Tourist Route Zabok – Sveti Križ Začretje - Krapina

The tourist route begins in Zabok, the center of Hrvatsko Zagorje, nearby the highway Zagreb - Maribor. The most interesting sites are the late Baroque Parish Church of St. Helen and the Chapel of St. Anthony in Gabrovec. The manor Gredice (today castle Gjalski) is also interesting to visit because it is the birthplace of Ksaver Šandor Gjalski, but now is reconstructed as a restaurant. The traditional days of Ksaver Šandor Gjalski is the largest and the most important cultural manifestation. The ethnological exhibition Zagorska Hiža and the motocross races are special tourist attractions. On the hill between Zabok and Sveti Križ Začretje there is the Mirkovec castle.

The picturesque Zagorje hills and vineyards will take you to Sveti Križ Začretje, 7 km from Zabok. The center is a wide street - the square between the two dominant churches and a castle. The Gothic Parish Church of the Holy Cross, mentioned for the first time in written documents in 1334, and the parish hall from the 18th century should be visited. Nearby is the late Baroque castle of an unusual floor plan in the shape of the letter "V", which belonged to the Keglević family at the beginning of the 18th century. The reconstructed building of a former warehouse is a permanent exhibition of drawings and works by Ivan Lovrenčić, one of the greatest artists of the Croatian modern art. Tourist Village Vuglec Breg is located in the village Škarićevo, with four original Zagorje houses, a restaurant and a wine cellar, a gazebo with a bread oven and grill, a conference hall, children's playground and artificial grass sports fields.

Our tourist route in the Krapina and Zagorje County leads on towards Krapina, which is the County's center and the capital of Zagorje's culture. One of the largest Neanderthal site in Europe is located beside the Krapinica stream on the Hušnjakovo hill. The archeological site includes reconstructions of the Neanderthal man and his family beside a campfire, reconstructions of animals from that time and the Evolution Museum with a geological, paleontological and archeological exhibition. Ljudevit Gaj Museum and the Krapina Gallery are also open for visitors.

A valuable sacral object is also the Baroque Franciscan Monastery with the Church of St. Catherine with a permanent exhibition of sacral art and the library with about 8,000 books and valuable incunabulae, as well as the Parish Church of St. Nicholas. The Krapina's surroundings are interested for tourists, especially the wine roads, forest and hunting areas and fishing on Krapina and Sutla rivers. Numerous cultural and artistic manifestations are held during the entire year, especially the Kajkavian Culture Week and the Kajkavian Song Festival, as well as the Kaj Festival of words, songs, images and dance. Krapinske Toplice spa is located in the forested canyon surrounded by hills, 14 km from Krapina. Trški Vrh is a kilometer northeast from Krapina and a place of worshipping St. Mary of Jerusalem, the statue brought here by a pilgrim as a gift from the Franciscans at the Jesus' grave in Jerusalem.

Accommodation and catering options: Hotel Croatia - Krapina, Gjalski castle – Krapina, lodging house "Pod Starim Krovovima" – Krapina, lodging house Vuglec Breg – Škarićevo, lodging house Kušan - Zabok.