Uniquely among Croatia’s tourist regions, Istria is almost a lifestyle brand in its own right. Mere mention of the peninsula’s name summons up images of good food, quality wine, respect for tradition and an openness to contemporary culture. Istrians combine a Central European attention to detail with a Mediterranean sense of knowing when to slow down and enjoy the good things in life. The landscape, with its ravishing coastal towns, rolling green interior and very little industry, represents the kind of place where a lot of us might want to live.
It is in Istria that the diversity of Croatia is seen to the full, with modern luxury hotels and swish-and-glampy campsites rubbing shoulders with well-preserved hilltop towns, Baroque churches and Roman remains. In many ways Istria is a showcase for the country as a whole because it's the easiest bit of Croatia to get to. Visitors from Italy, Austria or southern Germany can pop down to Istria on the spur of the moment – visiting a place like Dubrovnik, on the other hand, has to be planned in advance.
More than anywhere else in Croatia, Istria has succeeded in transforming its traditions into tourist gold without actually killing them off at the same time. Tourism has enhanced the region’s culinary reputation rather than spoiled it, with local restaurants treating locals and visitors alike to the traditional gastronomic riches of sea and land. Istria’s fancier restaurants continue to take their lead from the tavern-culture of the peninsula’s interior, and top cooks cultivate the cult of the local and the seasonal rather than looking for internationalist solutions.
Star chef Jeffrey Vella, now overseeing restaurants in Rovinj after high-profile roles in Dubrovnik and Zagreb, told Time Out Croatia that for anybody truly ambitious about brandishing a ladle, Istria is the place to be – precisely because the local produce is so specific. The butter in his kitchens is made daily from fresh cream supplied by a dairy in nearby Žminj. In Istria, artisanal production is not a post-industrial reinvention – it’s simply the way things are done.
It’s this combination of landscape and culinary culture that has encouraged people to describe the peninsula as some kind of new Tuscany, a cliché that has been circulating for at least the last 20 years. In many ways Istria is a stronger brand than Tuscany and can survive quite well without the comparison. Its combination of sea, stone-built villages and irresistible delicacies is much more concentrated, and much more idiosyncratic.
Istria may indeed have better olive oil than Tuscany. Italian guide Flos Olei has declared Istria to be Europe’s top olive-oil producing region for seven years running. On their 2022 list of the world’s 500 best olive plantations, 66 are in Istria.
This artisanal approach to victuals is influencing the more cultural aspects of Istrian tourism, too. Historic sites and traditional narratives are increasingly being presented to the visitor as curated experiences rather than collections of objects. The Vižula Archeological Park in Medulin mixes Roman heritage with high-tech presentation. Event organisers like Istra Inspirit are transforming Istrian legends into interactive drama spectacles involving live action, music, and (this is Istria after all) food and drink.
The one aspect of Istrian culture that gets most lost in translation is its folk music, much of which is based on a scale different to its western European counterpart and which can sound discordant and abrasive to the untrained ear. The piercing squalls of noise emitted by the clarinet-like wind instrument known as a roženica often sound more like free jazz than ear-friendly folk. If you really want to get into the Istrian way of doing things, a good tootle from a roženica will do you the world of good.
This article is sponsored by the Istrian Tourism Board.
