5 things I love about Istria, Croatia

Istria is a small magnificent world for itself. Although the list of reasons to love Istria is endless, we show only some of them this time.

Jump to a reason:

• Tiny hilltop villages
• Truffles in everything
• Architecture colors
• Istrian wine
• Italy is close

The facts are these…

5 things I love about Istria, Croatia

#1 Lots of tiny Istrian hilltop villages

Inland Istria is peppered with fairytale-esque tiny villages perched on hilltops guarded by thick stone walls.

[Read: Why you should restore your traditional Croatian stone house properly]

To get to them, you have to drive at a near-vertical angle to reach the summit, but in the end, the view of rolling hills and valleys, sprawling vineyards, and patches of the forest below is always worth it.

#2 Istrians put truffles in EVERYTHING

Pasta. Cheese. Bread. Risotto. Eggs. Steak. Rakija. It’s on everything in very generous amounts. Not only will they cook a dish with truffles, but they’ll also shave more on top before it’s delivered to the table.

[Read: Konoba Stari Podrum in Momjan, Istria]

If you don’t like truffles, Istria ain’t for you.

#3 Colors of Istrian architecture

Many of the towns in Istria are candy-colored, especially the ones that line the coast, like Mošćenička Draga, Novigrad, Opatija, Rovinj, and Pula.

[Read: Mošćenička Draga in Istria, a Croatian holiday town in transition]

Their unique architecture is painted in bright yellows, rich blues, warm reds, and every other color in the easter egg spectrum.

#4 Istrian wine, ahem

Istria is full of vineyards. Its primary varietals are malvazija, a crisp white wine, and teran, an acidic red. Both easily balance out the rich pastas and risottos found in Istria.

[Read: Croatian wine cheat sheet – excellent wines to try]

#5 Istria is 20 minutes from Italy

Once you leave the Croatian border, it only takes 20 minutes to cross Slovenia’s meager sliver of coastline and reach Italy. Trieste, to be exact, which is a bustling seaside city of 420.000.

I can’t resist a day trip to Trieste for lunch during all my trips to Istria.

View our other Istria articles

• 5 hiking trails on Učka mountain
• 5 things to do in Istria
• How to ask how someone is doing (in Dubrovnik, Istria, Split, and Zagreb)
• How to tell time in Croatia (Zagreb, Split, Istria, Dubrovnik)
• Hum, Istria: Smallest city in the world
• Konoba Stari Podrum in Momjan, Istria
• Mošćenička Draga in Istria, a holiday town in transition
• Signs that summer has arrived in Istria