Spring weekend trip to Zagreb

The sun gained back strength, the gardens were in full bloom and the trees turned into lush green: During the long Easter weekend I had the chance to soak in the long awaited spring in all its beauty! Together with my just-as-Insta-addicted friend Marion from marestella.me I went to Croatia’s capital Zagreb. But none of us were in the mood of long drives, so we took the comfortable way by bus from Vienna – one of the many routes that are served by Flixbus. The ride was direct, there was WiFi – so all you got to do is sit back and relax! Well, almost… Since the border controls in the EU got stricter, passengers must get off at the borders and have their passports checked – depending on your luck that can go fairly quick or not (on the way back to Vienna we had to wait two!! hours between the Croatian/Slovenian border…). Anyways, let me show you a little bit of Zagreb: It’s actually a cute, well-maintained city with a medieval atmosphere. The observation deck of Zabreb 360° was the right spot to get an overview of the city!

It’s highly recommended to explore the alleys of the old town by foot and you’ll automatically pass by an old funicular and some of Zagreb’s many beautiful churches like the Cathedral of Zagreb or St. Mark’s Church with its distinct roof pattern.

Also there is a huge farmers market – the Dolac – however we didn’t get to see it because it was closed during Easter (too bad!), but at least we found some giant Easter eggs!

When we asked for the local delicacy we were immediately told to try Štrukli. It’s best described as a very rich cottage cheese pastry dish, that’s either cooked or baked and available in different sweet and savory flavours. A variation of this traditional Zagreb dish is served at La Štruk in the old town (Skalinska ul. 5) but be aware that you want to walk off the cheesiness after… I’m actually glad that we shared one!

Zagreb seems to have a sweet tooth (just right for me!), so there’s plenty of bakeries and cake shops to satisfy your coffee and sweet cravings. We found a nice assortment at Amelie cake shop (Vlaška ul. 6).

Or if you’re more into street food, Fritule (Croatian donuts) is widely available.

Surprisingly – of all places in Zagreb – we fell in love with a cemetery! Our host gave us a ride to the Mirogoj Cemetery a little outside of the centre and we found a jewel of architecture! The arches are some of the prettiest I’ve seen and also the graves are stunning in decorations and details. Interesting to know: It’s one of the few cemeteries in the world where the graves aren’t separated by religion: It’s nothing unusual that a Catholic is buried next to an Orthodox, a Muslim might have its last rest next to a Jew. Kinda nice, isn’t it?

Last but not least I don’t want to hide the absolutely amazing Bed & Breakfast we stayed at. Embassy Row BnB is THE home away from home, except that this house is waaay nicer than my own home! Nadia and Drazen must belong to the loveliest hosts on this planet and they made our stay a unique experience. From the delicious breakfast made from scratch (like the jams and breads, everything organic) to the beautiful interior and garden – everything had this extra portion of love and care… Click here to book.

From Zagreb we continued our journey to the amazing Plitvice Lakes National Park. So what were your Easter/spring plans?