Zagreb's Mimara Museum reopens on 7 November after six years

The Mimara Museum in Zagreb reopens to all visitors on Saturday 7 November 2026. The building on Rooseveltov trg 5 in the Lower Town (Donji grad) has been closed since the 2020 earthquakes, and after six years the renovation is complete, HINA reports via Index.hr. Invited guests mark the opening on Tuesday 27 October, and the public gets in eleven days later. Anyone planning a city break in Zagreb in November or for Advent has one of the city's major art museums back on the list.

A yellow facade and 75 million euros

The first thing you notice is the colour. The building has its original yellow facade back, along with restored decoration inside and out. The earthquakes had damaged the roof and vault of the ceremonial hall, a facade wall, the atrium roof and the capitals above the entrance. All the work together cost around 75 million euros, according to Culture Minister Nina Obuljen Koržinek. In the culture sector, only the renovations of Zagreb Cathedral and the Croatian Parliament will cost more. The money came from the EU Solidarity Fund, Croatia's national recovery plan and the state budget.

The building is older than the museum. It is part of the former Lower Town grammar school complex, built in 1895 in the historicist style to plans by German architects. The main wing became a museum in 1987, based on a donation by the collector Ante Topić Mimara. The museum marked the end of construction on 22 July 2026 with a time capsule, now the first exhibit in a display case, the museum says.

Nature, society, faith: the new route

Inside, the collection has been rearranged. Instead of following the periods, the permanent exhibition is now built around three main themes, nature, society and faith, plus 27 smaller ones. Around 1,200 of the collection's 3,900 objects are on show. A new feature is the comparison of East and West: works on the same subject sit side by side, even when centuries or thousands of kilometres separate them. Director Tajana Pleše says the aim is to show each work in its context.

The whole ground floor is now set aside for temporary exhibitions. In November the museum and its partner Orbico show young Croatian artists. In December the National Museum of Modern Art (NMMU) moves in as a guest and shows part of its permanent collection while its own building is renovated. Also new are the Rougemarin bistro and souvenirs such as scarves made with Croata. In 2027 the museum turns 40, and plans include the exhibition "Donator donatoru" built around the Marton Collection.

What it means for visitors

• The first public day is Saturday 7 November. As of 26 October, the museum had not published opening hours or ticket prices for the reopening. Check mimara.hr before you go; we will add both here.
• On the same weekend, Van Gogh Alive opens at the Zagreb Fair on 6 November. From 10 to 15 November the Interliber book fair runs there with free entry. That makes an easy art weekend in Zagreb.
• If you come for Advent in Zagreb from 28 November, in December you can also see the guest exhibition of the National Museum of Modern Art at the Mimara. Travel and where to stay for an Advent weekend are in our two-day plan.
• For rainy days: the Mimara is in the Lower Town. Our rainy-day museum route covers the Upper Town, and the Mimara works as a second half day.
• Other museums after the earthquake: the National Museum of Modern Art has space in the Oktogon, the Croatian Sports Museum has opened in Ilica, and the Croatian Museum of Naive Art is due to open soon in a palace in the Upper Town.