A Day Trip to ... Sisak?

It’s a sunny Sunday morning in October when we set out for our adventure to the small town of Sisak, about 50 minutes south of Zagreb. When you tell people you intend to go to Sisak for a day, the number one response is: “Why?”

Well, why not? If you look up the town southeast of Zagreb, it looks quite charming, after all! A river, a castle … what’s not to love?

With that mindset, we catch a train that races through the Croatian hinterlands and brings us to Sisak. While the Croatian train system isn’t known for its efficiency, the new trains that connect some of the surrounding suburbs with Zagreb are state of the art, offer on-board Wi-Fi and, to my great surprise, are on time.

Getting to Sisak

The train ride in those electric trains is scenic – but then again, I just love myself a good in-between. The roughly 50 minutes long ride flies by and before we know it, the City Express comes to a halt at Sisak train station.

If I have learned anything in my life, it is to not judge a place by its stations – else you’d never visit any of the mid-sized and big cities on this planet. That being said, Sisak’s station looks pretty tidy and well-kept. First stop: coffee (and sandwiches from our backpack!). Sisak offers a lovely little promenade along the Kupa river, that leads us to a myriad of coffee spots nestled neatly beside each other, where you can bathe in the sun and enjoy a nice cup.

First Steps in Sisak

Have I mentioned that I love visiting small towns not only for the charm but also for the proximity of sights? A little further down the road, crossing paths with a rather … unyielding gentleman, our path leads us past Old Bridge to the park, where a marvelous pavilion beckons you to sit down on the benches and enjoy the autumn foliage gathering around it ever so slowly.

History and archaeology buffs might want to take some time to visit the City museum and learn more about the 4.000 years of history of Sisak.

From here, we decide to set out for the fortress, which is a 30 minutes’ walk away from the park we’re sitting in. This turns into a beautiful autumn stroll along the river, where we can observe fishermen throwing out their lines – in hopes of catching something for an Indian summer BBQ.

Leaving the beautiful chestnut alley behind, we climb over what looks an awful lot like a construction patch, and for a second, we are unsure whether our adventure ends here.

Luckily, a few steps through the muddy terrain reveal our path once again, when dull voices catch our attention.

Off to the Castle!

Our eyes wander straight ahead, past the city stadium and to … a baseball field? Yup, Sisak has their own baseball team – the Sisak Swans – along with their own field. If you’re lucky, you might get to see them work their magic live!

Past the bridge right after the field, we follow the path past a meadow littered with trees before the beautiful 14th century castle ahead comes into view. The castle was built by the Bishop of Zagreb, right on the riverbank – a tactical move to defend Sisak during the bloody Ottoman attacks. Building the fortress (it took about 6 years to build the fortification that has the shape of a triangle) would turn out to be a wise decision, as the fortification would lead to a turning point in June 1593, when, with united powers, further Ottoman conquest was interrupted

Today, one can visit the fortifications and even sit down for a meal or a drink. Make sure you check if the restaurant is open to the public the day you visit – due to its location, they host a lot of private events, like they did in our case.

No matter! Back to the town center it is, where we stroll down the boardwalk of Sisak and end our adventure at Voodoo beer bar. The wooden beams, amazing craft beers and local Rakija make for a perfect spot to reflect on the day before catching the train back to Zagreb.

I especially love the proximity and ease of access of this little adventure, for when you just want to see something a little different. The Croatian train network is getting better every day, and hopefully, more of these charming little towns can be visited more easily as a result of that.

By the way … If you happen to visit Sisak in summer, make sure to check out the Kayak rental spots along the Kupa river to get a special view of the town and especially the fortress! If you’d prefer to leave the kayak out, simply jump into the Kupa river at Kupališta Zibel (Zibel Beach).

Happy travels!

IN SHORT

What to see:

• Pavilion and Park

• City Museum

• River promenade

• Castle of Sisak

• Baseball field (and game) of Sisak Swans

• Sisak Boardwalk

• Voodoo Beer Bar

• Kupalište Zibel (Zibel Beach)

• Kayak rental Club Odra

How to get to Sisak: Trains run daily, check the schedule and buy your ticket here: Duration of your journey: approximately 50 minutes