Secret Slovenian Istria

If you suspected there might be a bit more to the Slovenian Mediterranean coast than just the world famous stunner of Piran, then you would be right!

But how do you get to know about what else there is to see on & around Green Slovenia's coast and then how do you go explore it? Most visitors will not even give this a thought and spend very pleasant day indeed on the picture perfect Venetian peninsula.. and why not!

Well we can tell you about two completely different days exploring the coast and not even dip your tootsies in the warm sea! So if you want to know a little bit more before you plan your day at the coast, we need to do some geography..

pretty Piran..
pretty Piran..

 

What is Istria?

It goes from the old Slovenian city of Trieste, (now in Italy), but look for Koper on the coastal bit of Slovenia and modern Istria goes all the way down into Croatia past PorecRovinj to Pula!

When you think about Istria, start getting really excited.. rocky Adriatic coast, medieval hilltop towns, olive groves, wine and fantastic food!

So Istria is partly in Slovenia and partly in Croatia, but that is almost irrelevant for visitors now since Croatia has joined the Schengen zone, therefore the old borders are effectively gone for travellers.. AND Croatia has adopted the Euro too!

Slovenian Istria..

If you draw a line from Koper across to join with the paper Croatian border then the seaside length is quite short, but the Slovenian Coastal Hinterland behind is really, really huge! Have a look for yourself.

There was also a time when it was argued Slovenia actually stretches a bit further into Istria to the river Mirna, which is a proper line on the map.. then the stunning hill top towns of Buzet and Groznjan and a much bigger chunk of the coast  would also have  fallen into Slovenia.

With Schengen this argument is also rendered irrelevant, but what is relevant for you is to not forget how close these Croatian Istrian jewels are to Slovenian Istria, so some could be combined even easier into this daytrip out.. with no more queues at the border!

winter vista down to the port of Koper from the Wine Fountain..
winter vista down to the port of Koper from the Wine Fountain..

 

The Slovenian coastline is only 47km long, but living here, just a half hour drive away, we would not swap it for any other coastline around.. There are several lovely and completely different seaside towns to go visit and have a swim in the wam Mediterranean water... 

We noticed that places like PiranIzola, (our personal favourite), StrunjanKoper and Portoroz are just perfect for a day out by the seaside.. but not necessarily for a longer stay.. So this is exactly one of the reasons we located Lipizzaner Lodge where we did, between the mountains and the sea, so guests can pick & choose one or two seaside daytrips as part of your Green Slovenian adventures!

 

Why is this huge Slovenian Coastal Hinterland so Undiscovered?..

Visitors are often blindsided by the beauty and easy access of Piran, but let's be clear, we are also proud to strongly tip some time in Piran to first time visitors. It is so ridiculously stunning, beautiful & charming and completes the Green Slovenian jigsaw.. with a little world class bit of Europe in every single corner!

We cannot do much about you very probably allocating way too little time to visit Green Slovenia, but we can tell you all about what you can do here, so at least you know in advance, before it is too late.

So we need to explain here that the geography of the Hinterland is another factor hindering visitors exploring the curvy, wiggly, rocky narrow roads of Slovenian Istria. 

Slovenian Istria is a higgeldy piggeldy mix of roads and stone tracks going up and down olive tree covered hills with few straight roads and even fewer straight lines connecting the picturesque little villages dotted all over the place.

Gostilna Oljka.. the Olive, you will see where the name comes from..
Gostilna Oljka.. the Olive, you will see where the name comes from..

 

But wait.. doesn't that sound just idyllic!!

You will be forgiven for thinking you are going round in circles and sometimes you will be.. in fact now the border has effectively been removed the roads make much more sense!

Exploring the Istrian Karst Cliff Line..

We already did another whole secret place to visit on the top bit of Slovenian Istria, where you can have an amazing day out exploring around the long, huge Karst cliff that marks the start of the Slovenian Hinterland.

So now we are gonna concentrate on a series of places you could combine together for a most unexpected dayout exploring the empty sun drenched backroads of the lower bit of Slovenian Istria and hugging the Croatian border..

So we will give you a suggested route, but being curious or even wandering off piste to get a bit lost will bring even bigger rewards..

We will start and end at Koper with a route that loops up into the Hinterland and comes all the way back round to the very next motorway junction, accentuating how short indeed is the coastline, but how big is the bit behind! 

By doing this you still have the choice to easily go and have a swim and maybe a seaside meal at the end of your day! Or you could decide to drop further into Croatian Istria, doing a bigger loop.. the choice is yours.

Maybe you will now be encouraged to do an even bigger loop inside Slovenian Istria  with some further exploring.. Why not park up somewhere and go for a hike.. it is very hot here, so please take some water!

One very last bit of advice for this Hinterland adventure is to USE A MAP not SATNAV. The reason we say this is that the roads are so wiggly that if you just pop KOPER into your navigation and drive blindly, you might miss some really cool little roads, villages and countryside, so best to have a map onboard.. The roads are just so wiggly, that even if your route seems longer, tackle it place by place, dot by dot on the map and you will see much more!

You will be amazed how empty and quiet these littles lanes are..

the pretty Marezige church with handy extra car park..
the pretty Marezige church with handy extra car park..

 

It is rare we give a micro route out on the website, but necessary here as you will not just stumble on this route or these places in perfect line.. this is the accumulation of several trips we have made here, tinged with joy and frustration, getting a bit lost, turning around, finding new places.. You might have just ONE day here or even less, so you do not have time to waste!

Here is the ROUTE, then the Places below in more detail..

So whizz just under 30 mins from the Lodge to KOPER and take the first BERTOKI exit signed SVETI ANTON heading up past little villages that you never knew existed!

From SV ANTON head towards (1) KUBED taking the shortcut route directly across to KUBED (do that longer route from KUBED to SV ANTON on the way back.from KUBED).

At KUBED see the old crumbled castle protecting the 5 Walled medieval church tower and then wiggle off to most famous fortress church in Green Slovenia at (2) HRASTOVLJE for an audience with the 500 year old fresco of the Dance of Death.

(As we said above), now head back towards SV ANTON, but this time take the longer main road via GRACISCE and back round to SV ANTON, cos it is very beautiful and this lovely little loop might be where you just dump the car for a bit and have a picnic or go for an adventurous little hike!

From SV ANTON you now need to take the road to MAREZIGE for a pre scheduled stop to go (4) TRUFFLE HUNTING and this might be the rest of your fantastic day out.. OR you might visit the (3) WINE FOUNTAIN.

From MAREZIGE head via MONTINJAN to reach the long, relaxed village of VANGANGEL where you might have prebooked an Istrian meal at the (5) OLJKA (Olive) restaurant and then it is a short procession back to KOPER, where you will also drive scoot the main (6) VINAKOPER wine merchants, so maybe try or pick up some local wine there instead or as well!

Wow, what a day, now you are back at the motorway and "the world is your Lobster", where you head now depends largely on how you decided to do your meals for today..

We cannot emphasize enough that there are so many possible wonderful variations to this day out, but the key thing was to get you here in the first place, so you would not miss out on this fantastic little corner of Green Slovenia!

Maybe you will stop in Sv Anton for a coffee to watch the Mediterranean world go by, maybe you will find another little village along the way to hang out in and explore.. the point is there is a lot here, but everything is on a small scale.

courtyard at the wine fountain..
courtyard at the wine fountain..

 

The Places in a bit more detail..

1.. Kubed.. A tiny Istrian village with a very special church tower protected by a castle wall now crumbling away. This is a brief stop off, park up by the tower to count the number of sides to see you will be looking at a 5 walled tower!

A short stop but a powerful one, as this place also provides the very best tutorial go back in history and clearly see how local people had to hide and flee for their lives here when the lightning Turkish raiders came in the middle ages.

Look halfway up the tower for a door, yes a door. The only way to get into this tower during a raid would be to get a big ladder up to the door, climb in and then pull the ladder up so the raiders could not get you.. What about that for history in front of your eyes!

If you are interested, we have also tipped another route from the Lodge that includes Kubed on a fantastic daytrip to Buzet..

a hidden fresco inside a church protected by a castle..
a hidden fresco inside a church protected by a castle..

 

2.. Hrastovlje.. Difficult to say and this is one of the other SATNAV dangers, cos there are a large number of "Hrastovljes" in Slovenia.. another reason to have a map.. No need to panic about the unpronounceabubble name, it just means Oak tree village. This particular Hrastovlje is the one absolutely not to miss!

This secret place will be almost certainly the most unexpected highlight of your Slovenian adventures and that is saying something, but guest after guest after guest have told us so too!

The closest you will ever get to us doing a TOP TEN for Green Slovenia will be to check out the Golden Eggs on our Secret Treasure Map as a clue.. and there are about 30 of them!!

It's just Green Slovenia has so many amazing secret places it is actually impossible to do a Top Ten.. if we were forced to do one, then we would need to have at least 30 in our Top 10 and then it would be a real squeeze to fit everything in..

But here is a little secret, if we really, really, really did have to do a Top Ten, then Hrastovlje would HAVE to be in it! it is that good..

So imagine a beautiful medieval church on top of a little hill, protected by a castle fitted tightly and perfectly around it like a glove. The scene is completed with endless lines of vineyards and olive groves and the huge white rock Karst cliff wall dominating the horizon.. 

But all this is NOT why you are here!

Licking your lips with anticipation, you need to go inside this little church to see the uberamazing medieval frescos painted on all of the four walls.. one wall especially tells the ancient story of the "Dance of Death".. This is why you are here, listen to the tape recording in your language and watch the lady point at the characters in the story.

The restored fresco is extremely rare and perfect in detail.. You would expect to see something like this in Napoleonic France or Spain, but it is here in little old Slovenia, yet another fantastic example of the magic of this pocket rocket of a country.

stunning location for the Hrastovlje Fortress Church..
stunning location for the Hrastovlje Fortress Church..

 

One important tip to follow at Hrastovlje.. even if you are really good at English, but not a native speaker, there are other recordings in your own language and if you have made the time to come here, then don't just hear 80% of the English tape and go, cos the people in front of you are listening to the English recording.. You need to understand every single word of what info is on offer for this medieval marvel.. so chill a bit for your language and check out the other 3 walls filled with the old and new testament while you wait!

3.. the Istrian Wine Fountain.. We need to take a short raincheck here to explain another HUGE reason to visit the Slovenian Hinterland.. this is ALSO one of Green Slovenia's 7 unique wine regions.. all completely different and each one producing different and unique wines!

There are vineyards ALL OVER THE PLACE up in these hills and if you have followed our little route or gone off on your own, then you might have already stopped to take some photos or go for a stroll amongst the vines!

sit down in Marezige and have a glass of local wine..
sit down in Marezige and have a glass of local wine..

 

The two unique Slovenian local Istrian wines are white Malvazia and red Refosk, but several others are produced here too. The idea is you prepurchase a token and decide how many wines you want to try at the shop and you can also get local delicacies to eat with this too.

What better way to try the two local wines produced around here than to park up by the beautiful Marezige church, stroll over the road to get your special wine glass and enjoy the stunning vistas down over the Slovenian coast!

Did you know the grapes used for this Koper Refosk wine are the same unique Teran grapes from the Teran Kras wine region, only around 30km away as the crow flies, but each wine tastes completely different.. the Teran vintage grows in deep red iron rich soil and Refosk grows here in the different Mediterranean coastal soil.. how about that!

bring your glass, this is what a wine fountain looks like..
bring your glass, this is what a wine fountain looks like..

 

4.. Truffle Hunting.. Do not be surprised that in the 3rd most forested country in Europe there will be a lot of mushrooms and truffles!

The endless wild forests of Slovenian Istria are hotbeds for truffles and we have found a local expert, Sara, who can take you into the forest with her dog to see how the hunting is done and then you hike up to a local wooden hut where a truffle dinner is cooked for you..wow, what about that!

This would have to be booked in advance and if you are eating truffle dishes after, then usually starts around 5pm and will last for the rest of the day.

We had some guests try this unexpected adventure out and they absolutely loved it!

home made tarte and ice cream at Oljva in Vangangel..
home made tarte and ice cream at Oljva in Vangangel..

 

5.. Istrian seafood meal.. You are probably realising by now that there will be a lot of opportunities to try the local food and wine here in Slovenian Istria, so this is why it is worth having a bit of a plan for your eating options.

Don't forget you could still head to the coast at the end of your day for a huge choice of seaside restaurants in lots of locations, but you need to know that there are also some excellent local Istrian village restaurants looking after all those lucky people living on tops of little hills in the Hinterland too!

We usually have a handy up to date tip for our guests to try a secret restaurant on their day trips out, but we rarely mention a specific restaurant on this website, partly as restaurants here do tend to close down, so our tip might get out of date.. but we are confident that the Olive restaurant, Gostilna Oljka in Vangangel is just so established and good, that we will go ahead and tip it right here, right now!

Their home made bread is heavenly and we never look past the seafood options of the day whenever we pop down here for a meal, but they also make their own unique pizzas rolled in dough, which look amazing and are called "Ombolo v Testu".. (the main photo at the top of the page is a typical table at Oljka)..

This is a roadside restaurant shielded by a long hedge that you might drive past and miss as you go through Vangangel, but we suggest you go here and please try to book in advance to conclude your Istrian adventures in relaxed style.

Another reason why we love the village Vangangel so much is it sounds like a Dutch detective rather than a Slovenian village name!!

this corner of Green Slovenia looks completely different to the other corners.. there are a lot of corners..
this corner of Green Slovenia looks completely different to the other corners.. there are a lot of corners..

 

6.. Vinakoper.. This is the wine company that operates as a huge cooperative in the Koper wine region, collecting and bottling the largest volume of Slovenian Istrian wines..

The final treat on this special route is a visit to their main outlet.. As you drive out of Vangangel and enter Koper, turning right to head for the motorway, you will drive right by the Vinakoper wine shop, so why not pull in!

Locals pop in here to fill up huge plastic bottles and containers from long nozzles, just like at a petrol station! They also have bottles of different quality for all the local wines and the prices reflect the different levels.

We heard there is a new Istrian restaurant open right next to Vinakoper, so we will enjoy trying this out for you! What a great job we have!!

We should also clear and say here that our strongest tip for wine tasting or experiencing the amazing local viniculture all around Green Slovenia is to go to a local vineyard, meet a local producer and buy from them.

But for all the Slovenian wine regions, this Koper coastal region would be the one where we could be persuaded to say, ok it would be a good second best to go for the wine fountain or the Vinakoper experience.. there are a lot of amazing things her efighting for your time, so you have to be practical with your time and logistics.

Whether you follow this Slovenian Istrian Adventure to the letter, get hopelessly lost, have a wonderful hike, try some fantastic wine or discover a mystery restaurant even we do not know about.. well, we will just be delighted if you had a great day out and discovered there is a lot more to pretty Piran on the massive Slovenian Riviera!

 

Email: info@lipizzanerlodge.com

Address: Landol 17, Postojna 6230, Slovenia

Phone: +386 5620 3443
Mobile: +386 40 47 0239 or +386 40 37 8037

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