The Easter Egg Hunt on Easter Monday returns to Karlovac with a program for children, families and visitors

Easter Monday in Karlovac brings a new Easter Egg Hunt: the Promenade and the trench once again become the centre of spring family fun

Karlovac will once again turn its Promenade and the trench area below it into a large open-air spring playground on Monday, April 6, 2026, on Easter Monday. As part of the Spring in Karlovac event, the Karlovac Tourist Board, in cooperation with partners, the local tourist agency Kamat Adventure and the Karlovac City Museums, has prepared a new edition of the Easter Egg Hunt, an event that in recent years has established itself as one of the most recognizable Easter gatherings for families with children. The program is designed to combine play, time spent outdoors and getting to know the city, so it is not reduced only to seasonal entertainment, but also to a carefully shaped experience in which the youngest discover the motifs of Karlovac, its parks and landmarks through fun.

This year's edition comes at a time when the city has already been in the rhythm of spring events for several days. According to the officially presented program, the sixth edition of Spring in Karlovac brings together more than 20 participants from the public, private and civil sectors, and the contents are distributed throughout April and May across several city locations. That is precisely why the Easter Egg Hunt is not an isolated event, but part of a broader concept through which Karlovac seeks to connect tourism, culture, recreation and family content into a unique spring whole. For visitors coming from other cities, this means that an Easter visit can easily turn into a full-day or weekend stay, especially with accommodation in Karlovac and planning a tour of the city parks, Zvijezda, Dubovac and the river promenades.

The program lasts from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., and registrations open on site

The central event slot is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., and the gathering location is linked to one of the city's most recognizable spaces, the Promenade and the Music Pavilion. According to the published information from the organizers, registrations for participation open half an hour before the start and are carried out on site, at the Music Pavilion on the Promenade. In this way, the organizers retain an open and accessible format without complicated prior administration, which is especially important for family programs on holidays, when decisions about coming are often made spontaneously, depending on the weather and the family schedule.

Alongside the hunt itself, additional activities for children have also been announced, among which face painting with appropriate motifs and the art-creative workshop “Legići in the Park” stand out. Such a schedule shows that the organizers are not counting only on the competitive moment, but also on a broader family stay in the park, where some children may be looking for Easter eggs, while others spend their time in creative and visually attractive activities. It is precisely this combination of physical activity, imagination and staying outdoors that is often the reason why such programs attract both parents and children of different ages.

The small hunt for the youngest starts at 10:30, and the emphasis is also on getting to know the city

For children up to 10 years of age, the Small Hunt is planned, which starts at 10:30 a.m.. This year as well, the organizers are retaining the recognizable concept according to which the Easter eggs are not only chocolate or decorative rewards, but also a kind of small educational souvenirs. In addition to chocolate, Styrofoam and wax Easter eggs, some of them are painted with motifs of the city of Karlovac so that children can get to know the city's symbols and attractions through play. This is an important step forward compared to classic Easter programs, because in this way the hunt gains a local identity and connects children's fun with visual recognition of the space in which they are growing up or which they are visiting.

This year's Easter eggs feature six new Karlovac motifs: Radićeva Street, the bell tower of the Church of the Most Holy Trinity, Dubovac Old Town, the pontoon and wooden bridge on the Korana, “Butterfly” by Danijel Butala, and the statue of Saint Joseph and the bell tower of the National Shrine of Saint Joseph. These are carefully selected views and symbols that encompass the historical core, the sacred heritage, and recognizable city points by the river. In doing so, the organizers encourage children to exchange the Easter eggs they find with one another after the hunt in order to collect all available motifs. In practice, this means that the event does not end with the very act of finding them, but is extended through the game of exchanging, comparing and collecting, while the Easter eggs become a lasting keepsake that children take home.

Such a model also has additional value for city promotion. A child who learns through play to recognize Dubovac, the Promenade, bridges or church bell towers experiences the city differently than through a classic sightseeing tour. This also reveals the logic of the Spring in Karlovac event, which does not rely only on one major event, but on a series of carefully designed contents that offer residents and guests a reason to stay in the city longer, return to it or see it from a new perspective. For families coming from outside Karlovac, this can be a good reason to plan accommodation for a visit to Karlovac and combine the Easter trip with a tour of the historical core and green city areas.

The big hunt starts at noon and introduces a competitive element

For somewhat older participants and everyone eager for a more dynamic format, the Big Hunt is planned. The gathering is at the Music Pavilion on the Promenade at 12 noon, when participants will be introduced to the rules of the game. The task is to find as many Easter eggs as possible hidden in the trenches around Zvijezda within 60 minutes. However, this hunt is not conceived merely as a simple search for hidden objects. The Easter eggs are scored, and some of them will also contain slips of paper with tasks that lead to those with the highest number of points. In this way, the game gains an additional level of excitement, because participants are required not only to be fast and attentive, but also resourceful, logical and capable of following clues.

It is precisely this interactive element that makes the Big Hunt attractive to older children, but also to parents who want to join in as companions or active participants. In this way, the organizers manage to preserve the family atmosphere, while at the same time offering content that goes beyond the standard model of “Easter egg collecting.” In an urban environment such as Karlovac, where the trenches around Zvijezda and the Promenade naturally impose themselves as a backdrop for this type of event, the space itself becomes part of the game. Participants do not only set off in search of a prize, but actually move through one of the most recognizable parts of the city, getting to know its spatial logic in a completely different way.

The prize connects the Easter program with active tourism

The most successful participants in the Big Hunt will win a Mrežnica – Korana kayak tour and a gift package from the Karlovac Tourist Board. This detail is not accidental. Karlovac has for years strongly promoted itself as a city on four rivers and a destination for active holidays, and the partnership with Kamat Adventure fits the Easter program into the broader tourist image of the city. The prize is therefore not only symbolic, but also substantively connected to the identity of Karlovac as a city of nature, rivers and outdoor living.

Such a choice of prize also speaks about the direction in which local tourism products are developing. Instead of the Easter program remaining only a short-term seasonal attraction, it is connected with an offer of experiences that can motivate guests to stay longer. A visitor who comes to Karlovac for the first time on Easter Monday because of the Easter Egg Hunt can easily gain an additional motive to return because of river activities, walks, cultural contents or other programs from the Spring in Karlovac event. For guests planning a longer stay, this is also practical information, because the Easter weekend can be combined with a city tour and a reservation of accommodation near the Promenade or other city points.

The Promenade and the trench confirm their status as a favorite city stage

This year as well, the organizers place the emphasis on the Promenade, one of the city's favorite locations for public outdoor events. According to the official Visit Karlovac event calendar, the “Karlovac Easter Eggs” exhibition is also being held there from March 30 to April 13 in the trench below Dr. Franjo Tuđman Promenade and in Modrušan Park. This means that the Easter program will be situated in a space that is already visually marked by spring and Easter scenery, which further enhances the experience for visitors.

For years, Karlovac has been profiling itself as a city of parks, and the Promenade is one of the places where that identity is most easily felt. In the spring months, when city life moves more intensively outdoors, such locations naturally become the centre of events that combine recreation, socializing and culture. In that sense, the Easter Egg Hunt makes good use of precisely what Karlovac can offer: enough greenery, enough open space, enough recognizable views and enough urban content so that the event is not only a local animation, but also an attractive reason to come for visitors from other areas.

The organizers count on a combination of entertainment and education

Marina Burić, director of the Karlovac Tourist Board, said that an excellent atmosphere and plenty of fun are expected on the Promenade, with the additional value that the youngest will be able to learn something new about their city through play. It is precisely in that sentence that the idea of the entire event is summarized. The Easter Egg Hunt is not conceived only as another holiday program, but as a form of public content that introduces children and families to the city space, its motifs and stories.

In Karlovac, a city that in recent years has been systematically building the identity of a family-friendly and content-rich continental destination, such an approach also has a broader meaning. Events that bring local symbols closer to children, while offering parents an organized and safe stay outdoors, are becoming an important part of the quality of life in the city. At the same time, they are valuable for tourism because they produce an authentic experience, one that cannot simply be copied from one destination to another. Painted Easter eggs with motifs of Radićeva Street, Dubovac, bridges and sacred heritage are not universal Easter props, but an object that speaks precisely about Karlovac.

Spring in Karlovac broadens the framework for an event that goes beyond a single holiday

It is also important that the Easter Egg Hunt takes place within a program that lasts two months. The City of Karlovac and the Tourist Board, while presenting this year's program, emphasized that Spring in Karlovac includes tours, workshops, exhibitions, concerts, film content, gastro programs and numerous outdoor activities. In such a context, the Easter program becomes one of the important points of the broader spring offer, and not a passing one-day episode.

This is also important for the perception of the city among domestic visitors. Karlovac is no longer presented only through individual events, but through a series of connected contents that build continuity. Whoever comes because of the Easter hunt can discover other spring programs as well, and whoever follows the Spring in Karlovac event gets a reason to visit the city several times during the season. For a destination that wants to affirm itself more strongly in continental tourism, this is one of the more logical development models: not to rely exclusively on one major date, but to create a rhythm of events that brings the audience back week after week.

For whom the event is especially interesting

The Easter Egg Hunt in Karlovac is primarily intended for families with children, but due to the structure of the program it can attract a wider circle of visitors. For parents of the youngest children, accessibility and simplicity of registration are important; slightly older children find the competitive and exploratory elements more interesting, while guests from other cities are offered content for an excursion or a short holiday stay through the combination of the Easter program, the Easter egg exhibition and the broader Spring in Karlovac event. An additional advantage is that most of the activities take place in an area that is easily accessible and recognizable, so the event does not require complicated logistics.

For Karlovac, this type of audience is extremely important. Family and weekend visitors constitute a segment that can strongly influence spending in the city, attendance at cultural contents and the visibility of events. When spring atmosphere and the fact that Easter Monday is a public holiday in Croatia are added to that, it is clear why the organizers are counting on a good turnout. The holiday date naturally favors going outdoors, and Karlovac offers enough content for a one-day arrival to easily grow into a stay with accommodation offers in Karlovac, a walk through the city centre and getting to know its river and park areas.

Karlovac builds its Easter identity through local motifs, not through a generic program

At a time when many cities offer similar holiday contents, Karlovac in this case is trying to distinguish itself precisely through local recognizability. Painted Easter eggs with motifs of the city, the trench as a play area, the Promenade as a gathering place and the prize that leads to the rivers Mrežnica and Korana together create a rounded image of the destination. It is a model that does not rest on spectacle, but on a well-judged balance between local identity and a family program.

That is why the Easter Egg Hunt also has broader symbolism. It shows how a relatively simple holiday format can be transformed into an event that promotes the space, cultural motifs and lifestyle of the city. If the weather cooperates, Karlovac could get another very lively late morning on Easter Monday in which the youngest will run after Easter eggs, parents will fill the Promenade, and the city will once again confirm that it knows how to turn spring content into an experience that is at the same time local, family-oriented and touristically attractive.

Sources:

• - Visit Karlovac – official event calendar with the date, timetable and location of the Easter Egg Hunt and information about on-site registration (link)
• - City of Karlovac – official announcement about the sixth edition of the Spring in Karlovac event and data on the broader program and the number of participants involved (link)
• - Croatian Tourist Board – announcement from the tourist board system with the context of previous editions of the Easter Egg Hunt in Karlovac and a description of the concept of the event (link)
• - Visit Karlovac / KAMAT Adventure – description of the Karlovac kayak tour and the partner's content behind the prize for the most successful participants in the Big Hunt (link)
• - Karlovac City Museums – official information about the institution and the educational-heritage activities of the partner involved in the Easter program (link)
• - Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Croatia – list of holidays and non-working days in 2026, including the date of Easter and Easter Monday (link)