Things to See in Zagreb

Zagreb, Croatia

Our next stop after returning our wonderful rental car in Ljubljana was Zagreb! As Croatia’s capital and biggest city, it was a great starting spot for our journey through the country. We spent five nights in the city center and were immediately blown away by how efficient the public transit system is. Bright blue trams weave their way through the winding streets, connecting outer ends of the city with ease.

It was here in Zagreb that we first learned of the Croatian coffee culture. Back home in Canada, drive-thrus are the norm, and inhaling a giant-sized coffee to the point of burning your esophagus is considered common practice. (These are all basic assumptions as I am firmly not a coffee drinker, but am constantly surrounded by friends and family who love the disgusting black liquid! heh!) Judgments aside, it didn’t take me long to notice that Croatians do coffee a little differently. In the final weeks of March, as Spring was just starting to make an appearance, outdoor patios were absolutely filled with people. Drinking a coffee is a two- to three-hour event in Croatia. The coffee is savoured, and many folks use the time to catch up with friends, read the newspaper, or just soak up the sunshine.

Mac and I spent most of our days in the capital wandering between more modern Upper Town and historic and park-filled Lower Town. One of my favourite sights in Upper Town was St. Mark’s Cathedral. The tile work on the roof was so bold and eye-catching!

There were so many things to see in Zagreb’s Lower Town. An abundance of buildings to admire – both older and modern – and parks in which to relax and while away the afternoon. The city streets were bustling and full of bold pops of colour, and the markets in the main square – Trg bana Josipa Jelačića – were fun to stroll through and admire all the handicrafts. Lower Town is largely a pedestrian area inaccessible by cars.

Things to See in Zagreb

A City of Museums

It didn’t take Mac and I long to realize that Zagreb is a city full of museums. This fact is best illustrated by the photo below – these three signs have a grand total of 19 (NINETEEN) galleries and museums.

And that’s only in one part of the city center! Mac and I are somewhat begrudging museum-goers at the best of times, but we managed to visit two museums during our time in Zagreb. The Nikola Tesla Museum and the Dražen Petrović Memorial Center were both unique and informative. But I can’t fail to mention one of the more interesting museums I’ve ever seen: The Museum of Broken Relationships. Even though we didn’t do the full tour, Mac and I were both intrigued by what we saw in the lobby. It sounds like a very weird concept for a museum, but it was honestly quite thought-provoking and poetic. If we ever make it back to Zagreb, I definitely won’t be skipping it again!

Nikola Tesla Technical Museum

Contrary to the museum’s name, there is actually only a very small portion of the Nikola Tesla museum devoted to the man himself. Most of the exhibits feature technological advances and various forms of transportation and the like. Mac geeked out over the hall filled with engines, while I was struck by the industrial design of some old airplane propellers.

However, there was a room devoted to some of Tesla’s many inventions. The inventions – including his famed coil capable of producing millions of volts of energy – were behind a glass panel and the information blurbs left much to be desired. We were about to move on when we noticed a school trip with 40 odd children racing towards Tesla’s room. So, obviously we snuck in (as inconspicuously as we could, given that we were two obvious adult foreigners amidst a herd of Croatian children) and were delighted to witness a presentation of Tesla’s inventions in person! Although we couldn’t understand a word of what was being said, we jumped and squealed with the children as the Tesla Coil was put into action and metres-long lightning-like shocks shot out in the most dramatic fashion!

We gave a gracious nod to the teacher chaperones as they followed the children back into the depths of the exhibits. Mac and I instead headed across the street to indulge in a museum devoted to a hero of Mac’s greatest passion.

Dražen Petrović Museum

Dražen Petrović was an iconic Croatian basketball player. Born in Šibenik on the coast, he dominated in the Yugoslavian – and later, Croatian – and European leagues before finally signing onto the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers in 1989. After a frustrating two seasons with too much bench time for the Blazers, he signed to the New Jersey Nets in 1991 and quickly became a team leader. His skill and ability transformed the Nets and in his second year the team made the playoffs for the first time in seven years.

Petrović was a three-time Olympian and winner of several European Basketball championships and multiple individual awards as well. Tragically Petrović was killed in a car crash while leaving Berlin after a Croatian national team EuroBasket qualifying game. He was just 28 years old.

The Dražen Petrović Memorial Center is home to more than 1000 items of memorabilia from this basketball legend’s impressive career. The Memorial Center is situated beside the Dražen Petrović Basketball Hall – an indoor sporting arena with a 5400-seat capacity. To say that Petrović had a huge influence on Croatia and the sport of basketball would be a huge understatement. While I’m not even close to as big of a basketball fan as Mac is, I was really moved and impressed by this museum. It was amazing to see the influence one man had on an entire nation.

Festival of Lights

We were lucky enough that our stay in Zagreb coincided with the city’s Festival of Lights. For five nights, twenty art installations scattered through Upper Town became illuminated at dusk creating a marvelous spectacle. As the sky erupted with the colours of the setting sun, Upper Town became a glowing and pulsing hub of light.

There were streets lit up with rippling water, impressive projections on huge buildings, and disco-ball-filled rooms where the walls seemed to glitter like confetti. I spent several hours making my way from one installation to another, continually being captivated by the dancing light and colourful works. The Festival of Lights was a great way to see other parts of the city we hadn’t yet explored during our previous days of wandering. If your visit to Zagreb lines up with the Festival, I’d highly recommend checking it out! It’s totally free too!

For such a big city – it has a population of 700,000 – there were SO many things to see in Zagreb. We only made a small dent during our time there, but what we did experience was wonderful and made us all the more excited to continue exploring this diverse country.

Tell me, have you ever been to Zagreb? What’s your all-time favourite museum?

Pin It!

Never Miss a Post!

Enter your email address to subscribe to A Taste of Trace and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Email Address:

Sign Me Up!