Zagreb was an unexpected surprise! This capital city of Croatia is brimming with delicious food, delightful old buildings and a buzzing night life. As a backpacker, head to the Chill Out Hostel, which offers both opportunities to chill out and party hard, especially on a weekend! The staff are super friendly and laid back and it is so central, you can literally walk out the door, take the funicular up the hill and be in the old town. Or walk around the corner and find yourself in the main city square.
Take the shortest funicular ride in the world
It is cheap as chips and a very short thrill, but why not? Saves walking up all those stairs!
Climb the bell tower for striking city views
Another cheap tourist attraction, this is a must! The views are breath taking and it is fun spiralling up all those stairs.
Do a free walking tour
The guide will take you to all the important old buildings and churches and give you a good run down on the basics of Croatian language and food.
Explore the street art
On the free walking tour, our guide explained how the street art is used to cover up the tattered state of some of the old buildings! Whatever the reason, street art really brings a hipster vibe to the city. Don’t miss the big whale near the love lock fence!
Museum of Broken Relationships
This novel museum is one of the biggest attractions of Zagreb. It is full of items that have been donated from broken relationships (and they all come attached with a story). Some of the stories are funny and others give you chills. It is certainly thought-provoking and will have you contemplating life and the complexity of relationships!
Ride in a vintage car
Well, I’m not sure if this is something your average tourist can do. There was a wedding in a nearby church and the drivers were waiting by the old-school cars, so I leapt at the opportunity to get a photo! The driver was very kind and let me jump in, very quickly, as he watched nervously for the bridal party to return.
Have a drink on Pub Street
From the hostel, I accidentally found myself caught up in Pub Crawls on both Friday and Saturday evening! You won’t miss this street, regardless of whether you are on an embarrassing yet fun pub crawl, or whether you simply crawl up and down with your friends! It is full-to-the-brim with bars, pubs, restaurants and clubs.
From Zagreb, you can also take a day trip to Plitvice Lakes National Park, or simply use it as a stop over before hitting the Croatian beaches further south. Just be aware that peak season can be extremely crowded and it pays to book in advance.
What are your favourite places in Zagreb? Where would you go if you were staying a bit longer?
Travel Adventure Discover 
What a great time you had and what an interesting place! The Museum of Broken Relationships is intriguing and I loved the whale! But best of all was the photo of you in the vintage bridal car! Shades of my pose in Maggie Beer’s kitchen!!! Looking forward to the Plitvice Lakes!!! xxx
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Thank you! Zagreb was such a pleasant surprise! You will need to refresh my memory on the Maggie Beer kitchen pose! Xoxox
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Well! We accidentally followed a tour group into Maggie’s TV kitchen, posed for a shot behind the stove, then discovered that as mere general public, we weren’t supposed to be there and left very rapidly! Most amusing!
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Haha! I don’t think I ever heard that story!! So funny! Nice work slipping into a tv show 🙂
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Luckily, it wasn’t on air!!!
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I love the murals and street art! Thanks for sharing 🙂
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My pleasure! Yes, the street art was really great! Glad you enjoyed it 🙂
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Great list of activities to do! I love the roof and the murals. Amazing!
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I only had one night there so I missed the street art but I do love the cathedral and St Marks church!
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Yes, they were beautiful! Zagreb really was an unexpected surprise 🙂
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My wife and I have been talking about visiting Croatia for years. Looks so dope!
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It’s a beautiful place! Highly recommended, though go in shoulder season as it seems to be a very popular destination!
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Nice post! I am planning to book a weekend to Zagreb 🙂
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Thank you! I’m sure you’ll have a great time! I loved the place 🙂
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Great post- Zagreb doesn’t get enough credit does it! I’d forgotten about the street art until I saw your photo of the whale 🙂
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Yeah, I agree! I guess the beach towns usually steal the limelight but Zagreb is definitely worth a visit too!
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Lovely post!
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Thank you! It is easy to write about lovely places 🙂
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Zagreb isn’t somewhere I’ve considered visiting before – mainly because I didn’t think there was much there to do! Apparently I was wrong though, haha – I love all of your suggestions, and am going to reconsider adding Zagreb to my list of places to go 🙂 x
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Glad I managed to change your mind 🙂 It is smaller than a lot of the European capitals but still very much enjoyable! Hope you like it as much as I did!
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