According to CNN This is how Venice would look like, if Venice were a village.
This is Piran, a picturesque seaside town in Slovenia.
Piran sits on a small peninsula surrounded by the Adriatic Sea and is famous for its
medieval architecture and a maze of charming windy stone streets.
For more than half a millennia this town belonged to the Republic of Venice and was also a flourishing
spa town in Austro-Hungarian Empire.
Between the world wars it belonged to Italy and after the WWII it became part of Yugoslavia,
succeeded by Slovenia.
Today Piran is one of the major tourist attractions in Slovenian part of Istria.
Hi guys, I am Rok and I’ve spent last 9 years travelling around Europe as a tour guide
and I want to show you around beautiful Piran and its beaches.Piran is a beautiful place
to walk around as the entire old town is a pedestrian only area.
Town’s story began after the decline of the Roman Empire, when Romans withdraw into
easily defensible locations and this peninsula was one of them.
A town was build and it became heavily fortified and preserved town walls are a beautiful part
of medieval charm.
Town walls facing the land were gradually moved as the town grew.
That is why this part on the slope, overlooking the peninsula is the newest part build 14
and 15 hundreds by Venetians.
Defensive walls still have seven preserved fortified towers with ghibelline merlons on
top.
On the outside they look like a magnificent fort while on the inside the wooden landings
with stairs remain visible.
You can climb the walls every day from 8 am to dusk and enjoy spectacular view of the
entire peninsula and its surroundings.
Admission is 2 EUR.
Piran is tightly packed town on a small peninsula and that is why it has narrow winding streets
with stone passageways, cobbled alleys and small squares.
You will soon discover that some streets can get quite steep and narrow and you can spend
hours just wondering around.
As Piran is small you can’t get lost here, although you can get a bit disorientated.
Sooner or later the streets will lead you to this rectangular square in the very heart
of the old town.
In the middle Ages this used to be the main square with the town hall and that is why
all main streets lead here.
The square is surrounded by interesting baroque buildings and a church.
In the centre of the square is a large baroque cistern that was built in the late 18th century
to store rainwater from the surrounding roofs.
Baroque well has a stone fence and is raised on a large platform of rectangular shape with
statues of Law and Justice.
When wandering around streets of Piran you will find many more charming and historic
places like this.
In 12 hundreds Piran came under the rule of Venice and remained part of Venetian Republic
for more than 500 years.
Strong Venetian influence can be seen in town’s architecture.
One of the most famous and the oldest Venetian buildings can be found on the main square
and it is called the Venetian House.
This is a beautiful example of Venetian Gothic architecture with rich stone ornaments, corner
balcony and romantic legend.
Legend has it that a Venetian merchant fell in love with a beautiful local girl.
To show her the strength of his love he decided to build her a palace near the harbour.
The envious citizens were gossiping about the passionate couple.
To show his true love the Venetian merchant put a significant inscription on the stone
relief with a standing lion, located between the top two windows.
The inscription says: Lassa pur Dir meaning Let them talk.
Today the ground floor hosts a small shop selling salt from the nearby Salt Pans and
the rest of the house offers boutique rental apartments.
After the collapse of Venetian Republic, Piran become part of Austrian Empire for the next
100 years.
Austrians filled the old inner dock used by fishing boats and created this large square
that serves as the heart of the town.
It is named after famous violinist and composer Giuseppe Tartini whose bronze statue stands
on the square.
Tartini was a famous Baroque composer and violinist born right here in this yellow house.
His violin school attracted students from all over Europe.
Tartini was also the first known owner of a violin made by famous Antonio Stradivari.
Tartini’s House is open to the public and has a small museum dedicated to the famous
composer.
This huge oval shaped square is also surrounded by other beautiful buildings and the most
impressive one is the 19 century town hall.
It bears a carved statue of a winged lion holding an open book, a symbol of Venetian
Republic and on the ground floor is a Tourist information centre.
The best thing about Tartini Square are its cafes and restaurants where you can sit down
and admire the beauty and the heartbeat of Piran.Over the
centuries Piran was developing with the help of this rich salt fields about 8 km or 5 miles
from the old town, right at the border with Croatia.
For more than 700 years this slat pans produced a valuable and strategic commodity used for
the canning of food and for the production of gunpowder.
Here They still use traditional method of salt-making and the produced slat is a delicacy
for gourmets.
But the main role of this salt pans is to preserve salt-pan customs and Mediterranean
cultural heritage.
That is why this has become a nature park where you can also visit The Museum of Salt-making.
Park is also an ecological shelter to the rare animal and plant species.
In the Park is also a unique outdoor spa centre with traditional thalassotherapy using ancient
method of water and mud from the salt pans.
Ticket to the park costs 7 EUR and includes the visit of the museum.
The park is open from 8 am to 5 pm, but closing time extends to 9 pm in the high summer season.Most
costal towns in Istria have their own walking promenade along the coast and Piran is no
different.
But due to its unique position on the coast there isn’t enough space for a wide promenade,
so instead Piran has a narrow paved walking trail.
It starts from a cobble stone street not far from the famous church on the cliff.
From the church you pass the Bell tower until reaching a cobble stone street where you turn
towards the sea.
There is the beginning of approximately 1 kilometre long walking trail that runs between
the cliff and the sea.
Here you can enjoy in awesome views of the bay as well as the Italian coast in the background.
Trail connects Piran with small coastal settlement of Fiesa located in a small bay with nice
beach and two sweet water lakes.
You can reach this beach by following the walking trail from Piran.
It will take you about 15 minutes to walk to here.
Due to the shade, provided by pine trees, a large lawn with a playground, shallow clear
water and pebbles this is a popular beach for families with kids.
From May until September you can rent chairs, large shade-providing umbrellas and cabanas.
If you need some peace and quiet not far away is a narrow beach under the cliff.
Between old Piran and modern seaside resort of Portorož is a green cape of Bernardin.
This is a modern tourist complex with popular public beach.
In the heart of this cape is a 15 century bell tower and the remains of the former monastery
church of St. Bernard that gave name to the area.
The monastery was closed in the 19th century and was used by the Austrian Army as a fort
to control the bay.
This beach is just next to the parking area before the town.
Part of the beach has pebbles and the other part is made of concrete.
Entry points are also handicapped-people-friendly.
Visitors can also use wooden terraces for sunbathing.
Above, there are also lawns, sporting rows of stone pines, offering shade to visitors
on hot summer days.
Piran town centre also offers many options for a swim.
As you will wander along the seafront starting from the port, you will see a concrete beach.
When the beach ends, the line of huge wave breaking rocks begins.
Rocks are leading all around the tip of the peninsula.
Every now and then the line of rocks has a gap with swimmers’ ladders leading down
to the water’s edge.
This area is known as Punta and serves as a beach and a pedestrian promenade full of
restaurants and bars that extend on both sides of the peninsula.
The promenade takes you around the tip of the peninsula where stands a lighthouse and
a Church of Our Lady of Health.
The lighthouse is actually a stone fortress built in 16 hundreds and was part of the former
city walls and was transformed into a lighthouse in 18 hundreds.
And finally here is the most prominent landmark of Piran.
This Roman catholic church was named after St George, the town's patron saint who is
thought to have saved Piran when it was hit by a violent storm.
The church rises on a hill right above the town centre and is the first thing you see
if you approach Piran from the Sea.
Church was build in 16 hundreds to replace an older one.
Unfortunately you can only have a peak of the interior at the entrance from 7 am to
10 pm.
If you want to step inside the church you will have to attend the service.
Due to its unique elevated position the church offers view over three countries, Slovenia,
Croatia and Italy.
As the church hill is facing the sea the whole area has been unstable.
That is why enhancement walls were built in the 17th century.
Additional barriers were made from the 17th to the 19th centuries to prevent any damage
to the buildings.
But despite the efforts the hill still requires constant attention to keep it safe.
Part of the church complex is also this free-standing bell tower, that might look familiar if you
ever visited Venice.
This bell tower is a replica of St. Mark's bell tower in Venice and is a clear sign of
strong Venetian influence in Piran.
There are 146 steps leading to the top and after walking upstairs you will understand
why the view is described as breath-taking.
But once you will catch your breath, you will see beautiful 360 views of Piran and its surroundings.
Admission for the bell tower is 2 EUR.
Maybe CNN wasn’t wrong when they compared Piran to Venice.
It is very charming, old and beautiful place.
The main difference is that Piran is much quieter with almost no crowds.
Even in the high season it is easy to find peaceful places.
Instead of big hotels here are only small boutique hotels, small cafes, shops and restaurants.
Piran is a perfect for exploring amazing heritage and enjoy on its beaches.
And I didn’t even mention all the galleries and museums.
If you need first hand advice about what else to do in Piran check out local tourist information
office located in the Town Hall on the main square.
If you ever visit Slovenia or Istria, Piran should be on your must see list.
Usually Piran is visited as a popular day trip from Ljubljana or Trieste, but you can
easily spend at least couple of days here to enjoy some of its beaches.
You can get here by public bus or by car.
All cars must be parked outside the old town in one of the two parking areas for visitors.
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