ZAGREB, 15 May 2022 - This year's Zagreb Book Festival, to be held on 23-28 May, will focus on the human attitude towards the environment.

The international festival will feature some 20 events to be attended by about 40 authors from Croatia and abroad, and admission to the events, to take place at the Ritam Grada club, Ljevak bookstore, Hotel Dubrovnik and Bogdan Ogrizović library in downtown Zagreb, is free.

The panel discussions to be held as part of the festival will focus on climate change, ecofeminism, conspiracy theories and information overload.

Among the authors who will present their works are Belgian-Moroccan writer Rachida Lamrabet, Dutch writer Eva Meijer, Icelandic writer and director Andri Snaer Magnason as well as Croatian authors Tena Štivičić, Đorđe Matić, Ivana Bašić, Mirna Brođanac, Tanja Radović and Dalibor Šimpraga.

For more, make sure to check out our lifestyle section.

AGREB, 28 June 2021 - The 19th Equal Opportunities Festival began on Monday in Zagreb's main downtown square and it will continue for the next three days (until 30 June), presenting what people with disabilities can contribute to their city.

The Equal Opportunities Festival features music and theatre performances as well as art exhibitions and educational-recreational and sports activities involving people with disabilities who will present their creative possibilities to show that they should enjoy the same rights and obligations as other citizens, the organisers said.

This year about 800 performers from Croatia and abroad, 500 of whom are people with disabilities, will participate in the street festival. They will be assisted by about 20 professionals and 150 student volunteers from about 15 Zagreb faculties, the festival's creator, Milan Ožegović, said while opening the festival in Ban Jelačić Square.

Ožegović said that the festival emerged as a result of efforts to enable people with disabilities to socialise and show their creativity to other citizens. Each year about 15,000 people visit the festival and that way prejudices are removed and awareness is raised of the abilities of people with disabilities. "We have managed to establish a public scene despite not receiving any systematic financial assistance," he added.

As a sign of support, Ombudsman for Persons with Disabilities Anka Slonjšak attended the opening of the 19th Equal Opportunities Festival.

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May 30, 2021 - After changing its date due to the pandemic, the Floraart International Garden Show will display a vast and colorful set of flower gardens at Lake Bundek, starting this Tuesday, June 1st.

After being announced, and then canceled due to the epidemiological situation in Croatia, the 55th Floraart International Garden Exhibition was scheduled for a new date, reports Turistčke priče. The big flower show will begin on Tuesday, June 1st, and run through Sunday, June 6th. Floraart will be held on more than 300 thousand square meters of open space in Zagreb's Bundek, in compliance with all epidemiological measures.

Credit: floraart.hr

On the outside, plant exhibitors will be presented with a range of their own products and various floral installations and displays of conceptual solutions in the design of smaller green areas. The competitions "Croatian CUP of Florists" and "International Competition of High School Agricultural Students in Flower Arrangement" will not be held this year.

Credit: floraart.hr

In the western and eastern open part of Lake Bundek, a rich sale of cacti, perennials, and flowers at affordable prices will be organized. Lovers of nature and flowers, after last year's break, will finally come to their senses, beautiful flower arrangements await them all over the lake.

Floraart International Garden Show is organized by Zagreb Holding - Zrinjevac branch, and the co-organizers are the City of Zagreb and the Zagreb Tourist Board. Admission is traditionally free, and it is recommended that citizens park in the east parking lot of the Zagreb Fair.

Along with the coastal cities like Split or Dubrovnik or the hundreds of destinations that you can find in the Croatian islands, Zagreb is also an attractive destination during the summer. You can find more information in our TCN overview on the festivals and events in Zagreb for this summer.

For more information on what the Croatian capital has to offer, such as what to see or do, be sure to check out our Total Croatia guide, Zagreb in a Page 2021. Now in your language!

For more about lifestyle in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

Zagreb, September 7, 2020 – TCN covered the opening of Zagreb Burger Festival . Now we bring you our One Minute video, showing all the most delicious burgers and capturing the vibe happening right now in central Zagreb

This year, for the fifth time, the kings of street food – burgers – are back at Zagreb Burger Festival. Until September 13, you can try several dozen types of burgers - from prime beef, game, fish and veggie versions, or those in coloured red, green, and black brioche buns.

For those who want to visit the Zagreb Burger Festival and enjoy a drink, there are also cocktail masters, as well as a special stand intended for gin lovers. Of course, beer is also served, as well as soft drinks.

Kids can also have fun at the specially prepared Zagreb Burger Festival Kid’s Zone, which has trampolines. One stand is also dedicated to desserts, so visitors can sweeten up with ice cream and cakes after the burgers.

Due to this year's ongoing Coronavirus situation, the number of catering houses is reduced from last year's 27 to 14. To make it easier for people to keep their distance, plants are set up as part of the festival exterior. A green oasis has been created!

Make the most of the nice weather during the late summer - head down to the Zagreb Burger festival, where you can lounge on the beds, sit on the grass, soak up the vibes and feel like you’re on a picnic.

Zagreb Burger Festival is accompanied by great music, welcoming DJs and performers to the festival's elevated stage.

To get a closer look at the atmosphere, check out TCN's One Minute video, which captures all the best burgers and all the best vibes.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

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Eleven projections of the Zagreb Fantastic Film Festival will be shown at the Tuškanac Open-Air Theatre this summer.

The festival will be just one part of a series of events taking place on this truly unique stage throughout the summer, more precisely over the next three months. The forest closest to the centre of the town, Tuškanac, recently became the most popular place in town in the evenings, thanks to the festival and movie fans who enjoy spending their evenings outdoors, watching movies and enjoying some fresh evening air.

The ninth edition of the festival started with the showing of Arctic, often described as one of the best survival movies ever made (and unfortunately we have to report that the Arctic scenery in which Mads Mikkelsen finds himself didn't really help in cooling the audience down on one of the hottest days of the summer!).

Stjepan Hundić, the director of the festival, greeted the audience before the projection, saying that the program will combine the newest movie hits from all over the world with the unforgettable cult classics during the next three months.

The Fantastic Film Festival will last until July the 7th, with movie screenings on the Tuškanac Open-Air Stage and in Tuškanac Theatre (the two are a couple of hundred metres apart, so it's not just the name they share). You can find the schedule of the screenings for the festival here, and the movies that will be shown outdoors include the classics The Warriors, The Terminator, Alien, and Easy Rider, an anime masterpiece Mirai no Mirai by Mamoru Hosoda, as well as the spectacular Swedish SF set in outer space, Aniara.

Tickets for each of the projections cost 30 kuna each, with a twist that I've never seen before in Croatia: each human who brings along their dog to the Tuškanac Open-Air Stage for a screening gets to watch the movie for free! (One dog gets to take one person in for free).

The World Festival of Animated Film - Animafest - was officially open on Monday night in Zagreb's Tuškanac theatre, where it will be presenting the best of the animated production in the world in the next week. The location of the festival opening has changed, as it has been held in Europa Theatre, but because of the recent turmoil surrounding that location it had to be moved to Tuškanac theatre. That change also brought along many changes in the programme of the festival, as well as its schedule.

As has become tradition, the ceremony of the opening also saw the awards by Animafest for the overall contribution to the animated film. This year Suzan Pitt, an American artist who was not able to attend the ceremony due to medical reasons was awarded for lifetime achievement. Jayne Pilling, versatile scientist, educator and animation promotor was given the award for her remarkable contribution to the research of animated film. Pilling accepted her award herself, and remembered how kindly the community of Animafest has accepted her since the first time she came to Zagreb. French school Gobelins, which has become synonimous with high-end education in animation since it was founded in 1975, received the award for the best animation school.

In addition to the festival, numerous supplemental art programmes of the festival also started: group exhibition of the students and professors of the Applied Arts Academy from Vienna started in Gallery Šira and Grič Tunnel. The tunnel also welcomed the newly established competition of the VR projects with seven instalations that came from all over the world. Workshop of the development of stories for videogames started on Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing in Zagreb.

Kinoteka theatre in Zagreb will also host a part of the program, including the short-film competition, and Kaptol Boutique Cinema is reserved for the World Panorama programmes. Find out more about the festival on their website or Facebook page.

A real novelty on the Croatian gastronomy scene, R'n'B Weekend Festival is taking place this weekend, May 23rd until 26th in Zagreb, at a fantastic location of the HAZU Glyptotheque (Croatian Academy of Arts and Sciences Glyptotheque), located at the address Medvedgraska 2 - in the heart of Zagreb Upper Town. Organised by the same people who have been in charge of the most prominent Croatian media festival, the Weekend Media Festival in Rovinj, Restaurants and Bars Weekend Festival have decided to organise a food and drinks festival in Zagreb which aims to be the best in every aspect. And to make the best festival in a tourist country, you need to have a team of the best people around helping with the organisation: Marin Nekić, one of the best bartenders and mixologists in the country, Mate Janković, a well-known Croatian chef, Matija Belković and Matija Hrkać from Cogito Caffe and Hrvoje Petrić, food writer and consultant will each help make the festival as good as it can be. 

The schedule of the festival has been published on their website, so you can see for yourself that there will be numerous various events organised at the location, bringing forth many aspects that go into having a thriving restaurant and bar scene in a country. More than 20 panel-discussions with best Croatian chefs, bartenders, coffee masters and winemakers will be held each day of the festival. What is the new gin? What were the last 20 years like for some of the best Croatian winemakers? Is there such a thing as Croatian street-food? Can music make you stay in a restaurant longer and spend more money? Those are just a few questions that will get answered during the festival in Glyptotheque, and in the Kaptol Boutique Cinema theatre (which are really close to one another), where some of the discussions will be held. 

The festival will also hold one of the biggest celebrations of Croatian restaurants, as Michelin stars and recommendation ceremony will be held as a part of the R'n'B Weekend Festival. There will be several masterclasses as well, where you will get to taste the combinations of chocolate and various drinks, learn new techniques, taste wines by Agris, Fakin, Feravino, Griffin, Kopjar, Meneghetti, Petrač, Roxanich, Vino Bora and others. Some of the chefs at the Festival will be Robert Hromalić, Tea Mamut, Tvrtko Šakota, Goran Kočiš, Pag's Boškinac crew, Tedi Chiavalon and many others.

Within the R'n'B Weekend Festival, a special event for those who enjoy coffee is also organised, called Zagreb Coffee Weekend, where some of the biggest names in Croatia and the world will make the best speciality coffees. One name stands out: Scott Rao is one of the world's leading coffee experts, who will hold a masterclass in roasting coffee in Zagreb! 

On Thursday the festival will open with an opening party where Marin Nekić will make impressive welcome cocktails, and Brewery Lane, a section of the festival dedicated to craft breweries will also open. Food-wise, on Friday you will mostly be able to have sea-food dishes, on Saturday meat will be in the spotlight, and on Sunday you can have a Hangover brunch with a lot of "comfort food" to help you recover after all the parties taking place on Saturday evening. And who is in charge of all that partying: numerous DJs, local bands and a performance by Horse Meat Disco, which will take place in the Garden Brewery. They will finally show the audience in Zagreb why their performances in Tisno during the summer have become so popular, showing us all there is to know about the disco music.

You can get the tickets for all of those (and many more!) events of this festival at Entrio system - daily entrance is 75 kn, all three days of the festival cost 150 kn, and you need to purchase additional entry tickets for certain masterclasses. 

The time of year that documentary films fans have been waiting for is finally here: ZagrebDox, an international documentary film festival is starting this weekend!

A weekend is not a weekend in Zagreb without a cup of coffee, right?