Over the years Varaždin has kept some of the important features of the Croatian „Vienna“ as the city of baroque, music and flowers- a pleasant resort to its guests.
Varaždin's numerous cultural and historical sights tell the story of its rich 800 years old history, when numerous Croatian aristocrats, landowners, craftsmen and artists lived in it, especially in the late 18th century, when it was the capital of Croatia.
As a city- museum, but also a modern centre of the Varaždin diocese and the Varaždin county and the crossroad of roads leading to Zagreb and the Adriatic Sea, Varaždin is an attractive tourist destination. In the heart of its old city core, every visitor will have the opportunity to feel the spirit of the history, as well as the beauty of living today.
Varaždin lives very intensely throughout the year and the stages all over the city offer different and interesting tourist contents to its visitors. It kindly invites you to visit Špancirfest- festival of good emotions; the concerts of the Varaždin Baruque Evenings, manifestations, exhibitions, fairs and theatre plays. However, it also invites you to visit the Old Town- the most monumental and most valuable city complex which houses the collections of the Varaždin City Museum; the City Hall- the oldest in Europe and the residing place of the City government; the Varaždin Cemetery, a pearl of landscape architecture and the highest category nature park, or a surprising collection „The world of insects“ which, in one of Varaždin's numerous palaces, unfolds nature's mysterious life for its visitors. This is one of a kind museum collection of continental Croatia insect fauna, where you are at the same time a visitor, a nature explorer and a historian.
If you visit Varaždin between the middle of April and October, you will be welcomed by the city's old craftmen at the Square of traditional crafts, where the town blacksmith will forge a medallion for you. Every Saturday between 11 and 12 a.m. you can attend the change of City Guard, the popular „purgari“, followed by the Guard drummers, one of Varaždin's symbols with a tradition longer than two and a half centuries.
According to the descriptions of great feasts, prepared especially by butchers, the tables were very rich, diverse and high quality. Following this tradition, Varaždin's chefs prepare numerous homemade dishes following the recipes „from grandma's kitchen“. The famous and delicious „klipič“ (a dough roll) and the Varaždin sauerkraut are the most widespread delicacies from the culinary history of this area and a normal part of starter dishes in almost every restaurant in Varaždin.
