Dionysus hideouts of continental Croatia

Arrive in Zagreb. Meet with your English-speaking driver and vehicle and transfer to the hotel. Welcome dinner in local restaurant with menu specific for Zagreb surrounding region. Overnight in hotel in Zagreb.

Today's Zagreb has grown out of two medieval settlements that for centuries developed on neighbouring hills. The first written mention of the city dates from 1094, when a diocese was founded on Kaptol, while in 1242, neighbouring Gradec was proclaimed a free and royal city. Both the settlements were surrounded by high walls and towers, remains of which are still preserved.

During the Turkish onslaughts on Europe, between the 14th and 18th centuries, Zagreb was an important border fortress. The Baroque reconstruction of the city in the 17th and 18th centuries changed the appearance of the city. The old wooden houses were demolished, opulent palaces, monasteries and churches were built. The many trade fairs, the revenues from landed estates and the offerings of the many craft workshops greatly contributed to the wealth of the city.

Affluent aristocratic families, royal officials, church dignitaries and rich traders from the whole of Europe moved into the city. Schools and hospitals were opened, and the manners of European capitals were adopted. The city outgrew its medieval borders and spread to the lowlands. The first parks and country houses were built. Zagreb confirmed its position as the administrative, cultural and economic centre of Croatia.

Morning tour of Zagreb with the costumed local guide. Experience so much more than just a sightseeing tour. Dolac market visit prior to lunch and then a cooking class with wine pairing. Craft beer distillery presentation in the afternoon. Dinner in local restaurant. Overnight at hotel in Zagreb.

City tour / Dolac market

Dolac is the largest and the most famous market in Zagreb opened the 1930th at the place of old walls and after it was decided that the old market Harmica move from the place of today's Ban Josip Jelacic Square. Market is located between the Ban Josip Jelacic Square, Capitol, and the Upper Town. Vivid colors and fragrances of fresh fruit and vegetables is something that should not be missed.

Cooking class „Kuhaona“ and lunch

Cooking class „Kuhaona“, dedicated to high quality ingredients, traditional and modern techniques, and great fun is ahead of you. Hands on cooking experience, guided by your own local food expert, you will leave with a real taste of Croatia.

Stand behind our kitchen countertops, put on your aprons and with the help of our food expert learn how to prepare delicious Croatian food. In 3 hours of cooking prepare three courses – appetizer or soup, main dish and dessert. Afterward enjoy the meal you prepared with a glass of Croatian wine. Before we even start to cook, we will visit Dolac market as introduction to Croatian cuisine, tradition and daily life.

Lonjsko polje Nature Park

It is one of the biggest and best-preserved natural flood areas in Europe. Floodplain forests of pedunculate oak and narrow-leaved ash growing in the area are highly representative deciduous forest complexes, not merely at the level of Europe, but throughout the Western Palearctic. Lonjsko polje enjoys a truly special place on the map of European natural wonders: it is one of the last areas in Europe where traditional grazing is still preserved, and livestock still roams freely on large joint pastures; on top of that, it has the first declared “stork village” in Europe. Lonjsko Polje Nature Park is home to biggest complexes of natural and preserved floodplain forests in Europe. That fact alone is sufficient to sense the importance and uniqueness of this area for Croatian, but also for European biodiversity.

Autochthonous breeds are what gives the identity to this wetland area – the Posavina horse, Croatian cold-blooded horse, Slavonian-Syrmian Podolian cattle, Posavina goose, Posavina pointer, and the Turopolje pig, the latter being the most endangered autochthonous breed. Lonjsko polje provides an authentic experience of self-regulatory balance in nature. It is a world where plants and autochthonous breeds live in harmony, constantly renewing the cycle of life.

After enjoyable half day guided tour, we drive back to Zagreb for a tasting dinner at Bornstein.

Bornstein is all about drinking good wine and having a good time.

Short walk from the Zagreb cathedral, in a magnificent 200 years old brick vaulted cellar, the first Croatian wine shop (Vinoteka) was born 30 years ago which gave birth to a renewed Croatian wine scene.

The pioneers of this enological project have created a true wine temple to be enjoyed by wine enthusiasts and lovers from all over the world.

Just when you think you’ve seen all this place has to offer, the hosts will reveal their biggest pride: an archived selection of wines from Kutjevo and Belje cellars as well as a bottle of the oldest wine in Croatia – white Burgundy dating from 1947.

The owner’s passion for wine is evident as well as their extensive knowledge of wine which they share happily with their visitors.

Overnight in hotel in Zagreb.

Samobor city tour

After breakfast, your guide and driver will meet you at the hotel reception and we head towards beautiful, romantic and picturesque city of Samobor.

At the foot of the Samobor hills in Zagreb county, near the Gradna stream, the city of Samobor has a position of one of the most beautiful places in Croatia. It is a small but important historic location is situated 20 km away from the Croatian capital Zagreb. Plateau in front of the St. Anastasia church offers a beautiful view of the main square and a large part of the city. After visiting the church, take the path from the south side of the church, where you will find the grave of Juliana Cantilly (1812-1842), famous Ljubica, the muse of the well-known Croatian Illyrian poet Stanko Vraz. From there, you should descend on the path and down the stairs to the side of Langova street and in a few minutes, you will reach the Franciscan monastery where you can see the breathtaking monumental fresco (more than 7 meters high). Both churches are open during the mass. In front of the monastery, you can see the "first Samobor vacation house", the famous Wagner's villa (Wagner came to Samobor in 1870. as a retired senior officer after the service in the military) and the sequoia park.

After conclusion of the short city tour, you will try the Samoborska kremšnita, one of the most famous Croatian desserts. Proceeding to another great wine tasting experience!

Korak Vinery and Vineyards

Riesling – Portugieser – Sauvignon – Chardonnay - Pinot Noir

This farm primarily grows grapes and produces wine. The five hectares of their vineyards spans over the finest locations of the area, on southern, southeastern, and southwestern slopes of Plešivca’s winegrowing hills. Due to the limited size of their vineyards, the family is focused on producing high quality wines for selective markets and true wine lovers. They also offer indigenous and homemade food freshly produced at the farm. After being named one of the top 20 winemakers three years in a row, in 2008 Velimir Korak received the title of Croatia’s best winemaker!

Lunch at Šumski dvor

Count Erdödy’s country house, built in 1656, is located under Japetić. It holds the Šumski Dvor Restaurant that is situated in the village of Sveta Jana with a beautiful view of Jastrebarsko and the surrounding area that spreads even further when the weather permits. With homemade food and wines made by the Kolarić family, the restaurant also offers beautiful scenery sprinkled with villages and vineyards. The restaurant itself used to be the Erdödy family manor. You friendly hosts will also recommend local quality wine that complements your chosen meal.

Enjoy in homemade dishes: štrukli, ham, cottage cheese and cream, game meat, dishes prepared under a peka and Kolarić Family wines

„Copanjek of Plešivica“ - Autochtonous salty crisp cake prepared from the ingredients available in any true Jaska home is an original Plešivica specialty. Named after the word “copati” meaning “to prepare a dough skilfully and quickly”!

Afternoon return to Zagreb and overnight in hotel.

Breakfast in hotel, meeting with guide and driver and heading towards Hrvatsko zagorje and Varaždin where you will visit 2 wineries and a beautiful castle!

Bolfan „Vinski vrh“

Once you reach this estate, the sound of silence, the beautiful landscape and the view will leave you breathless. The "Vinski vrh" Winery offers home-produced wines (Rhine Riesling, Pinot gris, Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Yellow Muscat, Traminer, Welsh riesling, Chardonnay) and professional wine tasting opportunities. The proof of the exceptional wine quality is the recently received medal at the decanter World Wine Awards in London and recognition at the international wine competition held in Brussels. The winery also includes the Libertin Wine House which includes a souvenir store and organizes various programs. Here we would like to highlight the ECO garden maintained for estate purposes and the orchard where old varieties are grown.

Trakošćan

Trakošćan was built in the late 13th century in northwestern Croatian defense system as a small observation fortress for monitoring the road from Ptuj to Bednja Valley.

According to legend, Trakoscan was named after the Thracian fortress (ARX Thacorum) which allegedly existed in antiquity. Another preserved legend says, it is named after the knights Drachenstein who in the early Middle Ages, ruled the region.

Toponym was first mentioned in written records in 1334. year. Lords of fort in the first centuries is not known, yet we know that the end of the 14th century. owners Counts of Celje, which the same time ruled with entire Zagorje County. The family soon become extinct and Trakoscan shared the fate of their other towns and estates that were divided and changing owners. In these division Trakošćan such a unique property at first belongs to warlord Jan Vitovac then to Ivanis Korvin who gave it to his deputy John Gyulay. The family kept the castle for three generations and became extinct in 1566., and the estate was taken over by the state.

For services rendered king Maximilian gave the estate to Juraj Draskovic (1525th-1587th), first personally, then as the family heritage. So finally at 1584 year Trakoscan belongs to Draskovic family. In the boom years of building castles in Croatian Zagorje, in the second half of the 18th century Trakoscan was abandoned. Neglected, it begins to deteriorate rapidly so just in the second half of the 19th century., the family re-interested in its estate in the spirit of the new era romantic return to nature and family traditions. In this spirit marshal Juraj V. Draskovic in residential castle and the surrounding park was transformed into a romantic garden. The next generation occasionally stay in Trakoscan until 1944th when they immigrated to Austria soon after the castle was nationalized.

In 1954 the museum established with a permanent exhibition. Today the castle is owned by the Republic of Croatia.

After tour of this splendid castle, dinner and overnight in a hotel with a perfect view to the castle.

After breakfast, continue our wine route along Medjimurje region. Enjoy this day visiting excellent Lovrec winery and taste local specialties at restaurant Mala hiža.

Enogastronomy – Međimurje region

Just as Medjimurje’s heritage is interesting and imaginative, so is the traditional cuisine of Medjimurje. It has been centuries since Medjimurje’s wine story started being intertwined with the scent of exquisite original dishes. As a testimony, there is a famous cookbook dating from the 17th century Zrinski court, which contains a list of recipes of Medjimurje's authentic Baroque culinary experience and illustrates the dishes as they used to be prepared for the mighty noble family. If you happen to be in Medjimurje, don’t miss out pretepena juha (‘thick cream soup’), meso 'z tiblice (cooked cured meat packed in a wooden barrel), Turoš cottage cheese, temfani picek (chicken in a cream sauce) with buckwheat porridge, međimurska gibanica (layer cake). These dishes are best accompanied by Medjimurje's lively refreshing wines for an extraordinary wine experience. These include Graševina (Welschriesling), Moslavac (Furmint), Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Traminac (Gewurztraminer), Muscat Blanc as well as wonderful Bordeaux varietals. Full, balanced and fresh wines with pleasant tannins go well with timeless cuisine of Medjimurje.

Lovrec winery

To sample the region's top wines in an authentic family enviroment, head to Lovrec vineyard in the village of Sveti Urban, 20 km northwest of Čakovec, the region's capital. The guided tour (available in English, French and German) of this country estate tells you about the boutique wine production and its fascinating history, which spans six generations of winemakers. You'll peek into the 300-year-old wine cellar with ancient wine presses and barrels, rest in the shade of two towering plane trees once used as air-conditioning for the cellar, take in the vistas of the 6-hectar vineyards and top it off with tasting about 10 wine varieties, from chardonnay and pinot gris to local graševina. The whole experience lasts up two hours and costs 80 kn (20 kn extra for tasty cheese, salami and bread snacks), with a bottle of wine to take home. You're encouraged to buy another bottle“. (from 2009 edition "Lonely planet: Croatia travel guide", article by Anja Mutić).

Lunch at „Mala hiža“

“The tale of Mala Hiza" (“Small House” in local dialect) is probably one of the well-aligned stories of family restaurants in Croatia. Everything is built on the immense energy of Chef Branimir Tomasic, who is an undisputed authority on culinary scene for the last 17 years. Every bite you will take under the cozy roof of this dining spot will be a work of this distinct and dedicated individual. He imagined the whole restaurant and constructed it from the wooden houses of Prigorje region. Thus, his own family home and surrounding outdoors has been subjected to his cooking expertise.

Overnight in a hotel Terme Sveti Martin and treat yourself with some spa&wellness treatment.

Another day, another treat! On our way to Slavonia region, we will stop for a lunch and wine tasting at rural tourism Kezele.

From the very entrance to the estate there is a wonderful view of the vineyard where we grow Škrlet, Graševina, Chardonnay, Yellow Muscat, Rhine Riseling, Merlot, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon. The vineyard is surrounded by forest and pastures. In wine production we emphasize quality instead of quantity, gained through low yield and fertilizing with barn manure.

Try perfect home made local food, take a tour round the estate, walk through the beautiful forest and recharge your batteries in the nature.

Overnight at the Kezele.

After breakfast, our next destination is Ilok, an easternmost city of Croatia.

Ilok wine road

Wine growing and production have had an uninterrupted tradition of almost 1,800 years in the region of Ilok. In the 3rd century, after the Roman Emperor Probus abolished prohibitions that had been in force on wine growing and production in the Pannonian regions and introduced new quality varieties, the wine-growing hills of Ilok received an impetus for development. The Odescalchi dukes reaffirmed the position of Ilok as an important wine-growing region. In the 17th century, they built unique cellars underneath the Odescalchi castle, planted even more quality varieties and started bottling wine. These old cellars are used to the present day and represent one of the most interesting attractions of Ilok. In 1899, the Royal School of Viticulture was founded in Ilok, which later developed into the Agricultural School and today’s High School for wine growers, wine makers and fruit growers. The wines produced by the company Iločki podrumi d.d., Traminac, Riesling, Pinot Blanc, Rein Riesling and Chardonnay are world-class wines. In addition, there is an increasing number of small and quality private wineries which focus on wine growing and wine tourism. Every visitor can choose to visit one of the typical cellars of Srijem in the hills or under the houses or experience modern wineries. Wherever you choose to go, you will be able to learn about the process of wine production and enjoy a cordial family atmosphere.

We will take you on a guided tour walk at the Old Ilok Cellars of the Odescalchi Castle, where the hosts will show you some parts of the facility and organize wine tasting with some food delicacies to ty as well.

After that, our next mission is to visit wineries in the Upper or Lower Town, one modern and one old fashioned winery and taste at least three varieties of wine. To experience the winegrowing hills and the landscape and walk through vineyards, going to the belvedere and vineyards of Principovac, which boast a magnificent view of the surrounding vineyards, Ilok, the Danube, the easternmost parts of Croatia and the neighbouring Backa.

To get a special experience of the wine route or a part of it, we are taking you on a tourist train tour of “Iločki podrumi”. After wine tasting, finish the “wine story” with a quality meal in one of Ilok’s restaurants.

Overnight in a hotel in Osijek.

A bit of a different day ahead us! Jeep adventure in Baranja - off-road ride after the tasting of kulen and bread with lard spread. Then proceed toward Baranja vineyards. Climbing the only hill and wine tasting in an old wine cellar dating from 1935. The adventure ends in Batina, with a viewing point to Hungary, Vojvodina and the Danube. Return to the country estate and enjoy the rest of the day. In the evening hours return to Zagreb.

Overnight in a hotel in Zagreb.

Breakfast in hotel. Transfer to the departure airport.