With kids · outdoors
Parks and playgrounds
Zagreb's main advantage for families is that there is a lot of green and it is close by. Below are the main parks, each with its own character, plus the things guidebooks tend not to mention: where the shade is in July, and where a pushchair actually works.
The big parks
Maksimir
An enormous English-style park with five lakes, woodland paths and meadows, with the zoo inside it. The paths are wide and level and there is plenty of shade — in a heatwave this is the best place in the city. There are playgrounds, but the real value is being able to let a child run for an hour without watching every step.
Bundek
A lakeside park across the Sava in Novi Zagreb, with one of the best playgrounds in the city — large, modern, zoned by age. People swim in summer, feed the ducks year-round, and scoot along the flat paths. Calmer and more family-oriented than Jarun.
Jarun
A lake in the south-west with a cycle path around it (about 4 km), beaches, boats and sports courts. Busy and loud on summer evenings — more teenagers and groups than toddlers. An excellent place to teach a child to ride a bike.
Ribnjak
A small park beside the cathedral, right in the centre. The answer when you are downtown with a child and do not fancy travelling to a big park. Playground and shade.
Zrinjevac and the Green Horseshoe
The Lower Town chain of parks. Not about playgrounds but about an unhurried walk under plane trees with an ice cream. The fountains run in summer, and children get soaked in them entirely officially.
Botanical Garden
A quiet garden near the railway station with a pond, turtles and glasshouses. Good for a calm walk and for children interested in plants and creatures. Seasonal — closed in winter.
Open sitePractical details
- Courtyard playgrounds. Almost every residential block has its own, and they are often better than the "destination" ones. Just walk around your own neighbourhood — Novi Zagreb has them densely between the blocks.
- Summer heat. From mid-June to late August there is no point being on an open playground between noon and five. Maksimir and the Medvednica forest trails are the answer, specifically for the shade.
- Fountains. In hot weather children officially paddle in the Lower Town square fountains. Bring a change of clothes and stop fighting the inevitable.
- Toilets. Present in the big parks, absent in the small ones. Maksimir and Bundek are fine.
- Pushchairs. Everything in the parks is flat and easy. The trouble only starts in the Upper Town, with its cobbles and stairs.
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