Marija Bistrica is a sacred Christian place, dedicated to honouring Virgin Mary.
Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims are visiting this place every year; they all come to bow to the miraculous statue of the God’s Mother – Virgin Mary.

In the church of the Virgin Mary, in a beautiful peaceful town Marija Bistrica is a house to one of the significant Christian relics – the miraculous ancient Black Madonna – a sculpture of The Blessed Lady with her baby on the hands, created in the XV century. The sculpture is positioned right in the middle of the main altar.
According to the legend, a local priest, fearing the Turkish invasion in 1650, hid and bricked up this sculpture; he died before he could tell anyone about the relic’s hiding place.
Years have come by before the stash was discovered: people have noticed the light, which the statue was emitting.
Following this, in 1880, Madonna miraculously stayed safe in a fire, which destroyed almost everything else in the church.
Ever since then, numerous believers are honouring the statue of the Virgin Mary of Marija Bistrica, as a relic with miraculous and healing power.
Pilgrims Hodocarska church of Marija Bistrica is standing tall on the hill in the middle of the town.
A spacious amphitheatre under an open sky was built in October of 1998, behind the church.
Behind the amphitheatre, believers may take a path up the Golgotha mountain, passing by the sculptures of the “Exaltation of the cross”. The ones who will go all the way up, will be rewarded with a breath-taking view onto the whole town.
The town of Marija Bistrica is first mentioned in the historic documents in 1209 AC.
Today, the population of the town is 1107 people.
Hotel Kaj 4* in Marija Bistrica
SUPERB rating 9.2 / 10
The rating is based on the reviews of 306 guests of the hotel
Medvednica natural park: 17,7 km from the hotel
International airport of Zagreb: 28,7 km
Varazdin city: 57 km
Zagreb city 40 km
Add: hotel rooms with air conditioning, free Wi-Fi. The restaurant’s menu includes natural products and a wine list of more than 200 wines from Croatia and the world. For guests there is a terrace with barbecue facilities, a winter garden, cocktails and healthy fruit drinks in the lobby bar, SPA and wellness center with a jacuzzi and hydromassage, saunas and beauty treatments.
The cost of a double room in the hotel: from 114 euros
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