Trakoscan Castle is the most visited castle in Croatia.
Located 81 kilometers or 50 miles from Zagreb (near Varazdin), it a very popular day trip
destination. The second week of June, just before the
school term was over, a colleague of Tracy’s offered to take us
there. This is a “story-book” castle, something right out
of Disney movie or a fairy tale. We spent a Saturday exploring
the castle and grounds.
Historical Background
In many ways the story of Trakoscan Castle
parallels that of Samobor Castle
which we visited earlier in our stay in Croatia. Both were built
up from smaller initial fortifications, both transitioned from
fortifications to residential structures, and both fell into
disrepair in the 19th century as the cost of maintaining large
residences became prohibitive. In the case of Trakoscan Castle,
it began as a small fortress monitoring the trade route from
Ptuj to Bedna Valley. Sources dispute the origin of its name,
some claiming it was named after another fortification, while
others claimed it was named after the knights of Drachenstein.
It is first mentioned in written records in 1334, and changed
hands many times until it passed into the Draskovic family in
1525. However, by the late 18th century the fortress was
abandoned. However, it did not meet the fate of Samobor Castle,
as the Draskovic family, led by Juraj V. Draskovic, began
its restoration in the mid-19th century, turning into a
Neo-Gothic style private residence--the style it retains today.
The Draskovic family inhabited the castle until 1944 when the
family fled to Austria and the castle was nationalized. By this
point it had again fallen into disrepair and it has steadily
been renovated, bringing it to its current state as a museum.
The Castle Grounds
When the Castle was renovated
in the Romanticist vein, the surrounding area was turned into a
park and lake complex surrounding the palace, and these features
remain today. The grounds are on full display as one leaves the
parking lot, passes by a small bistro, and begin the zig-zagging
path up to the castle. Midway up there is a small round plaza
and, ascending higher, the path offers stunning views of the
valley below. Sadly, the lake seems to have been drained,
robbing photographers of that beautiful mirror image of the
castle in the water.
Aerial Views of Trakoscan Castle and Grounds
Layout of the Trakscan Castle
While it is impossible to catalog all of the rooms of the
castle, here is a description of the main rooms on each of the 3
floors or levels of the castle proper. Click on the image of any of the
floor plans to enlarge them.
Floor 1: the first floor
of the castle is accessed by passing through the gate and
courtyard. This level contains the Knightly Hall, the Library,
Lobby, Hunting Hall, Family Hall, and an inner courtyard leading
to an Armour Collection spanning 3 rooms.
Floor 2: the second floor
of the castle is devoted to the Draskovic family, the last
private owners of the castle. It includes
an exhibit of the history of the castle, phoots detailing the
lives the family, a bedroom and foyer, a small library with an
adjacent prayer room, a music room, Juliana's Room (paintings),
the dining room and a small salon.
Floor 3: the upper floor
of the castle is largely devoted to the arts, both painting and
decorative. It includes a two-room picture gallery, rooms
dedicated to Baroque, Rococo, Neo-Renaissance, Classisist
and Biedermeier decor, a painted wall paper room, a and a
room of officer's portraits.
Take a Virtual Tour of Trakascan Castle
About this Tour:
While our website offers many
virtual tours of historic sights, they are done with basic free
software and cannot compare with professional tour makers using
cameras costing thousands of dollars and software that is
equally pricey (not to mention the steep learning curve
involved). In researching the castle we found one such
professional tour of Trakoscan Castle, and it is the most
detailed virtual tour we have ever seen. It was created using
Matterport VR software and
hosting (https://matterport.com). The tour was built by Tornado
360 (http://www.tornado360.eu) and posted on the Trakoscan.hr
website (https://trakoscan.hr). Consulting the Matterport "Users
Agreement" we found that they in fact encourage the sharing of
their product in their and so we are embedding it here for your
convenience. (It is a bit buried on the castle's website.) This
is about as "real" as virtual reality gets!
How to
take the tour:
There are 3 ways to take the tour, using the buttons at the
bottom left of the screen
PLAY: click on the "Play"
button for a guided tour of the Castle. Pressing "Pause"
stops the tours and you may look around the room.
DOLLHOUSE: offers a cutaway view of each room
in the castle. Click on this icon and then click on the room you
wish to visit
LAYERS: you may select any
one of the castle's 3 levels, and from there select the room you
wish to visit
