Relaxing Beach Town for 5 Nights in Istria?

You will find everything you want in Premantura/Medulin area just outside Pula. Only 30 minutes from the airport, the beaches are some of the best in Istria, there is a winery there and the bus service to Pula if needed.

Forgot to mention that the Kamenjak nature park is there also.

I second the Kamenjak area, lovely place.

Kamenjak is one of my favorite places on earth and has good coastal walks. Rovinj will be jammed, but it has good wooded areas as well for walking on to the south. Personally, I really like Novigrad and Fazana. All of Istria is well under 2 hours drive from the Pula Airport. It is a small area.

All of this said, Cres has a special place in my heart and might be worth considering.

Thanks for the advice everyone!

I nearly booked a place in Novigrad - it looks lovely - but ended up going with a flat just south of Rovinj which seems to be a popular area for beaching but not within the tourist crush of Rovinj proper. Was very tempted by the areas near Pula and Kamenjac but it all kind of came down to getting a flat that was well-reviewed for a good price where we'd have the option of foregoing a rental car if we want (we're still undecided on that).

Thanks for everyone's help! And if you have restaurant recommendations in or near Rovinj I'd love to hear 'em!

This website is my bible for eating out in Istria - https://www.frankaboutcroatia.com/best-restaurants-in-istria/

Rovinj is really the worst place in Istria for good food. It attracts lots of tourists so there is place after place advertising “Grill, Fish, Pizza, Pasta.” Avoid these like the plague. Rovinj is great for cocktail bars and sundowners, but not food.

Also, please rent a car. You’ll miss so much without one.

Emily - thanks for the advice about a car. My husband had already agreed (he's the only one who can drive stick) but I was still on the fence but it seems to make sense. We've got 5 nights, but for the cost/time of getting from Pula to our flat alone, plus husband wants to see the amphitheater in Pula, even counting a couple do nothing beach days, we'll probably want the car to tool around.

We visited Pula, Rovinj and Opatija. Rovinj was beautiful but very touristy. I highly recommend seeing this ancient city but I don't know if I would want to stay there. Pula was nice but it didn't seem that there wasn't much to see other than the Colosseum. We loved Opatija. Its called the Austrian Riviera because it was once part of Austria. We hired a guide in Opatija. He told us that his Great Grandfather was Venetian, his grandfather was Austrian, his father was Yugoslavian and he is Croatian... and they all were born and raised in the same house. Lots of history. We were told that the real Captain Von Trapp from the sound of music fame was stationed in Opatija and that is where he met his wife. It's a very beautiful place with lots of restaurants and hotels overlooking the water.

Jumping in here as we will have a car and have 3 days on the Istrian peninsula in mid Sept. Looked at booking in Porec as a base and daytrip from there. Has anyone stayed in that area?

I stay there all the time.

Poreč is a good base to tour from at any time.

We based in Rovinj but would absolutely consider Porec for a return trip - and I think we may return as flights were cheap to Pula, driving was relatively easy, and we really loved the west coast of Istria. I wrote a trip report if you want more detailed info!

I second the recommendation for Porec. It's a lovely town, very walkable, good restaurants and a very nice beach. From there you can take the ferries for a day trip to Venice. Quite nice.