So, we’re going back a few weeks with this post to the beginning of September 2023 to finish off sharing photos of Slovenia. We previously shared highlights from our road trip, but we didn’t include our couple of days on the coast. Slovenia has a very small presence on the Adriatic Sea, like 45k or so, but the tiny city of Piran was one of the most beautiful places we visited in the country–hands down lovelier than the coastal towns we visited in Croatia. They say all of Slovenia empties out in August so they can go visit the Croatian coast. After visiting Piran, we can’t imagine why.
We spent 3 quick nights in Piran so we could enjoy the food and the sun. It is a tiny town, and that’s why you go. We stayed in the Art Hotel Tartini in Tartini square. It had a great view of the waterfront.
This view from our hotel looks down on the harbour and the waterfront toward the posh Piran Hotel. We actually rented beach chairs and an umbrella from the hotel and spent a day soaking in the sun. The Adriatic coast is interesting in that most of the waterfront sunbathing and swimming takes place on concrete or stone embankments. Those who flock to the “beach” don’t actually get a beach. Most bring yoga mats or simply lie on a towel on the pavement. I guess whatever you get used to is what you enjoy. We’ll take a sandy beach any day, but the sun and crystal-clear sea were hard to beat. Here’s a sunset we caught while sitting in front of Hotel Piran.
After the sunset, we took a walk along the waterfront and captured the moon shining off the water along the rocky embankment. During the day, swimmers sit on and dive from the rocks. Still lovely without a beach.
The heart of Piran is Tartini Square. It’s a big plaza with cafes, markets, and government buildings. Just about everything you’d want out of a plaza. Oh, and Piran is a car-free zone — both by choice as well as due to the narrow alley-like streets. You park in a lot on the edge of town and they have a super-efficient electric shuttle that brings you into the main square. Once again, Slovenia just works. Perfectly.
That all said, the next day, just off of the square along the harbour, we were surprised to a rather large display of Shelby Cobras along the marina. It was unexpected and obviously drew quite a crowd. We’ll include a photo just for the car fans out there.
One of our favorite experiences while we were there was the food. Our guidebook pointed us to small square with a fish window. You wait in line along the wall for a table, then when you get lucky and get a seat, you make your order and pay cash at the window while the bar next door brings out your drinks. When the bell rings, you look for your number hanging from the window. It was such a great experience and such fresh seafood, we went there twice.
As are most of the coastal towns, Piran was once a walled fortress city. Of course we had to hike to the wall at the top of the city and take some pictures of the view below. It sits on a peninsula, and there’s ocean on both sides. We could see why it is such a popular destination. It seems likely that we’ll be back here some day.
As we write this, we’re about to head out to see the evening view of Verona, famed home of the fictional Romeo and Juliet. We’ll share more of Croatia and Italy soon. Ciao!
Oh, holy s#$% on the Cobras! (Piran looks quaint and awesome too…)
I know! No explanation for why so many rare cars just showed up on the Slovenian coast. It was quite the thing.