There are over 300 Bronze Age hillforts around Istria, of which Monkodonja is one of the most impressive. Not simply for the glorious location and the massive defensive walls, but the careful interpretive boards that really help you to visualise what it was like when it was inhabited. Monkodonja means Quince Mountain in the local…
Monte was Croatia’s very first Michelin starred restaurant, currently one of three. So far we’ve visited the other two: Pelegrini in Šibenik, and 360 in Dubrovnik, to find out what makes these restaurants so special. Nothing if not thorough, we’ve now driven up to Istria so we can experience Monte’s award-winning cooking too! I’m particularly…
One of Istria’s most iconic towns is the lovely Rovinj, which we last visited as students many moons ago. In going back, I was a little afraid that the intervening years and busloads of tourists would rub the magic off my carefree happy memories of the place. But as it turned out, Rovinj in September…
Where better in southern Istria for a light lunch and a bit of wine-tasting than Bruno Trapan’s Food & Wine Station? Indeed, this is the best wine in southern Istria.To be honest, there’s not a lot of competition for that title, most of Istria’s wineries being further north, but that’s all the more reason to…
From the top of Istria, we now headed back in time to try and find a glimpse of the Histri, the iron-age tribe after which Istria is named. Displaced by the Romans in 177 BC, their last stand was at the hill-fort of Nesactium (or Vizače in the Istrian dialect). The site takes a bit…
Where better to start a visit to Istria than standing on its highest peak, from where you can pretty much see all of the peninsula laid out before you. On a clear day, all the way to the Italian coast! The coastal range of Učka (1396 m = 4580 ft) is the stunning backdrop for…
Between the Mura and the Drava rivers lies Međimurje, Croatia’s northernmost county. In fact the Mura river is the border at that point, flowing east between Croatia and Slovenia on its way to join first the Drava, and then the Danube. This is a very green landscape, just at the edge of the Pannonian Plain,…
We’ve been thinking for a while that as people living on an island, we should have a boat. Especially here in Vrboska, with its long tradition of boat-building and fishing. To that end, we’ve recently signed up for the Royal Yachting Association’s Day Skipper course, which involves an online theory part (in progress), and a…
When the Michelin awards were announced for 2018, we were delighted to see some international recognition, finally, for Croatia’s young chefs. These guys have set about creatively combining the very best of this country’s produce and traditions to produce a fresh style all their own. Paired, of course, with some wonderful Croatian wine. We’ve been…
It’s been nearly 5 years since we took the old Liburnia ferry from Stari Grad down the coast to Dubrovnik. That took a leisurely 8 hours, including stops at Korčula town and the island of Mljet. Things are speedier now. Krilo’s fast catamaran service does basically the same trip (leaving from Hvar, not Stari Grad)…
Go Hvar 
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