Trieste To Pula Self Guided Cycling 2023

Independent arrival in Trieste. The remainder of the day is at leisure to explore Trieste. Overnight in Trieste.

Start your cycling adventure through 3 countries (Italy, Slovenia and Croatia) with riding on the legendary route of the ‘Parenzana’, the former narrow-gauge railway line which penetrates deeply into the Istrian Peninsula connecting 33 Istrian cities and town from Trieste to Poreč (in Italian ‘Parenzo’ from which the railroad got its name) spanning the territory of three countries. Although it has been out of function for many decades, a few years ago the ‘Parenzana’ served as the inspiration for a new tourist attraction. The County of Istria, the Management Board for Tourism and the Association for the Renovation of the Poreč-Koper-Trieste railway started the important ‘Parenzana: The trail of health and friendship’ project, where they have promoted the former railway as a cycling path. After biking few miles through the city of Trieste we will cross over into Slovenia, often cycling along cycle paths through famous holiday resorts such as Koper, for a long period a Venetian and then Austrian occupied town, and Piran, another important town which was ruled over for a long time by Venice. Cycling southwards, you will pass through the salt mines of Sečovlje, a large Slovenian town with a humid environment, which is a key area in regard to ornithology. Some kilometres later we will cross the Croatian border down south along Istria, the Adriatic’s largest peninsula. Overnight in Buje area. (B)

Cycling distance (shorter option from Koper): 27km
Elevation gain: +463m / -316m
Cycling distance (longer option from Trieste): 58km
Elevation gain: +708m / -576m

Today’s tour starts with easy downhill ride to the coast on the northeast point of Istrian Peninsula. There is a lighthouse there which you can visit, according to the legend built by the Count Metternich as his love nest. Savudrija is one of the oldest lighthouses in the Adriatic, built in 1818. It is also the northernmost Istrian lighthouse. Its building is 36 metres tall and there is a keeper living inside it. The trail continues south to Umag. Small town with approx 45km of coastline and interesting hinterland integrating special features of the whole region, the best introduction into a different experience of the Mediterranean. Umag's history is extremely interesting, it was founded by Roman nobleman who decided to make it his summer residence. The glamour, magnificence and glare of the times can be seen today in the Venetian houses of the old town. Town walls and fortification are partially preserved as well as some Renaissance and Baroque buildings and churches. Vineyards and olive groves will create an atmosphere of typical west Istrian landscape. Visit a wine cellar to taste the ‘Muscat’, indigenous wine. Overnight in Buje area. (B)

Cycling distance: 48km
Elevation gain: +443m / -442m

Breakfast at the hotel. Apart from enjoying the breathtaking landscape of the terrace-styled vineyards which resemble an image on the front page of a holiday guide to Tuscany, you can indulge the sensation the area of Buje gives, a real polyphony of fragrances and tastes. Along the way you can stop on many fascinating viewpoints from charming medieval town of Grožnjan to Oprtalj until you reach Motovun, town monument, an ancient little Istrian town located atop a 277m-high hill, 21km southeast from Buje. Its present appearance, with the walls surrounding the town centre dates back to the Middle Ages. (B)

Cycling distance: 37km
Elevation gain: +693m / -585m

After breakfast you continue riding over Vižinada and Kaštelir to the coast. The ride towards Poreč is particularly pleasant because you are riding along the coastline with beautiful bays where you can enjoy the breathtaking Mediterranean landscape with green vineyards and olive groves and taste homemade food, wine, brandy and honey produced in this area. In the afternoon hours, you will reach Poreč, the town where you can find material and spiritual evidence of great cultures at every step. Cruise along the old town centre and see the old Roman forum, the world famous Euphrasian Basilica with its mosaics, palaces belonging to the nobles and fortifications. Overnight in Poreč area. (B)

Cycling distance: 40km
Elevation gain: +367m / -614m

Breakfast at the hotel. A marsh, rare birds, a cursed city, buried pirate treasure, a deep bay, a cave with a primitive man and a hermit, an ancient solar observatory, an abandoned monastery - all this you can find on the bike trail of Captain Morgan. After riding along the coastline you reach Vrsar, romantic fishing town situated on a hill where the famous Casanova came back twice. You continue your bike ride through the magical forest Kontija with a panoramic view of the beautiful landscape of the Lim Bay to ruins of the medieval town Dvigrad. Just to stir your imagination - you are now in an area where many legends and mysteries based on historical events still live on: that of Dvigrad devastated by the plague because of an ancient curse, of the buried treasure of Captain Morgan's pirates near the village named after him (Mrgani), of the cave where the remains of the primitive man were found and where, as legend has it, St Romuald used to live as a hermit in the Middle Ages. Passing Kanfanar and the hill Maklavun, an astral-archaeological site, tumulus from the Bronze Age you will finish this day in Rovinj. Sometimes referred to as “Little Venice”, Rovinj is a typical Mediterranean seaside resort town which will seduce you with its extraordinary beauty. In the dense tissue of the old town centre there are numerous magnificent palaces from different historical periods and today most of them host a gallery or an art studio. If you follow numerous chimneys of Rovinj and narrow meandering streets you will come in front of the Baroque Church of St Eufemia, the greatest monument in the city from which you can admire a magnificent view of the Adriatic. Overnight in Rovinj area. (B)

Cycling distance: 66km
Elevation gain: +860m / -860m

After breakfast you will start riding along the coastline towards Pula. Riding through the ornithological reserve ‘Palud’ with rich variety of ornithology-fauna, a unique place where you can hear the chirping of even 215 different bird species, you reach Fažana, situated on a low coast, well protected from the open sea by the enchanting Brijuni archipelago (nowadays a National Park) and surrounded by vineyards and olive groves in the hinterland. Fažana was well known already in ancient Roman times. Which city is situated on seven hills, has a magnificent amphitheatre and is not Rome? The answer is - Pula. No, it is not a mistake, you are, indeed, in front of Pula, the largest city in Istria. Pula is an enchantress with thousand appearances which has been casting spell on its visitors for centuries. This day you finish visiting the old town with the Sergius' Triumphal Arch (from the end of the 1st century BC and the beginning of the 1st century AD) and famous Arena, a Roman amphitheatre from the 1st century BC. Overnight in Pula area. (B)

Cycling distance: 40km
Elevation gain: +309m / -320m

Breakfast at the hotel and check out. End of services. (B)