Piran, Slovenia

Piran, Slovenia

An old town located near Portorož, from which you can get here in five minutes by bus or even just walk along the sea in about twenty minutes. Piran once belonged to the Venetian Republic, and this affected its appearance. The flavor of the Middle Ages still reigns here: many architectural monuments have been preserved from antiquity. This is the famous church with a tower, and the remains of the fortress wall, and many other magnificent places.

How to get there

By bus from Ljubljana, travel time 2-2.5 hours or also by bus from the nearby towns on the coast – Izola and Koper (20 minutes).

According to necessaryhome.com, the city is small, with a little over 4,000 people living in it, and together with the villages surrounding it, the population reaches 16,000 people. Located on a 30-kilometer segment of the Slovenian Adriatic coast, Piran is 7 km from Croatia and 23 km from Italy.

There are problems with parking in Piran. It is not possible to travel by car on the streets of the city. And all due to the fact that many streets of the city are so narrow that it is simply not possible to drive through them by car. Therefore, travelers by car will have to leave their vehicles at one of the paid parking lots at the entrance to the city, for example, at the bus station. For residents of a big city, this situation seems uncomfortable, but, nevertheless, the lack of transport on city streets makes the city look even more romantic and attractive.

A bit of history

The influence of Italy is visible in every stone of the city pavement, in every detail of city architecture. This is not surprising: in 923, an agreement was signed on cooperation between Piran and the Venetian Republic. Venice was very interested in the Piran salt marshes as a source of salt and, accordingly, benefits. Piran, on the other hand, was interested in the patronage of the Venetian Republic, which was strong at that time. Cooperation was long and beneficial for everyone, in any case, it was the heyday of Piran. It was at this time that the most beautiful houses were built, and the well-being of the townspeople was very high.

Until now, two languages, Slovenian and Italian, are equal here, and signs with Slovenian street names are duplicated in Italian, which is evidence of the intersection of two cultures.

  • Piran Map

Piran Hotels

The Piran Hotel is also located on the embankment, a quite modern and comfortable hotel, perhaps the most convenient for travelers due to the proximity of urban infrastructure, 100 meters from the city center, surrounded by a large number of various cafes, bars and shops. There are several other hotels in the city, in general, their number is small, the city is small. But all hotels meet modern requirements for guest service and are happy to receive travelers all year round. Some of them offer accommodation in apartments.

The beaches of Piran

The city beach of Piran is rocky, the sea is open and quite deep, but very clean.

Cuisine and restaurants of Piran

Tourists from Portorož and other nearby towns like to sit in the numerous restaurants and cafes of Piran. Here you can go to any restaurant you like and not be afraid of prices: they are equally low in small taverns and in fashionable restaurants.

The city also has a market where you can buy fruits and vegetables, many shops.

Local fish restaurants are some of the best on the entire Slovenian coast. The most famous is the Pavel restaurant on the embankment.

The favorable climate of the region allows growing excellent vegetables, fruits and olives. It is also famous for its wonderful wines: white “White Malvasia” and red “Refoshk”. By the way, it is these products that form the basis of the region’s cuisine, which includes both Slovenian and Italian dishes. And you can taste local cuisine in one of the many restaurants on the waterfront. The most famous of them are Pavel 2 and Tri Vdove.

Entertainment and attractions of Piran

In every country there are cities that are the embodiment of all the main qualities and properties of the country. Sometimes these cities are not big, but their bright individuality remains in memory for a long time. In Slovenia, one of these cities is, without a doubt, Piran. Quite a small town, one of the few seaside towns in Slovenia, Piran is a half-hour walk from Portorož. The road itself along the edge of the purest Adriatic Sea, the contemplation of lazy waves and plants on the shore will bring a lot of pleasure. And the contemplation of the narrow winding streets of Piran, houses with red tiled roofs, standing right next to each other, will not leave anyone indifferent.

The city is beautiful and unique. Not being multi-storey, it is very picturesque due to the fact that it rises along the mountainside in terraces. The building is very dense, and sometimes the roof of one house is the beginning of the courtyard for another. Cobbled streets, numerous (because of the relief) stone stairs, southern plants in tubs are picturesque. The old fortress wall with towers has been turned into an observation deck, from which the whole city and the bright blue expanse of the Adriatic Sea are perfectly visible.

There are two squares in the city, one of them was formed during the Middle Ages, it has preserved the originality of the architecture of that period and is one of the main goals of travelers who come to see the city. Not far from the square is the Cathedral of St. George, one of the main city attractions. The second area until the 19th century was the territory of the harbor, which cut into the city very deeply.

They say that this area is remarkably visible from space, and no one can really explain the reasons for this (you can see for yourself by looking at the satellite map of Piran). This square bears the name of the famous Italian composer and violinist Giuseppe Tartini, who was born in Piran in 1625.

Piran, Slovenia