The most instagrammable places at Zagreb Advent festival

Zagreb’s upper town is a place which retains a sense of the city’s history. On cobbled streets lined with grand Austro-Hungarian façades, you can almost feel the footfall of its former residents as you pass by dainty boutiques whose store fronts are bathed in the light of traditional street lanterns. Every day you can still see these gas lanterns being lit by hand as a city worker walks the whole route of 246 lanterns just before dusk in order to illuminate the streets. During this Advent, Christmas songs will accompany the ritual. Experience the glow of Christmas under the city’s pretty lanterns and take the suggested route from Saint Mark’s Square to Grič Park via Dragutina Freudenreicha Street, Antuna Gustava Matoša Street and Marković Square. 

Lantern lighting will take place at 3.30pm on December 4, 5, 11, 12, 18, 19, 26

You’ll be hard pushed not to find an adorable scene to capture at Zrinjevac. This central city park is at the heart of advent happenings, and it’s endlessly Instragammable, with wooden huts selling steamy mulled wine, a tiny pavilion covered in lights, glittering treeline walkways, and - the ideal selfie-spot - a fountain decked out in fairy lights.

The Grič tunnel is an underground passageway which stretches beneath Zagreb’s city centre streets. It’s a good place to take distinctive shots throughout the year, but decorated with pines, nutcrackers, toys and festive lights, this ex WWII bomb shelter holds an altogether cheery ambience at Advent.

They really go to town up at the Strossmayer promenade, with Elf-worthy levels of Christmas bling, and enough voltage to power a small town. There’s usually a jazz quartet crooning round-the-fire songs plus stunning views across the city. If you don’t get that money-shot, you’re doing something wrong.

Okay, so half of your feed will be churning out samey photos of ice rinks. You, however, can do it better, with a little help from the spectacularly lit ice-rink at King
Tomislav Square. Even if you’re more into waddling around the edges than gliding across the floor, it’s worth the trip for that quintessential winter pic.

One of Zagreb’s less touristy treasures, this huge, forested park is dramatically beautiful in winter. This year a host of advent treats are happening here, including concerts, food stalls and outdoor museums. Cold, stark trees and the warm thrum of people - it’s a winning combination that your inner insta-fiend will relish.

If you haven’t taken a selfie in front of St Mark’s Church, then you haven’t really been to Zagreb - according to Instagram, anyway. Probably the most photographed sight in the city, this small Gothic masterpiece is loved by visitors
because of its colourful tiled roof. At advent, with a squad of Christmas trees at its front, it looks even more special than usual.

The Croatian National Theatre is spectacular at any time of year and in order to not look underwhelming next to its architectural splendour, their Christmas decorations are incredibly impressive. The majestic building, all dressed up in wreaths and ribbons, looks like it’s straight out of The Nutcracker (which plays here again this
Christmas). Don a duffel coat and get that Grandma-pleasing Christmas card shot here.

If you want to capture the spirit of Advent in full swing, get your camera downtown to the main square. This is the centrepiece, and don’t they let you know it: no surface has been left un-sparkled, no tree un-bejewelled. If you’re lucky, you’ll get a flurry of snow- throw in the blur of a passing tram, and voila: you have the ultimate Instagram shot of Advent in Zagreb.