In-depth guide · CampingSpirit
From the stork village of Čigoć via Slavonski Brod, the vineyards of Kutjevo and the Papuk to Đakovo, Osijek, Kopački rit and Baranja, ending in Vukovar and Ilok: around 725 kilometres through flat, quiet eastern Croatia, where you will see more maize fields and grey herons than motorhomes.
The spirit of the route
Slavonia is Croatia without the sea, and that is exactly what defines this route. The roads are straight, the horizons wide; at the edges of the villages stand sweep wells and wooden houses with galleries, and on every other chimney in Lonjsko polje sits a pair of storks. Behind the sliding door it smells of maize straw, poplar wood and river water. On the Papuk it suddenly turns wooded and cool, on the slopes above Kutjevo the Graševina ripens, and in the evening a light hangs over the Danube that tints the floodplain forests of Baranja grey and gold. This landscape also bears scars: Jasenovac and Vukovar recall two wars, and along the former front line the search for mines went on until 2026. Travelling here, you drive slowly, eat fiš paprikaš and kulen, drink the wine where it grows – and plan the driving day so that the mosquitoes are already shut out by evening.
Stage-by-stage plan
1Stage 1: Zagreb (eastern outskirts) to Čigoć (Lonjsko polje Nature Park) (approx. 85 km)
- The drive
- From the Zagreb outskirts via Velika Gorica on the A11 motorway (toll) or the parallel country road to Sisak, then downstream on the narrow country road along the Sava via Topolovac and Gušće to Čigoć. From Sisak the road is narrow, without a hard shoulder and lined with dykes, pastures and poplars; oncoming tractors and farm machinery are normal. Around 1.5 hours of driving time.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Sisak: the triangular Renaissance fortress (Stari grad Sisak) at the confluence of the Kupa and the Sava, scene of the 1593 battle against the Ottomans.
- Čigoć: the “European Stork Village”, with white stork nests on roofs and poles; the storks are here from roughly the end of March to the end of August.
- The Posavina wooden houses built of oak planks, with outside staircases and galleries, in Čigoć, Mužilovčica and further on in Krapje – many still lived in, some open as visitor houses of the nature park.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Tradicije Čigoč is a family business in a traditional wooden house in the middle of the village, with a small camping area, sanitary facilities and home cooking. Also listed in the motorhome apps are the family-run sites of Turizam Ravlić in the neighbouring village of Mužilovčica. Both are small sites without much infrastructure; ask in advance about electricity and waste disposal. A larger, fully equipped site is Camping Osekovo north of the park near Popovača.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): In Lonjsko polje Nature Park, overnight stays outside the registered sites are prohibited, as they are on the dykes and pastures where the Posavina horse and the Turopolje pig roam freely. The dyke and field tracks also turn to clay when wet and are a trap for motorhomes.
- Insider tip for campers
- Before setting off, fill up with fuel, shop and top up water in Zagreb or Sisak – along the Sava there are no filling stations with any choice until Jasenovac. The nature park visitor centres in Čigoć and Krapje sell the day ticket. From dusk the wetlands get very mosquito-ridden: fly screens shut, lights off, repellent on your ankles.
2Stage 2: Čigoć to Požega (Emovački Lug) (approx. 185 km)
- The drive
- Continue on the Sava country road via Lonja and Krapje to Jasenovac, then north to the A3 at Okučani and on the motorway (toll) to Slavonski Brod. After the fortress, take the country road north over the wooded Dilj ridge into the Požega basin, with a few bends and climbs. About 3 hours of driving time; with the memorial site and the fortress, a long day.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Jasenovac Memorial Site: site of the largest concentration camp of the Ustaša state (1941–1945), today a museum and wide memorial grounds with the Stone Flower by Bogdan Bogdanović. An hour is enough for an overview; quiet behaviour goes without saying.
- Brod Fortress in Slavonski Brod: an 18th-century star-shaped border fortress of the Habsburg Military Frontier, partly restored, with a museum and gallery; across the Sava lies Bosnia and Herzegovina.
- The Korzo and the Sava promenade in Slavonski Brod, as well as the 18th-century Franciscan monastery, just a few minutes’ walk from the fortress.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Camp odmorište Zlatni lug in Emovački Lug, around 5 km before Požega on a farm: about 15 large pitches with electricity and water hook-ups, a sanitary building with showers, a washing-up area, Wi-Fi and a chemical toilet disposal point. There is no campsite in Slavonski Brod itself.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): Overnight stays are not permitted in the car park of the Jasenovac Memorial Site or at Brod Fortress, nor would they be appropriate there. The nationwide ban also applies on the Sava promenade.
- Insider tip for campers
- Jasenovac lies right on the border with Bosnia and Herzegovina; the part of the former camp complex at Donja Gradina already belongs to the neighbouring country – do not cross over on a whim without border documents for the vehicle, as Bosnia is not an EU country. In Slavonski Brod the easiest place to park is the large parking areas by the fortress; the town centre is a grid of one-way streets.
3Stage 3: Požega to Velika (Papuk) (approx. 45 km)
- The drive
- A short day through the Zlatna dolina, the “Golden Valley”: from Požega on the country road east to Kutjevo, past vineyard slopes and orchards, then back towards Požega and north to the southern slope of the Papuk at Velika. Flat to gently hilly, well surfaced, under an hour of driving time.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Trg Svetog Trojstva in Požega: baroque main square with a plague column, arcades and the Cathedral of St Teresa – park on the edge and walk in.
- Kutjevo: the historic wine cellar in the baroque manor on the site of the Cistercian abbey founded in 1232, one of the oldest wine cellars in Croatia. Here and in the surrounding cellars Graševina is the leading variety; tastings by appointment.
- Velika: ruins of the medieval Velički grad castle above the village, a short steep climb with a view over the Požega basin.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Kamp odmorište Duboka, run by Papuk Nature Park, lies in the forest above Velika: eleven pitches with electricity and water, a tent meadow, shared sanitary facilities, bike hire and an adventure park next door. Small and popular – enquire in advance, especially at weekends.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): The Papuk is a nature park and UNESCO Geopark; overnight stays outside the campsite, fires and camping in the forest are prohibited. At the hiking car parks: park by day, not at night.
- Insider tip for campers
- If you taste wine in Kutjevo, you are done driving for the day – the blood alcohol limit is 0.5, and 0.0 for under-25s. So plan the tasting for the end of the day and have the bottles packed for you; the cellar grounds have room for motorhomes. Požega has large supermarkets and filling stations; after that, supplies are thin until Našice.
4Stage 4: Velika to Jezero Borovik (near Đakovo) (approx. 150 km)
- The drive
- From Velika via Kamenska on the country road north over the Papuk: winding and in places narrow, through dense beech forest. Down to Voćin and Slatinski Drenovac, and from there a detour on the narrow, roughly 5 km dead-end road to Jankovac. Back and across the Drava plain via Orahovica and Našice south-east to the Borovik reservoir. A good 3 hours of driving time.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Rupnica near Voćin: a rock face of columnar volcanic rock, protected in 1948 as Croatia’s first geological natural monument, with a short nature trail.
- Jankovac: 19th-century forest park of Count Janković with ponds, a mountain hut and the Skakavac waterfall; an easy loop walk of a good hour.
- Našice: Pejačević Palace with the local museum in its park, a comfortable break on the plain.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Kamp Borovik on the Borovik reservoir between Našice and Đakovo is a simple lakeside site, popular with anglers. Check facilities and opening beforehand. Alternative: go back to Duboka or continue to the site in Kopačevo (stage 5) and make Đakovo a day stop.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): Overnight stays are prohibited in the Jankovac car park and by the ponds; the whole area lies within the nature park. In the forest, stay on marked paths (see camping in practice).
- Insider tip for campers
- The crossing of the Papuk, and above all the dead-end road to Jankovac, are hard work with caravans and long motorhomes; with a large vehicle you are better off going round via Kutjevo and Orahovica and leaving the vehicle in Slatinski Drenovac. From there a free road train runs to Jankovac at times – ask the nature park for the timetable. There are filling stations and supermarkets in Orahovica and Našice.
5Stage 5: Jezero Borovik to Kopačevo (approx. 80 km)
- The drive
- A short hop to Đakovo, then on the A5 motorway (toll) or the parallel D7 country road through flat fields to Osijek. Through the city on the main roads along the Drava, over the Drava bridge to Bilje and on to Kopačevo. Straightforward, around 1.5 hours of driving time.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Đakovo Cathedral: the twin-towered neo-Romanesque brick cathedral of Bishop Strossmayer from the 19th century, with a painted interior.
- Đakovo State Stud Farm (Državna ergela): one of the oldest Lipizzaner studs in Europe, with stables in the town and the Ivandvor grazing station.
- Tvrđa in Osijek: the 18th-century baroque fortress town with Holy Trinity Square, churches and barracks; afterwards a stroll along the Drava promenade and across the footbridge.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Family Camper stop in Kopačevo, around 13 km from Osijek and 3 km from the entrance to Kopački rit Nature Park: about 20 grass pitches with electricity and water, sanitary facilities, washing machine, chemical toilet disposal, barbecue terrace and canoe hire. Season roughly April to October. Suitable for two nights as a base for Osijek and Kopački rit.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): In Osijek and Bilje, overnight stays in car parks are not permitted; municipal wardens patrol in the city. In Kopački rit Nature Park, the car parks at the visitor centre are for day use.
- Insider tip for campers
- In Đakovo and Osijek it is best to park on the edge of the old town: around the Tvrđa there are larger parking areas, while the centre has trams and one-way streets. Osijek is the last big city with large supermarkets, LPG filling stations and garages before the Danube.
6Stage 6: Kopačevo to Suza (Baranja) (approx. 55 km)
- The drive
- In the morning into Kopački rit, then via Lug and Vardarac north through Baranja – flat country with loess hills, vineyards and villages with Hungarian place names. Via Kneževi Vinogradi to Zmajevac and on to Batina on the Danube, then back to Suza. Narrow but good roads, short driving times.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Kopački rit Nature Park: floodplain between the Drava and the Danube, a Ramsar site, with a boardwalk from the visitor centre and boat trips on Lake Sakadaš and the channels. White-tailed eagles, black storks, herons and cormorants; in autumn the red deer rut.
- Zmajevac and Suza: wine villages on Bansko brdo with cellars dug into the loess (surduci) and small wine taverns; Graševina, Frankovka, Traminer.
- Batina: the large victory monument by Antun Augustinčić for the battle of 1944, on the hill above the Danube, with a view across the river to Serbia.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Camping Suza Baranje in the wine village of Suza: a small site among vineyards, within walking distance of cellars and restaurants. Check facilities and season on the website beforehand. Alternatively, a second night in Kopačevo.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): In Kopački rit and the Danube wetlands, overnight stays outside the sites are prohibited. Baranja sees fewer checks than the coast, but the ban still applies; wineries with registered pitches are the legal alternative.
- Insider tip for campers
- Boat trips in Kopački rit depend on the water level – at low water in late summer not all tours run, and at high water boardwalks are closed. Ask the visitor centre in advance and go early: there are more birds about and fewer mosquitoes in the morning. In Batina the border bridge to Serbia begins; if you do not want to leave the country, turn round before the bridge.
7Stage 7: Suza to Vukovar (approx. 85 km)
- The drive
- Back via Bilje and around Osijek onto the D2 heading east. After Bijelo Brdo, via Aljmaš and Erdut up onto the Danube terrace, then via Dalj to Vukovar. Flat, good road, little traffic; around 1.5 hours of driving time.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Erdut: the tower of the medieval castle on the loess edge above the Danube, and the cellars of Erdutski vinogradi with a 75,000-litre barrel of Slavonian oak in which Graševina still matures.
- Vukovar Water Tower (Vodotoranj): shot to pieces in the 1991 war, today restored as a memorial with a viewing platform over the town and the Danube. Also the memorial sites of Ovčara and the Memorial Cemetery of Homeland War Victims.
- Vučedol Museum: a modern museum of the Vučedol culture (3rd millennium BC) at the excavation site on the Danube, with the “Vučedol Dove”; plus Eltz Castle with the town museum.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Vukovar has no large campsite; only a few small options at guesthouses and wineries in the surrounding area are listed. Check the current situation in Campercontact or park4night; if you find nothing, drive the 40 km on to Ilok or stay another night in Baranja and visit Vukovar as a day trip.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): Overnight stays are prohibited at the water tower, the Vučedol Museum and the memorial sites – at places such as Ovčara out of respect, too. The banks of the Danube are not pitches.
- Insider tip for campers
- At the water tower and the Vučedol Museum there are coach parking spaces that motorhomes also fit into. For long stretches here the Danube forms the border with Serbia; canoes and boats stay on the Croatian side. Shop and fill up once more in Vukovar.
8Stage 8: Vukovar to Ilok (approx. 40 km)
- The drive
- On the D2 down the Danube via Sotin, Opatovac and Mohovo to Šarengrad and Ilok: the most beautiful drive of the route, along the loess edge between vineyards, with views across into Vojvodina. Around 45 minutes of driving time.
- Highlights & must-sees
- Šarengrad: castle ruins and a Franciscan monastery above a Danube side arm, a quiet village with a view over the wetlands.
- Ilok: the old town of Croatia’s easternmost town, with town walls, Odescalchi Castle (town museum) and the historic wine cellars beneath it; Traminer and Graševina from the Ilok hill.
- The view from the walls and the vineyards across the Danube to the Fruška Gora in Serbia, at its best in the evening light.
- CampingSpirit overnight tip
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Official campsite or RV park: Camping options in Ilok are thin: a few wineries and guesthouses offer pitches for motorhomes, some with electricity, rarely with waste disposal. Check Campercontact or park4night before arriving and phone ahead; it is best to take care of water and waste disposal back in Kopačevo.
Free camping or nature tip (where legal): The Croatian ban on overnight stays also applies in Ilok, in the car parks below the old town and on the Danube bank. If you are tasting in a wine cellar and have no pitch, ask there – many estates have room in the yard.
- Insider tip for campers
- The Danube bridge from Ilok to Bačka Palanka is a border crossing into Serbia (non-EU, with checks and, where applicable, a Green Card). For the return journey west, drive via Tovarnik to the A3 at Lipovac, or via Vukovar and Vinkovci to the Županja junction.
Camping practice & local rules
Wild camping & overnight parking
- In Croatia, camping outside registered campsites is prohibited, as is spending the night in a motorhome in car parks, on farm tracks, on river dykes and along the Danube. Unlike in some neighbouring countries, no distinction is made between parking and camping. Slavonia sees fewer checks than the coast, but the ban applies here just the same; fines are in the three-figure euro range or higher.
- Nature parks (Lonjsko polje, Papuk, Kopački rit) prohibit overnight stays, tents and fires outside their own sites; the visitor car parks are for day use. During the breeding season, individual areas of Kopački rit are closed.
- Mines: in March 2026 Croatia declared the clearance of all known mined areas complete. Along the former front line in the forests, wetlands and fallow land of eastern Slavonia, isolated items of wartime ordnance may nevertheless still turn up. Stay on roads, surfaced tracks and marked paths, keep dogs on a lead, take no shortcuts through undergrowth; do not touch suspicious objects and report them on 112.
- Legal small alternatives are the registered “kamp u domaćinstvu” sites on farms, with families and at wineries. Apps: park4night, Campercontact and the directory of the Croatian Camping Union (camping.hr).
Waste disposal & supplies
- Public service stations for water and waste are practically non-existent in Slavonia. Empty your tanks at the campsites, reliably for instance in Emovački Lug and Kopačevo, and plan the sections around Vukovar and Ilok with a full fresh water tank and an empty grey water tank.
- Never empty waste water into ditches or wetlands: in the floodplains of the Sava, Drava and Danube the groundwater is high, and everything ends up directly in the ecosystem.
- Tap water is drinkable. You will find supermarkets and filling stations in Sisak, Slavonski Brod, Požega, Našice, Đakovo, Osijek and Vukovar; in between are villages with small shops, and on Sundays much is closed.
- Gas: German exchange cylinders are not swapped. Autogas (autoplin) is available at larger filling stations on the A3 and in the towns; for refillable tanks, usually bring the Dish adapter. Arrive with two full cylinders.
- Mosquitoes (komarci) are a serious issue in Lonjsko polje, Kopački rit and on the Danube from early summer to early autumn, especially after floods; the municipalities spray against larvae at times. Fly screens on all openings, long sleeves in the evening, repellent; ticks in the forests and meadows of the Papuk.
Vehicle size & traffic rules
- Speed limits: motorhomes up to 3.5 t 50 km/h in built-up areas, 90 km/h outside them, 110 km/h on expressways, 130 km/h on motorways; over 3.5 t and vehicles with trailers 80 km/h outside built-up areas, 90 km/h on motorways.
- Motorway tolls: the A3 (Zagreb–Slavonski Brod–Lipovac) and A5 (Osijek–Đakovo–Svilaj) are tolled by distance; motorhomes more than 1.90 m high above the front axle pay category II. Croatia is switching to a barrier-free system with number plate recognition, which under the new toll law is to apply across the whole network from 1 March 2027. After that, every vehicle must be registered in advance online, via the app or at registration points with its number plate and a means of payment; over 3.5 t an ENC device is mandatory. Without registration you face a €120 surcharge plus a fine of €300 to €600. Until the switch, you pay at the toll booths in cash, by card or with ENC; check the current situation with Hrvatske autoceste before you travel. The country roads on the route are toll-free.
- Blood alcohol limit 0.5, and 0.0 for drivers under 25 and professional drivers – on a wine route like this one, the most important point. Phones only with a hands-free kit. In winter time (end of October to end of March), dipped headlights are required during the day as well. A high-visibility vest, warning triangle (two for vehicles with trailers) and first aid kit are mandatory.
- Borders: the route runs close to Bosnia and Herzegovina (Sava) and Serbia (Danube), both non-EU countries with border controls; carry the vehicle registration and, where applicable, a Green Card; if you are staying only in Croatia, avoid the border bridges. The border with Hungary north of Baranja is a Schengen internal border.
- Loads projecting beyond the rear, such as bikes on a rear rack, must be marked; the red-and-white warning panel is the safe solution. Old towns such as the Tvrđa in Osijek or Ilok are unsuitable for motorhomes – park on the edge. Winter equipment may be required from 15 November to 15 April, relevant above all on the Papuk road.
CampingSpirit packing & preparation checklist
- Fly screens for the door, windows and roof vents, plus a mosquito net and an effective repellent – in the wetlands of Lonjsko polje and Kopački rit the mosquitoes come in swarms.
- Binoculars and a telephoto lens: storks in Čigoć, white-tailed eagles and herons in Kopački rit, black storks on the oxbow lakes.
- A large fresh water canister and a water hose with various adapters, because filling up and emptying is barely possible between Osijek and Ilok.
- Sturdy shoes and tick tweezers for the Papuk and the forest paths near Jankovac – and the discipline to stay on marked paths there.
- Bikes: the plains of Baranja, the Danube cycle route (EuroVelo 6) between Vukovar and Ilok and the dykes in Lonjsko polje are flat and quiet.
- Green Card and vehicle documents to hand, in case you spontaneously cross one of the border bridges into Serbia or Bosnia and Herzegovina.
As of 2026-10. Closures, fees and booking rules change: check official sources before you go.
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