In the summer of 2021 we had the opportunity to travel to the beautiful country of Croatia. It was our first time in the Balkans and it did not disappoint! Croatia is a stunning country with really diverse landscapes to suit anyone’s adventure style. When people think of the country generally, the gorgeous islands, beaches, and the old town of Dubrovnik are the first images that come to mind. However, there is so much more to Croatia than just the beaches!
Do you want great history, colorful towns, cute wineries and hilltop towns, and expansive lush green views that resemble the Tuscany countryside? Then the underrated Istria region is the perfect place for you! Additionally, there are also great beaches in the Istria region, as well as beautiful islands to hop to nearby (e.g. Krk, Rab, and Lošinj). I would highly recommend making time to explore this area of Croatia, especially if you want to find some peace and quiet which can be more difficult to find during high season in the south.
If you’re worried about fitting this region into your itinerary, in addition to the southern Dalmatia Coast of Croatia, then I would recommend your trip be at least 2 weeks long to be able to get a good taste of all the regions of Croatia you hope to visit. For reference, we were able to explore the Istria region and the Southern Croatian regions/Dalmatia islands during our two week trip. We were definitely on-the-go a lot, and I won’t lie, there were at least 2 days with very long drives (the longest being 5.5 hours!). We got to make fun stops along the way though and overall we felt comfortable with the amount of time we got to spend in each place. We felt we got a great first taste of the country so we can narrow down which region, islands, and cities we’d like to spend more time at on our next visit. Nowadays I definitely prefer longer, slower travel but sometimes you only have a short amount of time, and I don’t blame any traveler for feeling the need to squeeze it all in (especially if you are not sure if you’ll return to the country)! I am here to confirm that it’s definitely doable if you’re determined and with a bit of planning.
For reference, this was our schedule below:
August 22nd: Flew into Zagreb, picked up our rental car from Enterprise, and stayed overnight in an Airbnb. In the morning before leaving the city we visited St. Mark’s Church, the Cathedral of Zagreb and its surrounding area, and Ban Jelačić Square to see the statue and grab a pastry for breakfast. The sites and streets we saw of Zagreb were really beautiful. It’s definitely a city I’d love to come back to and explore more of! Below are some photos of our morning there.
August 23rd-26th: Explored highlights of the Istria Region- Hilltop Towns, Rovinj, Pula, and Cape Kamenjak. Details to follow in this blog post!
August 26th-28th: Dalmatia Coast – Omis, Split, and Klis (if you’re really determined, you might be able to fit in Makarska as well). A photojournal blog post with more information will be available soon. I will update this post with a direct link once it’s been published!
August 28th-31st: Explored Brac Island and fell in love with the town we stayed at (Pučišća). We really loved Brac because it is a big island with so much to do. It’s very easy to find solitude on this island due to its size. We sailed into Supetar, picked up our scooter, and sailed out of Milna to our next destination. More detailed information will be provided in a Brac Island blog post soon! I will update this post with a direct link once available.
August 31st-September 2nd: Explored the island of Mljet and its National Park. We arrived on the Pomena side, and stayed in Babino Polje to be in a central location of the island. More detailed info will be provided in a Mljet Island blog post. I will update this post with a direct link once available.
September 2nd-4th: Left Mljet and explored the beautiful city of Dubrovnik. More detailed info will be provided in a Dubrovnik blog post. I will update this post with a direct link once available.
September 5th: Flew home from Dubrovnik
We unfortunately didn’t make it to Plitvice Lakes National Park, but intend to on our next visit, as well as some other islands we didn’t get to see. Hope the above information helps you with your itinerary planning!
Now let’s dive into why you clicked on this post, some detailed information about Istria! During our 3 days in Istria we got to explore Motovun (a hilltop town), Rovinj, Pula, and Cape Kamenjak. Below is some useful information, stories, and photos of each place we visited.
Day 1: Road Trip from Zagreb, lunch in Motovun, and driving the gorgeous Istria countryside to our Airbnb in Rovinj
We woke up bright and early in order to visit some of the popular sites of Zagreb before embarking on the nearly 3 hour drive to Rovinj. If you are staying overnight in Zagreb before heading to your next destination, I highly recommend making some time in the morning to explore the city. I was in awe at how beautiful some of the streets and buildings were. The city seemed lively and fun, definitely a place I’d love to return to. I will update this post with a direct link to my Zagreb photojournal once it’s been published so you can see for yourself!
After our short exploration of Zagreb, we made our way to Motovun which is one of the best preserved of the medieval hilltop villages in Istria. It is famous for its truffle forest and delicious truffle dishes, as well as its delightful wines, stunning valley views, and popular annual film festival. Originally we had planned to visit at least 3 hilltop towns in the area, but we were getting pretty tired with all the driving. Additionally, it was very rainy during our drive to Motovun and we were worried that we wouldn’t get to see any of the fabulous green views while in town. However, as we continued the windy drive and ascended up the hill to the town, we broke through the mist and the rain magically stopped as soon as we parked. Talk about perfect timing! I would definitely recommend not writing this off just because it’s raining because you never know how the weather will change once you reach the towns!
When in Motovun, I would recommend taking your time strolling through the town’s square and small cobblestone streets. The town gates and walking the ancient walls will gift you fantastic views of the green countryside, which reminded us of Tuscany in Italy! I would also highly recommend having a meal in town and trying one of the famous truffle dishes. The Motovun Forest is one of the most renowned truffle regions in the world so it would be a shame not to try them while in town! The forest is one of the few regions where you can find black and white truffles. According to my research, the world’s largest truffle was also found in this region! We enjoyed the truffle pasta and tender beef steak with truffles.
After leaving Motovun we headed to our Airbnb near Rovinj. Here is the listing if you are interested! We really loved our accommodation, which was essentially a small house with a ton of space and privacy. It was far enough away from the old town to enjoy the quiet evenings, but close enough to get to the action in 10 minutes or less via car. The hosts were also super friendly and even gifted us a parting gift when we checked out! They are a Croatian couple that loves to travel, and I believe they even do boat tours of the area!
You can click on all the photos in this post to enlarge them for better viewing purposes if needed 🙂
Day 2: Exploring the old town of Rovinj and a beach near our Airbnb
On our 2nd full day in Istria, we decided to wake up early and explore the gorgeous port town of Rovinj. Rovinj is one of the most popular cities in the Istria region, and for good reason. Many people say that the town’s architecture reminds them of some of the colorful towns you see in Italy (particularly Venice), which makes sense given its history. Additionally, Italian is widely spoken in this town so don’t be surprised if you hear many people conversing in both Italian and Croatian.
Take your time strolling through the small alleyways and smooth cobblestone streets of Rovinj’s old town. Be careful though, especially when it has been raining, as some of the cobblestoned streets are very smooth and thus get super slippery. I’d also recommend enjoying breakfast, lunch, or dinner along the harbor where you can get a fantastic view of the colorful facades of the buildings and the boats. Be sure to visit the Church of St. Euphemia and enjoy the magnificent views of the sea from above. Many of the small alleyways in town also lead to some waterfront area, making for picture perfect opportunities. There are also a few grassy and rocky beach areas in town where you can enter the water and enjoy a nice swim. We saw several people having a relaxing dip while walking around the outer edge of the town. In addition to the waterfront areas in town, there are plenty of beaches near Rovinj to drive to as well!
Some quick tips regarding parking in Rovinj:
We would recommend arriving to Rovinj early in order to find street parking in one of the zones close to town. There are also a couple car parks near town for longer parking (the most well-known and largest is Valdibora). These websites (here and here) have helpful information about parking including maps of the car park/zones, price lists, and the hours for each zone. We got really lucky and were able to park in Zone 2 during our day trip into town. You can pay via ticket machines (coins only) or on the PayDo and Bmove apps. The apps are a convenient way to pay by card, however I would recommend setting it all up prior to your visit so you aren’t sitting around for 10 minutes or more trying to set up an account and your card on the app.
Lastly, before my birthday dinner we enjoyed the sunset at Cuvi Beach, which was just a few minutes drive from our Airbnb. You walk through a shaded area full of pine trees and then you’ll emerge and see the beach. It isn’t the prettiest beach in the world but a great place to relax. It seems like a popular spot for locals and we enjoyed watching the sunset colors over the water.
Day 3: Exploring the city of Pula and Cape Kamenjak
Pula is the largest city in Istria and is most famous for the Pula Arena. The Pula Arena is definitely a site worth seeing as it’s one of the best preserved Roman amphitheaters in the world. It is the only remaining one to have four side towers entirely preserved which is quite an impressive sight to see! We enjoyed walking around the arena and then sitting in the seats above to really take in the rustic atmosphere.
There are several other well-preserved Roman monuments worth a visit in the city including the Temple of Augustus, The Arch of the Sergii, the Forum, The Twin Gate, Gate of Hercules, and the Pula Cathedral. I was really impressed at how well maintained these structures were in this bustling city!
A quick note about parking in Pula: It can be extremely difficult to find a good parking space in Pula. We arrived early and still had to park pretty far away from the main attractions. However, the good news for parking further out is that street parking is generally free. There are some parking lots and closer street parking, but prices vary and it will come down to a little luck for the timing.
After our morning excursion in Pula, we took a 30 minute drive over to the wild and stunning Cape Kamenjak. Cape Kamenjak is a popular destination for hiking, cycling, swimming, snorkeling, cliff jumping, and paddleboarding. However, the water can be a little rough sometimes depending on the wind that day. When we went it was pretty windy so we unfortunately did not hop into the water. We saw plenty of people swimming and sunbathing though!
Cape Kamenjak was a much bigger area than we had originally expected. When you arrive at the entrance you will have to pay a fee and there can sometimes be a line into the park. You will then drive down some gravel roads and head in the direction you’d like to explore for the day. Be aware of this if you are not used to driving on unpaved roads and are worried about your rental car. We live in Washington State in the U.S. and are very used to really rugged, rough, and wild forest roads so it was no problem for us. However, I know it may be an obstacle for others. After driving the roads for a bit, you will start to see specific areas for car parking and then will have to walk down to the rugged and rocky coastline. There are plenty of gorgeous hidden beaches, coves, and caves to explore and it’s pretty easy to find some solitude in the park despite the high number of visitors.
If you’re hungry or thirsty you can stop by the popular Safari Bar. We didn’t end up visiting here, but it is known for its bamboo furniture, swings, and playground-like atmosphere. If we had actually swam that day and spent many hours out there, we would have definitely given it a try! Let me know in the comments if you go!
That sums up our short 3-day stay in the Istria region! I wish we could have spent more time thoroughly exploring this incredible area of Croatia, but I am so grateful we were able to get a little taste of it. I hope this helps spark some ideas for your trip planning! Let me know in the comments if you have been to Istria or are planning to go soon.
Until next time,
Kelsie
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