During our road trip around Croatia last summer, we had been busy exploring Croatian Istria when we decided to slip across the border to see charming Piran for a day, which is part of Slovenian Istria. Piran is a pretty Venetian-tinged seaside town and is the highlight of Slovenia’s tiny slither of coastline. In the few hours we spent there, we fell in love with the sherbet-coloured town houses, the cobble stoned streets and the dreamy sunset. If, like us, you find yourself visiting for a day, here are some of the best ways to spend your time.
PEOPLE WATCH IN TARTINI SQUARE
Named after the famous Piran-born composer and violinist Giuseppe Tartini, Tartini square is the social centre of Piran. With an abundance of coffee-shops and bars around the square, it’s the perfect place to sit back with a drink, watch passers-by and appreciate the pretty pastel buildings of Piran. The square is watched over by the composer himself as he stands in the middle, conducting. At the weekends this area comes alive as open-air classical music concerts take place in the square.
EXPLORE THE HARBOUR
The harbour is always our favourite place to visit when exploring a seaside town. We love being sat by the water, watching the tied up boats bob up and down as fisherman go about their day. They shout over to each other, both in Slovenian and Italian, a reminder that culture in Piran is intertwined. Even in the busy harbour the water is crystal-clear and we sit and watch the fish below the surface swim between the boats.
VISIT ST GEORGE’S CHURCH
One of the first buildings we noticed upon arrival into Piran was the towering St George’s church and its bell tower, perched on a hill overlooking the town. From Tartini Square, we climbed the hill to peek inside the incredibly ornate church. Best of all, the church is a great spot to enjoy the views over Piran and the Adriatic. A wedding happened to be taking place the day we were there so we got to enjoy the views with some dreamy music too, making it a hard spot to leave.
WANDER THE COBBLED STREETS
The streets and alleyways of Piran are just gorgeous and so simply wandering through them is a lovely way to spend some time. A maze of shady backstreets lead to tiny squares with small, charming restaurants away from the busier waterfront. We stopped at a bakery to get some lunch and enjoyed it as we got lost in the winding alleyways.
CATCH THE SUNSET
Piran looks its best at sunset. As the sun began to drop, the terracotta rooftops and the pastel-coloured buildings lit up as the whole town caught golden. We lazily made our way down from St George’s Church, taking photos as we went, before finding a spot by the water to take a dip in the sea.
TAKE A DIP
Swimming is a must in Piran. The entire edge of the town is full of sunbathing spots where you can jump off the rocks and into the Adriatic. Swimmers in towels fill up the waterfront restaurants munching on fresh seafood before they make their way back to their spot to resume basking in the sun. We waited until the sun was setting to take a dip. We jumped in the water just in time to watch the sun dip below the horizon.
Our trip into Slovenia was short but so sweet and we cannot wait to go back and explore the rest of the country.
