A perfect one-day itinerary for Zagreb, Croatia

Pack The Suitcases uses affiliate links. If you make a purchase through these links, I earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Thanks!

Here’s my itinerary for spending one day in Zagreb, Croatia’s underrated capital. I love Zagreb and have spent plenty of time there, including a recent stay for 3 weeks, so I know it well. To be honest, I’d recommend doing more than one day in Zagreb if you want to get to know the city and appreciate how good it really is (after 3 weeks there, I didn’t want to leave!). But the reality is that a lot of people visit on a time limit, so I wanted to put this itinerary together so that my readers can make the most of a short time there. And there’s plenty you can cram into just a day. 

Zagreb is a charming city. The modern lower town with nice shops and bars is linked to the hilltop old town by the world’s shortest funicular railway. It’s got fantastic restaurants and cafés, an interesting history, lots of parks and green spaces, one of the best craft beer scenes in Europe, beautiful architecture and some really cool and unusual museums. Although it’s not as popular as other cities in Croatia, like Dubrovnik and Split, or the islands like Hvar and Korcula, Zagreb has a lot going for it. I adore the city and could happily live there. It’s such a shame that people overlook it! If you fall in love with Zagreb too and want to stay longer than just a day, I do have a big guide to 30 things to do in Zagreb as well.

Anyway, pour a craft beer and have a wee read of my itinerary for spending a beautiful one day in Zagreb…

One day in Zagreb itinerary: morning

Enjoy breakfast at Melt, the coolest breakfast and brunch spot in Zagreb

If you’ve stayed over the night before and wake up in Zagreb ready to explore it in just one full day, you’ll be needing a good breakfast to set you up. 

One of my favourite breakfast/brunch spots in Zagreb centre is this pink-coloured café, Melt. It does delicious homemade food, which is all gluten-free. They have plenty of vegan options too. 

There’s an open kitchen, which is always a good sign, and the interior is beautiful. If it’s warm though, do sit outside on the street and enjoy a bit of Zagreb’s café culture. It’s a good spot for some people-watching.

Go on the excellent free walking tour (11am to 1pm)

Regular readers of my blog will be groaning right now. I know, I know. I say this in every travel guide I write: you can’t beat a free walking tour to kick off a visit to any city in Europe.

Zagreb’s ‘Free Spirit’ walking tour lasts for 2 hours. You meet the tour guide by the statue of a horse in Ban Jelačić Square (Google Maps link) at 11am. It’s obviously free but, of course, you should give the guide a tip at the end.

The tour will start your day in Zagreb off well with a good intro to the city from a knowledgeable local. Plus, you get the added bonus of experiencing the daily cannon fire from a tower over the city… Yes, I did just say the daily cannon fire. Known as the ‘noon boom’, this is one of Zagreb’s much-loved quirky features (it has many!). Every day at noon, a man fires a cannon from the 13th-century Lotrščak Tower. Be prepared. It is LOUD. I really enjoy the fact that the man who fires it waves out the tower window afterwards. What a job he’s got!

Anyway, the free walking tour guide will take you around all the main sights in Zagreb. You’ll see the gorgeous St Mark’s Church with its colourful roof (as shown in my photo below), the cathedral, the upper and lower towns, and more. A useful overview when you’re only there for a day.

The main thing I took from doing the free walking tour (apart from working out where everything was) was the modern history of Zagreb. I had a rough idea about the Croatian War of Independence (known in Croatia as the Homeland War) but there’s nothing like hearing about it from a local. 

One day in Zagreb itinerary: afternoon

Have a lunch of artisan Croatian food at Heritage

As the walking tour takes you till 1pm, it’ll be time for some lunch.

Heritage is my go-to lunch place in Zagreb. It’s tiny and very reasonably priced. There are only a couple of places to sit inside and a further two tables outside. But it’s SO worth waiting for a space if it’s full when you go.

If you’re new to Croatian cuisine, Heritage is ideal. It showcases local artisan produce from all over the country. Most dishes are salads and bruschettas with nice toppings. I highly recommend the sheep’s cheese, honey and walnut one if it’s on. They have a map showing where each dish originates from and it’s all prepared freshly as you wait. 

There’s a counter inside too, where you can buy foodie treats to take home.

Laugh and sob at the Museum of Broken Relationships

After lunch, it’s time for an emotional rollercoaster at Zagreb’s famous Museum of Broken Relationships. I’ve been twice over the years and love it so much that I always recommend it to any of my friends who are visiting Zagreb. It’s one of the most memorable museums I’ve ever been to. And that’s a lot in all my years of travelling. 

The concept of the museum is that people send in an object with a backstory connected to a relationship that has ended (in some form or other). The relationships are often romantic but some of the most interesting ones are between family and friends. And the objects are usually random, everyday things but they suddenly become incredibly poignant once you know the context. It’s a unique and excellent idea.

I said it was an emotional rollercoaster, didn’t I? I wasn’t joking… One minute you’ll be reading someone’s mum’s suicide note and welling up. The next minute, you’re snorting laughing at something like the ‘toaster of vindication’ shown in my photo below.

Check the official website for opening times. Tickets are 7€. If you’re on a tight timeframe, you can buy a skip-the-queue ticket online just in case it’s busy when you go.

Buy proper Croatian-made souvenirs from Take Me Home

When I’m travelling, I’m always on the scout for shops that do nice, locally made souvenirs. I’m allergic to the ones selling plastic tat and imported ‘made in China’ stuff that you could get anywhere. 

If you only have one day in Zagreb, you don’t want to be trawling through naff gift shops wasting time. Bypass all the awful ones selling plastic rubbish and tacky fridge magnets. Head straight to my favourite and not-at-all-naff Take Me Home. It sells Croatian-made artisan things like tote bags, ceramics, prints and jewellery. Everything is lovely, handmade and unique. 

I recently bought a lovely tote bag with an unusual and cute design on it, showing all of Zagreb’s landmarks together in one place (in reality they’re spread out). I’m currently travelling full time and it’s already become my go-to bag for food shopping. There’s loads of nice stuff in Take Me Home that’ll be spot-on for souvenirs and presents for friends/family yourself.

Get the Sljeme Cable Car for stunning mountain views 

In the late afternoon to early evening, it’s time for some SPECTACULAR views.

The Sljeme Cable Car, which goes up Medvednica mountain, starts off in the suburb of Dolje. This is a bit out of the centre of the city but dead easy to get to in about 30 minutes. Get tram 8 or 14 to Mihaljevac, which is the end of the line, and change to tram 15 to Grac Dolje. This drops you right at the cable car station. A return ticket is about 17€. The last ride back down is usually at 7pm, but make sure you check the official website for running times as it does vary. As nice as the views are, you don’t want to get stranded! The journey takes about 20 minutes each way.

You can see for miles across Zagreb and beyond from the summit, which is also home to a ski resort. There’s a nice café with windows all the way around so you can take in the stunning views over a drink. 

One day in Zagreb itinerary: evening

Have drinks at Garden Brewery, the best place in Zagreb for craft beer

The Garden Brewery is probably the best craft brewery in mainland Europe. High praise there but believe me, I’ve been to a lot in all my years of travels and it’s yet to be beaten. Their beer is excellent. I drink sour beers and they’re so often a big letdown and not really that sour. Garden Brewery does a proper sour sour. In fact, every beer it does is high quality.

If you’re into beer, you’ve probably heard of Garden Brewery already. Their beers are sold in hipster bars all over Europe. But you can’t beat trying them fresh from their home brewery in Zagreb.

Although the brewery isn’t in the city centre of Zagreb, it’s easy to get to. Get tram 3 to Elka. It’s then a few minutes’ walk alongside a big road into this industrial-estate-type area, and you can’t fail to spot the big Garden Brewery sign. It’s always busy and has a great atmosphere, with pub quizzes and different stuff on some nights. You can also buy some cans to take home, as well as glasses/clothing with their cool logo on.

The building the brewery is in really lives up to the garden-themed name. It’s a big old warehouse, full of houseplants and two full-size trees reaching up to the high ceiling, set in a small garden with plenty of outdoor seating, strewn with fairy lights. I love it.

You can easily spend a couple of hours here having drinks and enjoying the vibes before heading back into Zagreb centre to eat.

Evening meal: eat traditional food from Zagreb at Vinodol

Beers consumed, it’s time to eat.

When you’re travelling in Croatia, you’ll see lots of Dalmatian and Istrian food everywhere. These cuisines are served all over the country, prolifically in Zagreb too. But if I was you, I’d wait until you’re in those regions to try them. ‘When in Zagreb’, as they (don’t) say, you should try the local Zagreb dishes.

Here are some of the most famous foods from Zagreb:

• Sir i vrhnje – a mixture of cottage cheese and sour cream. Normally eaten with bread.
• Štrukli – this is essentially some sir i vrhnje but in a pastry. You can have it sweet or savoury. 
• Zagrebački odrezak – a ‘Zagreb steak’. I don’t eat meat so this is very much not for me, especially as it’s usually made with veal (one of the cruellest meats), but if you do then it’s a breaded, stuffed steak. 
• Purica i mlinci – roast turkey with bits of flatbread that look like noodles (mlinci), which I can confirm are unusual and delicious.

If you fancy trying purica i mlinci, Vinodol is one of the best and most traditional Zagreb restaurants guaranteed to have it on the menu. Vinodol also serves plenty of other traditional Croatian food, including vegetarian options. It’s fairly fancy but affordable, and well located in the centre of town. It’s got a very good (small!) menu and everything is top quality.

If your heart is set on štrukli for your evening meal, Zagreb even has a specific restaurant that only serves štrukli. Originally, it’s called La Štruk. They serve two types of štrukli, boiled or baked, and they do them both savoury and sweet. If anyone actually manages to finish off both savoury and sweet types in a two-course štrukli cheese-fest, I salute you. I can’t even finish one.

But a food coma is a great way to round off your day in Zagreb, I reckon.

And if you want to stay longer than just one day in Zagreb…

So that’s the end of my little itinerary. Like I said at the top, just one day in Zagreb simply isn’t enough to properly get underneath the surface of the city. Although it isn’t an in-your-face ‘wow’ city like Venice or something, it’s got such a lovely atmosphere and I think it’s well worth getting to know it better.

A long weekend would be good so that you can spend a day doing everything I’ve suggested here and then another couple of days doing some of the many other things to do in Zagreb (shameless plug for my big Zagreb guide there!). Plus, if you’re there longer you can do some day trips. I recommend Samobor or Karlovac.

Where to stay in Zagreb, Croatia, if you want to stay for longer than just one day

If you’re reading this bit, I’m glad you’re thinking of staying over and not just doing Zagreb as a day trip. It’s so worth it!

I massively recommend booking Hendrix Bridge Apartment 2. It’s around 70€ a night (at the time of writing). It’s super stylish and has a lovely big balcony (overlooking a dog-walking area so you can see lots of cute dogs while you’re sitting having breakfast out there!). The tram into Zagreb centre is just outside the door. As regular readers will know, this travel blogging job means I stay in a lot of places. This apartment is one of the best. If it’s fully booked, the owner also has Hendrix Bridge Apartment 1, which I’m sure would be just as good.

However, if you want a hotel in the centre of Zagreb, there are some good options too. Have a look at Canopy by Hilton (around 130€ a night) or B&B Fotic (around 85€).

One day in Zagreb itinerary – useful information for your trip

How to get around Zagreb, Croatia

Zagreb is a very walkable city but also has an excellent tram network called ZET. Tram tickets are so cheap: the ZET website has a useful table of prices. If you end up staying in Zagreb for more than one day, it’s worth buying a multi-day ticket. You can get tram tickets from ZET’s ticket offices or at the newsagent kiosks around town. Tram drivers can also sell one-journey paper tickets when you board, so if you only have one day in Zagreb it’s probably best just to do that if you do need to get the tram.

When to go to Zagreb, Croatia

I like visiting Zagreb in September as it’s the perfect temperature for exploring. But any time from April to September has good weather. Obviously, avoid the height of summer as it may be too hot, but it’s not a city that gets completely overrun with tourists. 

Save and share: One day in Zagreb itinerary 

If you enjoyed this itinerary for spending one day in Zagreb, Croatia, why not pin it to your Pinterest board?

You might also like my other Croatia and Central Europe posts:

• 30 things to do in Zagreb
• 3 days in Split: the perfect itinerary
• 20 things to do on Korcula, Croatia’s most beautiful island
• 33 things to do in Ljubljana, Slovenia’s fairytale capital
• One day in Bratislava, Slovakia: the perfect itinerary
• 3 days in Dubrovnik: an itinerary [coming soon].

And if you’ve used one of my travel guides and enjoyed it, you can also buy me a drink. Cheers. 

Share this post