Lower Town
First-timersAround Ban Jelačić square and the Green Horseshoe of parks: trams, museums, most hostels and the station.
Zagreb city guide
Zagreb Travel Guide
The capital everyone skips on the way to the coast: Austro-Hungarian streets, a museum of failed relationships, the shortest funicular in the world and half the price of Dubrovnik.
17
Hostels in the city
8.3
Average, from 34,101 reviews
66m
The funicular, the shortest public one anywhere
€2
A coffee, sat over for two hours
12:00
The Grič cannon, daily since 1877
A city that is not on the way to anywhere
Most people land in Zagreb and get straight on a bus to the sea, which is why the capital stays cheap and unbothered.
It is an Austro-Hungarian city of yellow facades, arcades and parks, split between the medieval Upper Town on the hill and the nineteenth-century Lower Town below, joined by a funicular that runs 66 metres and is the shortest public funicular in the world.
Zagreb's coffee culture is a genuine institution: Saturday morning špica, when the whole city sits on Tkalčićeva and the surrounding terraces from ten until two, is a social event rather than a caffeine habit.
The Museum of Broken Relationships — donated objects from ended relationships, with the stories attached — is the best small museum in the Balkans and started here.
Two or three days, and it costs about half what the coast does.
Where to stay
Upper Town on the hill, Lower Town below, and everything within twenty minutes on foot.
Upper Town
AtmosphereThe medieval hill: St Mark's tiled roof, the cannon, cobbled lanes and the quietest evenings.
Tkalčićeva and around
Nightlife and cafésThe bar street running up from the centre, with terraces on both sides and the best café culture in the city.
Trešnjevka and Trnje
ValueWest and south of the centre, residential and cheaper, with trams in within ten minutes.
Orange labels are neighbourhoods, dots are the 12 top-rated hostels. Map data from OpenStreetMap contributors.
Things to do
Things to do in Zagreb
The Museum of Broken Relationships is the one to do first. Objects donated by people from relationships that ended, each with the story attached, and it is funny, devastating and entirely unlike any other museum. Entry is about €7.
Take the funicular up — 66 metres, under a minute, and the shortest public funicular in the world — to the Upper Town for St Mark's Church with its tiled coat-of-arms roof, the Lotrščak Tower and the cannon that has fired at noon every day since 1877.
Dolac market sits above the main square under red umbrellas and is where the city buys its food, best before ten.
Mirogoj cemetery, a fifteen-minute bus ride out, is an arcaded nineteenth-century necropolis that is one of the most beautiful in Europe and is free.
Free things
Free things to do in Zagreb
The Green Horseshoe — a U of parks and squares laid out in the nineteenth century through the Lower Town — is free and takes an hour to walk.
Dolac market is free to wander and is the best hour of the morning here.
Mirogoj cemetery costs nothing and is worth the bus ride for the arcades alone.
St Mark's Square, the Stone Gate shrine with its candles, and the Upper Town streets are all free, and the noon cannon costs nothing to hear.
Maksimir Park, a large English-style landscape park with lakes, is free, and in summer the city runs free concerts in the squares.
Food and drink
Eating and drinking in Zagreb
Continental Croatian food, which is closer to Austria and Hungary than to the coast: štrukli, a baked cheese pastry that is the city's own dish, at €6 to €10; sarma in winter; and grilled meats year-round.
A full meal is €12 to €20, well below the coast, and a set lunch in a local place is €8 to €12.
Dolac market's upper level has cheese and cured meat stalls, and the fish hall below it is the best in inland Croatia.
Coffee is the real culture. A coffee is about €2 and buys you a table for as long as you want it, and Saturday špica is when the entire city does exactly that from ten until two.
Nightlife
Going out in Zagreb
Tkalčićeva is the obvious strip — a pedestrian street running uphill with terraces on both sides, busy every night in summer.
The better places are around it: Opatovina behind the market, Martićeva for craft beer, and the student clubs around the Lake Jarun area in summer.
A beer is €2.50 to €4 and a coffee €2, both well under coastal prices.
Zagreb has a strong live music and alternative scene, and things run to two or three at weekends. In summer the terraces spill everywhere and half the city is outside until late.
Getting around
Getting around Zagreb
Trams are the city's transport, running frequently and costing about €0.70 for a 30-minute ticket bought from a kiosk and validated on board, or about €1 from the driver.
The centre is walkable and flat, and the funicular between the Lower and Upper Towns costs about €0.70.
The airport bus takes 30 minutes to the main station for about €8.
Buses to the coast are the main intercity option: Split is five hours, Zadar three and a half, Dubrovnik nine or ten. The train network is slow and limited, which is why almost nobody uses it.
Ljubljana is two and a half hours by bus and Budapest about five.
Costs
What Zagreb costs
About half the price of the Croatian coast in summer, and that is the headline. Dorms are €15 to €28, a full meal €12 to €20, a coffee €2 and a beer €2.50 to €4.
A day is €40 to €65.
Croatia adopted the euro in 2023, so there is no currency conversion to think about.
Museums run €5 to €8 each. The Green Horseshoe, Mirogoj and Dolac are free, and the funicular and the cannon cost almost nothing.
Safety
Staying safe in Zagreb
Zagreb is a safe, calm capital with low crime, and the centre is comfortable at night.
Pickpocketing happens on busy trams and around the main station at ordinary levels.
Tram tickets must be validated on board and inspectors do check, with fines for travelling without.
The city sits in an earthquake zone and was damaged by a significant quake in March 2020 — some buildings in the Upper Town are still under scaffolding and a few remain closed.
Football matchdays around the Maksimir stadium can be lively. Emergency number is 112.
Day trips from Zagreb
Lakes, a castle and two more countries, all within a few hours.
Plitvice Lakes
Sixteen terraced lakes linked by waterfalls, on boardwalks through a gorge. Go on the first bus and buy tickets online in summer.
Samobor
A small town in the hills with a cream cake it is famous for and walking above it.
Ljubljana
Slovenia's capital, small, green and easily done as a day trip or an onward stop.
What's on
What is on while you are there
The Christmas market here has won best in Europe more than once.
Staff pick
10–15 November
Interliber
Interliber, taking place…
Staff pick
9–15 November
Zagreb Film Festival
The Zagreb Film Festival…
Staff pick
28 Nov – 7 Jan
Advent Zagreb
Immerse yourself in the …
Staff pick
20–22 November
Zagreb Bachata Festival
Zagreb Bachata Festival …
10–15 November
Interliber: 48th International Book Fair
INTERLIBER is the 48th I…
10–15 November
INTERLIBER: 48th International Book Fair
INTERLIBER is the 48th I…
20 November
Andre Rieu
André Rieu will perform …
20 November
André Rieu
André Rieu will perform …
Hostels
Where to stay in Zagreb
A good scene at inland prices, concentrated in the Lower Town near the station and the centre. Live from Hostelworld.
Hostel Mali Mrak Zagreb
Dorms from €23 a night
See dates and book
Stay Swanky
Dorms from €30 a night
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Whole Wide World Hostel & Bar
Dorms from €22 a night
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Main Square
Dorms from €19 a night
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Hostel Temza
Dorms from €14 a night
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Hostel Bureau
Dorms from €12 a night
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Palmers Lodge Zagreb
Dorms from €23 a night
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Funk Lounge
Dorms from €10 a night
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Hostel Centar
Dorms from €19 a night
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Chillout Hostel Zagreb
Dorms from €20 a night
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HI Hostel Zagreb
Dorms from €17 a night
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Zagreb Speeka Hostel
Dorms from €20 a night
See dates and book
When to go
Spring and autumn, or December for one of the best Christmas markets in Europe.
Jan
Cold and grey. Cheapest month, and Advent has just ended
Feb
Still cold. Quiet
Mar
Spring arriving. Terraces reappear
Apr
Good. Parks in blossom
May
Excellent. Warm, and the city is at its best
Jun
The best month. Long evenings and everyone outside
Jul
Hot, and the city empties for the coast
Aug
Quietest month. Many restaurants close
Sep
Superb. Everyone back and the weather still good
Oct
Good value and autumn in the parks
Nov
Grey, with Advent starting at the end
Dec
Advent in Zagreb, repeatedly voted the best market in Europe
Bar height is temperature. Colour is how busy it gets:
quiet
busy
peak
Average highs. Zagreb is continental — proper cold winters and hot summers — and unlike the coast it is busiest in spring and autumn, because locals leave in August.
What your trip will cost
Pick how you travel. Per person per night, in euros.
A Plitvice day trip adds about €30 in bus fares plus entry, which varies sharply by season.
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Zagreb travel questions
The ones we get asked most.
Is Zagreb worth stopping in?
For two or three days, and it costs about half what the coast does in summer. It is an Austro-Hungarian capital with excellent museums, a serious coffee culture and none of the crowds — most people fly in and get straight on a bus to the sea.
What is the Museum of Broken Relationships?
Objects donated by people from relationships that ended, each with the story that goes with it. It started here and has toured the world. About €7, an hour, and it is funny and quietly devastating.
What is špica?
The Saturday morning coffee ritual, roughly ten until two, when the city dresses up and sits on the terraces around Tkalčićeva. It is a social institution rather than a caffeine stop, and joining in is the most Zagreb thing you can do.
Can I do Plitvice from Zagreb?
Yes — two and a half hours each way by bus at about €15. Go on the first bus, buy entry tickets online in summer, and expect a long day. Staying nearby overnight is better if you can.
Is it cheap?
By Croatian standards, very. Dorms €15 to €28, a full meal €12 to €20, and a day around €40 to €65 — roughly half the coast in July and August.
When should I visit?
May, June or September. August is the quietest month because locals leave for the sea and some restaurants close. December has Advent in Zagreb, repeatedly voted the best Christmas market in Europe.
Is there still earthquake damage?
Some. A significant quake hit in March 2020 and parts of the Upper Town are still scaffolded, with a few buildings closed. It does not affect a visit beyond the occasional detour.
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