Rovinj, Croatia Summary

There are few more pleasant towns in Istria than ROVINJ, which lies forty kilometres north of Pula. Its harbour is a likeable mix of fishing boats and swanky yachts, its quaysides a blend of sunshaded café-tables and the thick orange of fishermen’s nets. Rovinj is the most Italian town on this coast: there’s an Italian high school, street-names are in Italian, and the language is widely spoken in the town. From the main square, Trg marsala Tita, the Baroque Vrata svetog Kriza leads up to Grisia Ulica, which is lined with ateliers and galleries selling local art. It climbs steeply through the heart of the old town to St Euphemia’s Church (Crkva svete Eufemije; daily 10am-noon & 4-7pm), dominating Rovinj from the top of its stumpy peninsula. This eighteenth-century church, Baroque in style, has the sixth-century sarcophagus of the saint inside, and offers the chance to climb its 58-metre-high tower (same times; 10kn). Back on marsala Tita, the Town Museum (Zavicajni muzej Rovinj; May-Sept Mon-Sat 9am-12.30pm & 6-9pm; Oct-April Tues-Sat 10am-1.30pm; 10kn) has the usual collection of archeological oddments, antique furniture and exhibitions of Croatian art. North of here is Trg Valdibora, home to a small fruit and vegetable market, from where Obala palih boraca leads along the waterfront to the Marine Biological Institute at Obala Giordano Paliaga 5; the institute’s aquarium (Easter-Oct daily 9am-9pm; 10kn) has tanks of Adriatic flora and marine life.