Hrvatsko Zagorje region

Hrvatsko Zagorje - The famous Tuhelj Spa near Zagreb

Hrvatsko Zagorje is a green hilly region spreading from Medvednica mountain above Zagreb to the north all the way to Varazdin. This is a region of many villages, small towns, picturesque hills, vineyards as well as numerous cultural and historical monuments. Once this was the centre of peasant uprisings against feudal landlords.

In the vicinity is Marija Bistrica where since the Middle Ages pilgrims come to worship the miraculous image of Mary with child. Here is also a health spa Stubicke Toplice, one of the most important resorts nearby Zagreb.

Croatian Zagorje map

This northern Croatia region is not visited by tourist like other districts but when visiting Zagreb capital I highly recommend some of the highlights, definitely worth visiting.

The biggest town of Croatian Zagorje is Krapina. In the vicinity of Krapina the remains of a Neanderthal prehistoric man were found. The town has a richly decorated Franciscan church. Near Krapina is Veliki Tabor, a mediaeval fort finished in the 15th century and the castle Miljana, built from the 17th to the 19th centuries. North from Krapina there is the castle of Trakoscan dating from the Middle Ages. The estate with its castle and the surrounding lake is one of the most beautiful of its kind in Croatia.

This region is well-known by more than fifty castles, some of them with their own park. Considering the number of castles this area is the richest regions in Croatia.

Varazdin castle

The most famous are:

Veliki Tabor
The 15th century fortified castle Veliki Tabor is the best-preserved monuments of medieval fortification architecture in Croatia.

Miljana
The manor Miljana was built and developed by the counts Ratkay from the beginning of 17th century until the end of 18th century

Trakoscan
Trakoscan was built in the 13th c. within Croatia�s northwestern fortification system, as a rather small observation fortress for monitoring the road from Ptuj to Bednja Valley. It is located on a landscaped hill above the lake.

Castle Marusevac
is located in the village of the same name, in the county of Varazdin. The name's origin goes back into remote times when, according to legend, Marusa, a Chech lady, settled here and established residence. Several centuries later the locality became known as Marusevec. The castle is situated 15 km from the city of Varazdin.

The most important towns are:

Krapina town is located in the hilly Hrvatsko Zagorje region of Croatia, approximately 55 km away from both Zagreb and Varazdin. The town is the centre and capital of the district with the hundreds year old tradition. Krapina as a town has been known since early 12th century. It has always been a favorite site for castles and other country houses of Croatian and Hungarian rulers. In late 19th century, on a hill called Husnjak, in vicinity of Krapina, the archaeologist and paleontologist Dragutin Gorjanovic-Kramberger found over eight hundred fossil (Krapinski Pracovjek) remains belonging to Neanderthals.

Kumrovec is a small town, best known for being the birth place of President Jospi Broz Tito. The main attraction in Kumrovec is a reconstruction of a 19th Century Croatian village. This open air museum in the Zagorje region consists of a number of restored 19th and early 20th century buildings made from earth and wood and furnished according to theme.Read more.

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