlarge
Fancy Extreme Canyoning?
I actually didn’t know that extreme canyoning was on offer until we were in the water so we didn’t do it. To do this patch of abseiling you’ll need to be over 18.
It’s two small areas of abseiling over the rock face; it didn’t look too challenging but it did look fun and certainly nothing our kids wouldn’t be capable of (which is always the way!)
Enlarge
Enlarge
Walking Back To The Minibus
After quite a lengthy swim through a particularly picturesque and glistening part of the gorge, you’ll meet the road and have a short walk back to the minibus. It might be roughly a kilometre although I’m not sure.
By this stage you should be starving after expending all that energy so don’t forget some snack bars to leave in the minibus.
Enlarge
Enlarge
Pay Extra For Photos Whilst Canyoning the Cetina River
One of the group leaders takes photos with a GoPro that you purchase for an extra 100 kuna. Despite taking the photos in this post with my daughter’s Nikon Underwater Camera (purchase your own underwater camera by clicking the link) we decided to purchase them and turned them into this quirky video!
Other Adventurous Activities For Kids In Omis
If you’re looking for other adventurous kid-friendly activities near Split and Omis, check out these below.
Suggestions On Where To Stay Near Omis
Are you looking for somewhere to stay locally? We stayed in the mountains north of Omis in a lovely apartment in Donja Ostrvica. The small village is great for hiking, fresh air, green countryside and the owners brought us fresh fruit regularly. You will need a car to stay up there though. Click here to search for hire cars from Split.
Add This Post To Pinterest?
Want to save this post for later? Use this image to save it to your Pinterest board?
Other Posts From Croatia
