About this journey

Varaždin station sits at the edge of a city whose baroque streetscapes earned it the designation of UNESCO Creative City of Music in 2023 — the first Croatian city to receive that recognition. The station serves as the starting point of line L201, a 35-kilometre single-tracked, non-electrified branch that runs south through Ivanec to Golubovec. Connected to the broader Croatian rail network at the Varaždin end, L201 carries both local passenger services and freight along its full length.

The city at the journey's origin has a long history of reinvention. Varaždin served as the capital of Croatia until April 1776, when a fire destroyed 316 of the city's 614 homes and prompted the transfer of government back to Zagreb. The Old Town fortress, whose construction began in the 14th century, survived and today houses the Town Museum. The traction for this journey is provided by an HŽPP 7122 diesel railcar — the Croatian designation of the KALMAR/FIAT Y1 — well suited to a lightly trafficked rural branch. From Varaždin the line moves through Ivanec before reaching the terminus at Golubovec, offering a quiet contrast between the architecturally distinctive city at one end and the smaller communities the branch was built to serve.