Weekend with Nina – Novi Dvori near Zagreb

Do you know how many castles one can find in Croatia? In surroundings of the capital of Croatia you can visit quite few of them... If you're interested in exploring castles, one direction is to go west from the city of Zagreb. There you will find town of Zaprešić, which is located in Zagreb County, 17 km northwest from centre of the capital and near the Slovenian border. It lies on the north plain of the Sava river, bordered by the Medvednica mountain from the east and the Marija Gorica hill from the west. Zaprešić contains the ornithological reserve Sava - Strmec which is located south of the town, near the Lake Zajarki. The reserve is covered mainly with woods, thick low vegetation and crisscrossed by fluvial marshes. The lake Zajarki is colloquially known as Bager and it's well known destination for locals and tourists. Together with locals, tourists can also enjoy fishing, barbecue in picnic zone on the eastern side of the lake, beach volleyball, handball and football fields. Beside the sport and recreation, here one can visit interesting cultural and historical monuments. Zaprešić cultural heritage includes a series of even six historical castles and palaces known as The palace path. There are Lužnica mansion, Januševac palace, Laduč mansion, Oršić family mansion, Jakovlje palace and Novi Dvori castle, which I will tell you more about below. The complex of Novi Dvori has been known firstly as Curia nova and its first owner was noble family Zrinski. Through the time, it has changed its owners a few time, until finally famous governor Josip Jelačić bought it. The first building that you see, when visiting the Novi Dvori complex is the Vršilnica – reconstructed building for grain processing from the 19th century. Here you could also visit the Museum, the Kuružnjak and other different buildings. The building where the Museum is located now, in the past has been three-floor granary. Now, one can visit the gallery of painter Matija Skurjeni, famous for his motives of secret passages, town ruins, caves, etc. If you continue through the impressive 200 meters long Alley of the chestnut, you will see rectangular building of the castle, surrounded by the park and walking paths. Here you could experience walking through the huge garden with mostly oak and hornbeam wood, pebble's paths, sounds and smells of nature. The spring is a great time of the year to feel diverse beautiful smells of flowers and other vegetation. Near the castle, you will see a beautiful Chapel of St. Joseph and enjoy its neo-gothic architecture. It was built in 1885 by the governor Josip Jelačić and inside the chapel is his tomb, together with the tombs of other members of the noble family. If you continue walking through the park, you will also find the mausoleum of the Jelačić family. It has been built by Đuro Jelačić, according to wish and the testament of his brother Josip. This impressive mausoleum is the work of the recognized architect Hermann Bolle. The mausoleum is separated on underground and aboveground part, with two semi-circular staircases. An additional fact regarding its uniqueness is that it has been partially built from the white stone, taken from the Zagreb’s cathedral, after big earthquake in 1880. I hope that you will enjoy visiting the Novi Dvori castle as well as other castles in Zaprešić area, about which you will read in my future stories and travelogues. So, enjoy upcoming sunny weekend and explore the area!