Things to Do in Varaždin, Croatia: Walking Guide

Varaždin is a compact city in northern Croatia celebrated for its elegant Baroque architecture, historic streets, and relaxed atmosphere. It offers a quieter cultural side of the country, ideal for travelers interested in heritage, museums, and pleasant walks through a well‑preserved old town. Neywo provides a free audio guide for Varaždin with 15 narrated places and two walking tours, letting you explore at your own pace.

Explore Varaždin’s highlights

Old Town (Stari grad Varaždin)

The Old Town, known locally as Stari grad Varaždin, sits at the northwestern edge of the historic centre. Its architecture blends Gothic and Renaissance elements, reflecting construction phases that spanned from the 1300s to the 1800s. In 2005 the castle was added to Croatia’s tentative World Heritage list, and today it houses the Varaždin City Museum, where you can discover the region’s story inside its ancient walls.

Cathedral of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary

Located near the central town square, this early Baroque sacred building was erected by the Jesuit order between 1642 and 1646. It features a single nave, six side chapels and two galleries. The bell tower arrived in 1676 and the sacristy in 1726. After the Jesuit dissolution in 1773 the church served as a military barn before being reconsecrated in 1797. Pope John Paul II’s 1997 bull created the Diocese of Varaždin and elevated the church to cathedral status.

Patačić Palace

This two‑storey corner building stands in the narrowest part of the city centre and is regarded as one of Croatia’s finest Baroque‑Rococo examples. Its façade displays elaborate Rococo stucco work, a distinctive corner oriel window and a stone portal. The year 1669 is carved into a basement pillar while 1764 appears on the keystone above the portal, marking two construction phases. Originally built by merchant Daniel Praunsperger for trade, the Patačić family remodelled it in the Rococo style after 1763.

Franciscan Church of St. John the Baptist

In front of the church stands the bronze statue of Grgur Ninski, created by Ivan Meštrović in 1932 and originally intended for Split. The church itself belongs to a Franciscan monastery complex that dates back to the Middle Ages. The present hall‑type church was built in 1650 and preserves a late Baroque interior, while the monastery was constructed between 1626 and 1632 as a three‑wing cloister with a bell tower added shortly after.

Church of St. George

Situated on Ban Jelačić Square, this Eastern Orthodox church belongs to the Metropolitanate of Zagreb and Ljubljana of the Serbian Orthodox Church. Built in 1884 to a design by Radoslav Atzinger, its style mixes neo‑Byzantine and neo‑Romanesque elements. Inside, the iconostasis, pews and icons were transferred from an Orthodox church in Zagreb, giving the interior a 19th‑century character.

Herzer Palace

Found on Franjevački trg, the Herzer Palace is a late Baroque‑early Classicist residence erected between 1791 and 1795 by Franjo Herczer, who managed the Royal Post Office. It occupies the site of a 14th‑century hospice and consists of two wings at right angles, forming an L‑shaped plan. The stone portal bears a noble family coat of arms, and the interior ceremonial halls (piano nobile) reflect the palace’s original grandeur. Together with an auxiliary structure and a high perimeter wall it encloses a spacious inner courtyard that now serves as a museum space.

Erdödy‑Patačić Palace

This striking Baroque palace on the western side of Capuchin Square was built around 1762 by the counts of Erdödy in the Maria Theresa style. Constructed just outside the city walls of the period, it illustrates how Varaždin later expanded around it. After the Erdödy family, the Patačić family took ownership; in 1834 the palace passed to the military and served as the House of the Yugoslav People’s Army until the early 1990s. Since 1997 it has been home to the Varaždin Music School, which first gained use of the building in 1994.

Palača Keglević

Tucked into the southeastern corner of the former fortified estate along the Old Town ramparts, this one‑storey palace received its Rococo appearance circa 1774‑1775 under builder Jacob Erber. It is a freestanding rectangular building topped by a tall hipped roof and surrounded by a garden that creates the feel of a small country retreat within the city. The symmetrical interior layout is mirrored in the balanced façade, a hallmark of Rococo design.

Varaždin County Palace (Županijska palača)

Located on Franciscan Square, this Baroque palace was erected in 1770 by architect Jakov Erber from Styria. It suffered severe damage in the great fire of 1776 but underwent a meticulous façade reconstruction between 2001 and 2004, restoring the elegant appearance seen today.

Palace of the Zagreb Chapter

Situated on Janko Draškovića Street, this 18th‑century corner building is noted for its remarkable preservation. Both the exterior and the original interior layout remain intact. The ground floor is vaulted, as are the rooms on the first floor, and the street‑facing first‑floor rooms retain beautifully decorated stucco ceilings.

Church of St. Vitus

First mentioned in records from 1454, the Church of St. Vitus has endured several reconstructions. After a fire in 1582 it was described as a masonry building by 1649. A new church raised between 1748 and 1751 was badly damaged by the 1776 fire and subsequently restored between 1778 and 1782. Inside, the polychrome interior is well preserved, with the main altar dating from 1760 and the pulpit from 1807.

St Nicholas Church

As the main parish church of Varaždin, St Nicholas is also the city’s patron saint. Legend says it was built on the site of a bear’s den, which is why a bear statue adorns the bell tower. The present Baroque church was erected between 1753 and 1758. Its main altar, of exceptional value, was crafted in 1761 by woodcarver Thomas Huetter together with sculptors Ignaz Hohenburger and Friedrich Peter.

Croatian National Theatre in Varaždin

Opened in 1873, the Croatian National Theatre (HNK Varaždin) is a cultural landmark and a fine example of historic theatre architecture. It was designed by the Austrian architect Hermann Helmer and continues to host performances that enrich the city’s artistic life.

Ursuline Church of the Nativity of Jesus

This Baroque complex, built between 1722 and 1729, combines a church, monastery and school. The single‑nave church is physically linked to the monastery and features a slender bell tower that exceeds 40 metres in height. The façade is decorated with statues of two angels, Saint John of Nepomuk and Saint Francis Xavier; niches hold a statue of Saint Augustine, while a fresco of Saint Ursula crowns the upper level. The monastery complex was erected in stages from 1715 to 1749, allowing visitors to trace the evolution from mature Baroque to Rococo. Movable furnishings from the 18th and 19th centuries add to the historical atmosphere.

Experience Varaždin with Neywo

Neywo’s free audio guide for Varaždin includes 15 narrated places and two self‑guided walking tours. The first tour, “Baroque Varaždin: From the Old Town Fortress to the Palace Squares,” covers 0.75 kilometres in about 56 minutes and stops at seven sites including Palača Keglević, the Old Town, the Ursuline Church, Herzer Palace, the Grgur Ninski statue, the County Palace and the Patačić Palace. The second tour, “Spires, Stage and Stucco: Churches and Theatre of Varaždin,” spans 1.62 kilometres in roughly 61 minutes with seven stops ranging from the Church of St. George and the Cathedral to the Croatian National Theatre, the Palace of the Zagreb Chapter and the Erdödy‑Patačić Palace.

Each story plays automatically as you reach the corresponding location, allowing you to move at your own pace without a group or a fixed schedule. Narration is available in 11 languages, so you can choose the language that suits you best. To start exploring, simply download the Neywo app, select Varaždin, and let the city’s stories unfold as you walk.