Using an eSIM in Zagreb

What Zagreb is like on a phone

Zagreb is the capital a great many people treat as a waypoint before the Adriatic coast, but the split between the Upper Town on its hill and the grid of the Lower Town gives you a full day on foot. Visitors are drivers continuing south, Christmas-market crowds, and working travellers who settle in for a while because the cost of living and the pace suit them. Across the urban area the line covers everything, and the real difference you notice is between the wide streets of the Lower Town and the narrow stone lanes up the hill.

À l'atterrissage

Franjo Tuđman Airport (ZAG) sits south-east of the city, about thirty minutes in by airport coach to the main bus terminal. The other common arrivals are international trains from Ljubljana and Budapest into Zagreb Central, and cross-border coaches from the neighbouring countries. Switch the eSIM on before you leave the aircraft or before you reach the border post, since waiting for checks is usually when you need to confirm the accommodation. The ride in stays connected, with no long tunnels.

Où la couverture change

In the grid of the Lower Town, with its wide streets and its chain of parks, the line is very good on the street and inside. The Upper Town's narrow stone lanes and old walls weaken it in some corners, particularly on the sides facing into the hill. The pedestrian tunnel under the Upper Town is completely silent. Climb the winding road up Medvednica north of the city and it drops at intervals along the ridge and in the trees.

What a day here costs in data

A normal day is about 700MB to 1.3GB, since you walk most of it and nearly every café has wifi. People working from here, though, spend hours a day in video calls, which changes the figure a great deal: allow roughly 2.5GB a day if your camera is usually on. A day driving onward south runs navigation continuously, so download the route in advance.

Districts travellers ask about

• Ban Jelačić square and the Lower Town — The hub where every tram line meets, ringed with shops; the line is solid all day, though during the very crowded winter market it can feel slower at peak hours.
• Gornji Grad, the Upper Town — The old quarter on the hill, with its churches and stone gate; some of the narrow lanes weaken noticeably, so do anything that needs a connection out on the open squares.
• Dolac market — The open-air produce market on the terrace above the main square; the open ground keeps it usable, while the covered section below is slightly weaker.
• Jarun and the lakes to the west — Lakes for running and cycling, reachable by tram; the open ground keeps the line good right around the circuit.

Day trips out of the city

• Plitvice Lakes National Park — Two hours south on a motorway that stays connected, but the boardwalks deep in the gorge weaken a great deal, with rock and trees in the way. Download the park's trail map in advance.
• Medvednica mountain — The mountain behind the city, up within the hour, with several trail options; the forest and ridge have stretches with nothing, so download offline maps before going up and tell someone which route you are walking.
• The Zagorje castles and hill villages — An hour north on country roads winding between hills, with weak patches where the hills get in the way; download the route before you go and check each site's opening times with the operators directly, since they change with the season.