Things to do in Zagreb
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Zagreb
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Best overall, 18 to 26C, parks in leaf, PLACe Market Friday nights and INmusic in late June.
Hot at 28 to 35C, locals leave for the coast and some restaurants close in mid August, with open air cinema and Jarun swimming.
Second best window, 15 to 24C, harvest in Plesivica, chestnut menus and golden light in Maksimir and Mirogoj.
Advent from late November is the winter reason to come, with about 20 locations, the Tomislav ice rink and tunnel lights.
Coldest and darkest outside Advent, cheapest hotels and easiest tables, with Samobor Carnival in February as the bright exception.
What's on
- PLACe Market Apr-Oct, Friday evenings
Friday evening market takeover at Dolac in season.
- Floraart garden show May
Garden show listed among the spring highlights.
- Cest is d'Best late May / Jun
Street festival in late May into June.
- INmusic Festival late June
Croatia's biggest open air rock festival at Lake Jarun. Book that week early.
- Varazdin Baroque Evenings late Sep
Baroque music evenings in Varazdin, a national institution.
- Zagreb Design Week Sep
Design Week in September.
- Zagreb Film Festival Nov
Film festival with November spillover from the autumn season.
- Advent in Zagreb late Nov-7 Jan
Voted Europe's Best Christmas Market three years running, about 20 locations across the centre.
- Samobor Carnival (Fasnik) Feb
One of Croatia's biggest carnivals, in Samobor west of Zagreb.
Best things to do in Zagreb
Upper Town (Gornji Grad)
The essential half day walk past St Mark's Church, the Stone Gate and Lotrscak Tower for the noon cannon and roofline view.
Museum of Broken Relationships
Zagreb's signature quirky museum, built from donated objects and anonymous breakup stories that land in under an hour.
Dolac Market
The city's real kitchen market for Zagorje cheese, farm produce and flowers, best before the morning crowds thin out.
Zagreb Funicular
Ride one of the world's shortest funiculars, walk the Gric Tunnel and finish with the central panorama at Zagreb 360.
Saturday Spica
Zagreb's Saturday ritual of dressing up and stretching one coffee over two hours across the central cafe terraces.
Mirogoj Cemetery
A palace park of neo-Renaissance arcades, ivy covered galleries and sculpture, and the most beautiful place in Zagreb.
The Green Horseshoe
A U of Habsburg parks from Zrinjevac past the Art Pavilion to the Botanical Garden and Croatian National Theatre.
Maksimir Park
A huge English style park of lakes and pavilions where Zagreb families spend Sundays, with the small zoo inside it.
Where to stay in Zagreb
Lower Town (Donji Grad)
best overall, best first visit
Flat, grand and tram crossed along the Green Horseshoe, 5 to 15 minutes on foot to Upper Town.
Upper Town (Gornji Grad) and Tkalciceva / Radiceva
character and nightlife
Cobbles, hand lit gas lamps and bars at your door, with hills, luggage over cobbles and late noise trade offs.
Kaptol / Ribnjak
quiet central, family compromise
Residential streets by the Cathedral and Dolac, still 5 minutes to the square, with fewer bars by design.
British Square (Britanski Trg) / west Lower Town
local feel, longer stays
Market square and cafe row on Ilica, 10 minutes on foot to the centre, predominantly apartments.
Think twice about
- Around the main bus station (Autobusni Kolodvor) and far Novi Zagreb
Safe and cheaper but soulless at night, few restaurants, and a 20 to 30 minute tram ride from everything.
- Far suburbs: Dubrava, Sesvete, far Tresnjevka and Jarun residential blocks
Normal residential Zagreb with almost no tourist infrastructure, so you spend the trip commuting.
- Immediately around Park Ribnjak after dark and unlit park shortcuts
Lovely by day but flagged as a late night hangout where scuffles occasionally happen. Walk the lit streets around it instead.
Best restaurants in Zagreb
Noel
Zagreb's first starred tasting menu, modern Croatian European cooking with tea pairing as well as wine.
Dubravkin Put
A starred Mediterranean room in a forest clearing 10 minutes from the square, the romantic celebratory pick.
Zinfandel's
Hotel dining locals respect, with a green star at Zinfandel's and the reference baked strukli at Le Bistro.
Vinodol
The best central all rounder for contemporary Croatian veal, lamb and Adriatic fish at a fair price for the quality.
La Struk
Only strukli, savoury, truffle and sweet, done perfectly in Zagreb's defining cheap and filling dish.
Stari Fijaker
Old Zagreb cooking since a 1932 lineage, zagrebacki odrezak, pasticada and sarma in generous portions.
Gostionica Ficlek
Home style gablec lunch under Dolac market, roast turkey with mlinci and soups, mobbed by locals at midday.
Otto & Frank
The Tkalciceva bistro that actually cooks, grilled salmon, pork belly and burgers away from the tout menus.
Outdoor things to do in Zagreb
Medvednica Nature Park
Zagreb's own mountain for cable car rides, marked hikes, mountain huts and a small ski slope, cooler than the city.
Riverside Golf Zagreb
The capital's only championship golf, an 18 hole lakeside course plus a 9 hole city course 15 minutes from the centre.
Lake Jarun
Zagreb's sea for swimming, rowing, kayaking, cycling and sunset drinks around a 2km regatta lake.
Samobor
A baroque market town for kremshnita, mustard and bermet, paired with castle ruins and Zumberak hiking nearby.
Plitvice Lakes National Park
UNESCO travertine lakes and waterfalls that reward a 7am start before peak crowds erase the magic by midday.
Lake Bled
A cross border day pairing Ljubljana's castle and river cafes with Bled's island church, castle view and krem cake.
Trakoscan Castle
Baroque Varazdin paired with Croatia's most romantic lake castle, quieter and cheaper than a Plitvice day.
Plesivica
Zagreb's little Champagne of family wineries on amphitheatre hills, pouring sparkling wines and Portugizac.
Best hotels in Zagreb
Esplanade Zagreb Hotel
The 1925 Orient Express landmark in Art Deco style, home to Zinfandel's and the strukli benchmark at Le Bistro.
Amadria Park Hotel Capital
Boutique luxury in a former bank with a vault bar, one block from the square, with the best location to service ratio.
Hotel Dubrovnik
You cannot sleep more centrally than on Ban Jelacic Square itself, with functional rather than glamorous rooms.
Hotel Jagerhorn
Zagreb's oldest hotel from 1827, a character mid range base with a quiet garden terrace off Ilica.
art'otel Zagreb
A modern design option in Lower Town for travellers who want a pool and spa with a chain standard.
Canopy by Hilton City Centre
A modern design Hilton option in Lower Town with pool and spa facilities and a reliable chain standard.
Hotel Jadran
A well reviewed central budget fallback in local listings for a simple, well located stay.
Paon Boutique Apartments
Well reviewed central apartment fallback in local listings, good for budget and longer stays.
Is Zagreb expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | €75 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | €135 a person |
| Splurge | €320 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Riverside Golf Zagreb: a few days ahead
- Plitvice Lakes National Park: weeks ahead
- Lake Bled: a few days ahead
- Trakoscan Castle: a few days ahead
- Plesivica: weeks ahead
- Noel: weeks ahead
- Dubravkin Put: weeks ahead
- Zinfandel's: a few days ahead
- Noel and Dubravkin Put need 2 to 4 weeks for weekend dinners, Korak similar. Plitvice timed entry must be bought online days ahead in summer.
- Advent and INmusic hotels fill and prices jump, book as soon as dates are known. National Theatre tickets go online when the monthly programme drops.
Is Zagreb safe?
- Zagreb is among Europe's safest capitals, violent crime is rare and walking the centre at night is normal.
- Real risks are pickpockets on crowded trams, at Dolac and in Advent crowds, rigged street gambling, and adult bars that overcharge foreigners. Never follow a tout into a bar and check a priced menu first.
- Tap water is excellent. Emergency risks are petty, not violent.
- Check your government's current travel advice before you go.
Zagreb travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Front row tourist menus on Tkalciceva, eat at the named doors in the eat picks instead.
- A guided Plitvice departure after 9am in July or August, and any promise of the Cathedral interior, which is closed for restoration.
- Licitar hearts sold as handmade at airport prices, buy at Dolac or Upper Town workshops. Old kuna prices are out of date, Croatia uses the euro.
Getting around Zagreb: public transport and more
- Walk the centre first, it is 20 minutes end to end. ZET blue trams cover the rest, buy tickets in the MojZET app or by contactless card and validate on boarding.
- Bolt and Uber are cheap and reliable, use them from the airport or station instead of tout taxis. The airport bus to the main bus station is the budget option.
Who Zagreb suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Good |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | Good |
| Families | Good |
| Bachelorette parties | Good |
Make Zagreb your trip
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