Nesting between the smooth green hills that are typical of the Croatian-Slovenian borderlands, the small town of Krapina will forever be associated with Neanderthals, the humanoids who lived in Europe and Asia until becoming extinct in around 40,000 BC. Our knowledge of the creatures owes a great deal to the discoveries of Zagreb paleontologist Dragutin Gorjanović Kramberger, who unearthed a rich trove of Neanderthal remains on a hillside near Krapina in 1899.

Taking the form of a concrete and glass barrel built into the hillside, the Museum of the Krapina Neanderthals (Muzej krapinskih neandertalaca) is one of the most captivating and educational attractions in the country. The display begins with a film in which modern-day actors reconstruct a dramatic day in the life of a Neanderthal family group.

From here, an ascending spiral pathway leads past a series of exhibits telling the story of life on earth, culminating in a series of incredibly lifelike waxworks of the Neanderthals themselves. The display sheds important light on the hunting and gathering lifestyles of these cave-dwelling primates, who were eventually squeezed out - or more likely bred out - by the ultimately more successful home sapiens.

Practical Info

Šetalište Vilibalda Sluge bb

Tuesday - Friday 09:00 - 17:00 Saturday & Sunday 10:00 - 18:00

Tickets: adults €10; children €5

By car: Krapina is 65km north of Zagreb just off the main Zagreb-Macelj motorway.