Croatia has more than seven thousand significant architectural objects of historic beauty, romantic intrigue, pride… and among them are about one thousand castles and palaces.

So Croatia has an impressive number of fortifications: almost every city on the coast and many on the mainland boast city walls or a fort or two. Over the centuries, Croatia’s lords and noble families were also busy building castles and palaces.
The distinction between these various structures is sometimes a little blurred, but generally, castles provided both protection and housing for a specific lord or noble family, while forts were not generally private residences, and palaces were not fortified.
Of Croatia’s castles, many are now in disrepair, but several have been well preserved or recently restored (like the Eltz Palace in Vukovar devastated by the Serb aggression in 1990’s) and have opened their doors to the public as museums or venues for events such as plays and musical performances. You could spend days hunting castles in Croatia and here are some that I like in the continental part of Croatia. (Click on image to enlarge)

Cakovec Castle Croatia
Cakovec Castle Croatia
Castle Bezanec Croatia
Castle Bezanec Croatia
Palace Brezovica Croatia
Palace Brezovica Croatia
Palace Ludbreg Croatia
Palace Ludbreg Croatia
Castle Luznica Croatia
Castle Luznica Croatia
Castle Pejacevic Croatia
Castle Pejacevic Croatia
Castle Trakoscan Croatia
Castle Trakoscan Croatia
Castle Veliki Tabor Croatia
Castle Veliki Tabor Croatia
Harzer Palace Varazdin Croatia
Harzer Palace Varazdin Croatia
Old Town castle Varazdin Croatia
Old Town castle Varazdin Croatia
Palace Eltz Vukovar Croatia
Palace Eltz Vukovar Croatia
Palace Lovrencina Kucari Croatia
Palace Lovrencina Kucari Croatia
Palace Orsic Gornja Bistra Croatia
Palace Orsic Gornja Bistra Croatia
Palace Janusevec Zapresic Croatia
Palace Janusevec Zapresic Croatia
Castle Luznica Zapresic Croatia
Castle Luznica Zapresic Croatia

54 responses to “Croatian Castles and Palaces”

  1. omtatjuan Avatar
    omtatjuan

    Those are totally totally cool…

    Like

    1. inavukic Avatar

      Yep I think so too, Juan 😀

      Like

  2. busymindthinking Avatar

    These are absolutely stunning!

    Like

    1. inavukic Avatar

      Sure are, busymindthinking. I love such things…history has romance not just dirty politics 😀 We need to remind ourselves of that

      Liked by 1 person

      1. busymindthinking Avatar

        That’s an absolute truth! Great reminder.

        Like

      2. Donald Miller Avatar
        Donald Miller

        Yes, indeed. This post is a good reminder that we can do more than destroy things, as we’ve been seeing so many alarming instances of on the news lately.

        Like

      3. inavukic Avatar

        Just so fortunate that the world has people who will go for fixing what others destroy or try to destroy, Donald Miller – although, the news that we are faced with across the world today does sadly indicate that it’s getting more and more difficult to fix what some destroy or try to, Donald Miller

        Like

  3. Carol Balawyder Avatar

    These castles are so romantic and the settings of some of them are splendid. It was refreshing to see this part of Croatia not tainted by politics:)

    Like

    1. inavukic Avatar
  4. chirose Avatar

    So beautiful and so much wonderful history.! Thank you so much for posting these photos 🙂

    Like

    1. inavukic Avatar

      You’re welcome Rose, I aim to do more postings on special places in Croatia so glad you liked these

      Like

      1. chirose Avatar

        Fantastic.! I can’t wait.!

        Like

  5. Aliosa Avatar

    Dobra večer!
    Čestitke za postavljanje! 🙂
    Mi smo predstavili pravu lekciju u povijesti Hrvatske! 😆
    Hvala vam!
    Aljoša

    Like

    1. inavukic Avatar

      Translation of comment by Aliosa: Good evening! Congratulations on posting this. A true lecture in history of Croatia. Thank you!
      REPLY: Thank you Aliosa, much appreciate your feedback 😀

      Like

  6. fabianalvareza Avatar
    fabianalvareza

    Reblogged this on Fabián.

    Like

    1. inavukic Avatar

      Thank you for the reblog, Fabian

      Like

  7. Russel Ray Photos Avatar

    It’s a good thing I don’t live in a country that has more than a 300-year history. I’d go through so many cameras and would have billions and billions and billions of pictures instead of just thousands.

    Like

    1. inavukic Avatar

      Yes with so much beauty around and a superb camera like yours, Russel, time for sleep would come scarce 😀

      Like

  8. Michael Silovic Avatar
    Michael Silovic

    Thanks for sharing the beauty of Croatia with us. Croatia is such a beautiful country as a whole and sometimes people only get to see the coastal lines and not the rest of the country. I only wish that the goverment would do more to promote the interior regions so that all the people could benefit from tourism.Keep up the good work.

    Like

    1. inavukic Avatar

      Yes Michael, I think the same – we see so much of the coastal part of Croatia everywhere and the continental gets left behind in the tourism scene, which is a shame as “country” places to be and country things to do are jus as wonderful as those at the seaside.

      Liked by 1 person

  9. oldpoet56 Avatar
    oldpoet56

    I had no idea that Croatia had so many beautiful structures. Thank you for putting these pictures up and also for the written information.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. inavukic Avatar

      Thank you for your visit, Old Poet – my pleasure and glad you like it all

      Like

  10. Andrew Petcher Avatar

    This has made me think! The only castle that I can remember is on the island of Hvar!

    Like

    1. inavukic Avatar

      There are so many more, Andrew, and while I love the ones on the coast, there’s a special spot in my heart for the castles of the inland even if I was born and spent much of my childhood on the Croatian coast, island, filled with historic grandeurs

      Like

  11. IdealisticRebel Avatar

    Very interesting and a surprise. The romance is important. The balance of the good/ bad gives us a treated picture of the country. I am greatful that you blogged this. Hugs and happiness, Barbara

    Like

    1. inavukic Avatar

      Cheers Barbara – I love such things too 😀

      Like

  12. IdealisticRebel Avatar

    Reblogged this on idealisticrebel and commented:
    This is important.

    Like

    1. inavukic Avatar

      Thank you for the reblog, Barbara

      Like

  13. Tammy Hopkinson Avatar

    Reblogged this on Tammy Hopkinson MBA and commented:
    Interesting information!

    Like

    1. inavukic Avatar

      Thank you for the reblog, Tammy 😀

      Like

      1. Tammy Hopkinson Avatar

        No problem. I found it very interesting….

        Like

  14. Rachel Avatar

    Wow, thanks for sharing these. I love castles and beautiful buildings. They somehow add to the wonder of humanity and are like works of art to be enjoyed. I’ve never been to Croatia. Maybe one day…

    Like

    1. inavukic Avatar

      Oh, Rachel – you are missing out on some great wonders of the world – visit Croatia 😀

      Like

  15. Eric Alagan Avatar

    More than one thousand castles and palaces!

    I would never of thought there remained so many, even now – and in a fairly small country as Croatia. A true haven for tourism, I would reckon.

    Thank you, Ina, for sharing,
    Eric 🙂

    Like

    1. inavukic Avatar

      Yes Eric it is quite special – such a relatively small country with so many castles and palaces and manors…not to count fortresses… through these one gets the history where foreign powers have always had their eye on that piece of beautiful paradise on Earth, hence stately homes in particular across the continental part and fortresses along the Dalmatian coast with lots of palaces too. Cheers

      Like

  16. Mungai and the Goa Constrictor Avatar

    I’ve been saving this all day until I had time to watch it. These places are stunning, Ina. My favourite was Castle Trakoscan on its high hill. Really beautiful 🙂

    Like

    1. inavukic Avatar

      And it even better close-up, when you’re there, Amelia! The surrounds I think are more beautiful and picturesque than Switzerland or Austria – I may be a bit biased but I bet if you went and saw it you’d say: No you’re not, Ina. 😀

      Like

  17. cindy knoke Avatar

    I want to visit!!! Gorgeous!

    Like

    1. inavukic Avatar

      Wishes do come true every day, Cindy 😀 Nice to hear of this one 😀

      Like

  18. jalal michael sabbagh.http://gravatar.com/jmsabbagh86@gmail.com Avatar
    1. inavukic Avatar
  19. Kat Avatar
    Kat

    There’s so many things to see in Croatia, that I don’t know how I’ll ever get around to exploring the country. I need millions, hahaha! It’s great to see castles and palaces from regions other than the coast, though I do have a personal preference for Dalmatia. 😀

    Like

  20. Joe Bradshaw Avatar

    Very beautiful… Some new additions to my list of places to see. Thank you for sharing them! And thank you for being the Beautiful woman and human being you are, thank you for being you and sharing with us who you are and the love in your heart! 🙂

    Like

    1. inavukic Avatar

      Thank you so much, Joe, much appreciate your feedback

      Like

  21. khaled Avatar

    very,very beautiful places .. good day dear Madam

    Like

    1. inavukic Avatar

      Cheers Khaled, thank you

      Like

  22. Moederlief Avatar
    Moederlief

    It is such a beautiful country and there are so many gems yet to discover. Lovely pictures, lovely castles.

    Like

    1. inavukic Avatar

      Cheers, Moederlief, thank you

      Like

  23. Gallivanta Avatar

    Lovely castles.

    Like

    1. inavukic Avatar

      I love them, Gullivanta 😀

      Like

  24. Rob Smith Avatar
    Rob Smith

    If you want to see real castles, go to France!

    Liked by 1 person

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I’m Ina

I was born in Croatia and live Australia. I have been described as a prominent figure known for my contribution to the Croatian and wider societies, particularly in the context of Croatia’s transition from communism to democracy, as well as for my many years of work as a clinical psychologist and Chief Executive Officer of government-funded services for people with disabilities, including mental health services, in Australia. In 1995, the President of the Republic of Croatia awarded me two Medals of Honor, the Homeland War Memorial Medal and the Order of the Croatian Trefoil for her special merits and her contribution to the founding of the Republic of Croatia.  I have been a successful blogger since 2011 and write extensively in the English-language on issues related to Croatian current affairs and democracy, as well as the challenges Croatia faced and still faces in its transition from communism. My goal is to raise awareness of these connections and issues worldwide.