Cities & Towns in Central Croatia, Croatia

32 cities & towns in Central Croatia, Croatia, with map links and honest tips. Browse the best city & town spots across the region.

The towns of Central Croatia are the heart of any trip, stone streets, harbours, squares and a café culture that asks you to slow down. These 32 cities and towns are the ones worth building a day, or a whole stay, around.

The 32 best cities & towns in Central

Donja Stubica, a hrvatsko zagorje town at the centre of the great 1573 peasants’ revolt (gupčeva buna) led by matija gubec against the nobles, crushed at nearby stubičke toplice. map
Duga Resa, a town on the emerald mrežnica river that grew around a large 19th century textile mill, one of the earliest industrial sites in the region. map
Dugo Selo, a town east of zagreb whose name simply means long village, now a commuter and rail junction at the edge of the capital. map
Garešnica, a market town in the moslavina plain, an agricultural centre on the edge of the oil bearing moslavina hills. map
Grubišno Polje, a market town on the bilogora slopes, surrounded by the fields and forests of western moslavina. map
Hrvatska Kostajnica, a town on the una river at the bosnian border, watched over by a medieval fortress. map
Ivanec, a town at the foot of the ivanščica mountain in hrvatsko zagorje, long known for its vines and for the stone quarries on the hillside. map
Ivanić-Grad, a former habsburg military border post east of zagreb, now known for its naftalan therapeutic naphtha baths drawn from local oil wells. map
Jastrebarsko, a zagorje resort town since the 19th century, set around the 16th century erdődy castle and the fish rich jastrebarsko lakes. map
Klanjec, a zagorje town and the birthplace of antun mihanović, who wrote the words of the croatian national anthem. map
Koprivnica, a renaissance fortified town on the drava plain, a former habsburg military centre whose old ramparts now ring parks in the town centre. map
Križevci, one of the oldest royal free towns in croatia, chartered in the 13th century, and the seat of the greek catholic (uniate) bishop for inland croatia. map
Kutina, a moslavina town that became the centre of croatia’s petroleum industry after oil was found nearby, with the ina refinery still its main employer and lonjsko polje nature park on its doorstep. map
Lepoglava, a zagorje town known for its 14th century pauline monastery, later turned into one of croatia’s most notorious prisons. map
Lipik, a spa town famous for its mineral springs and for the lipizzaner stud founded here in the 19th century. map
Mursko Središće, the northernmost town in croatia, on the mura river at the slovenian border, a former coal mining centre in međimurje. map
Novi Marof, a town in the hrvatsko zagorje hills at the foot of ivanščica, a modest market centre that grew around a 14th century estate. map
Novska, a western slavonian town on the main rail line, on the front line of the 1990s war and since rebuilt as a logistics and energy hub. map
Ozalj, a town on a bend of the kupa river, watched over by an old town perched on a cliff. map
Pakrac, a slavonian town where the battle of pakrac in march 1991, the first armed clash of the war, took place around its old barracks. map
Popovača, a moslavina market town on the railway between zagreb and eastern croatia. map
Pregrada, a zagorje town in a green valley, dominated by a tall neo gothic parish church visible from the surrounding hills. map
Prelog, a 13th century market town on the drava in međimurje, for centuries a centre of the local grain and craft trade. map
Sveta Nedelja, a fast growing town just west of zagreb, named after a medieval church and now largely a commuter settlement for the capital. map
Sveti Ivan Zelina, a historic wine town in hrvatsko zagorje, whose vines on the southern slopes of the hills have produced wine since medieval times. map
Varazdin, baroque capital. map
Varaždinske Toplice, a thermal spa town whose sulphur springs were already bathed in by the romans, who called the place aquae iasae, making it the oldest known spa in croatia. map
Velika Gorica, a town south of zagreb on the edge of the turopolje woodland, long the gateway to the capital’s airport and the lowland oak forests. map
Zagreb, capital. map
Čakovec, the capital of međimurje, croatia’s northernmost county, and for centuries the seat of the powerful zrinski counts, whose old fortress still anchors the town centre. map
Čazma, a bjelovar region town whose church of st mary magdalene, consecrated in 1226, is among the oldest standing churches in inland croatia. map
Đurđevac, a podravina town famous for the local legend of the picoki, in which townspeople outlasted a turkish siege by firing their last rooster at the besiegers. map

Practical tips

Shoulder season, May or September, gives you the charm without the cruise ship crowds. Mornings are quieter and cooler, and the best cafés and doorways are usually one alley off the main street.

When to go

For cities & towns in Central, aim for May to October, with June and September the quietest warm months. Bring water and shade, facilities are thin at the more remote spots.

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