Venice to Rovinj

I have been to both Piran and Skocjan Caves. I think since you already are going to Venice and Rovinj - they both are cities ruled by the Venetian Republic for centuries as was Piran- a visit to Skocjan Caves will be more memorable because it’s unique. Skocjan caves are well worth visiting.

Good points. Great tip. I appreciate your suggestion.

Dawn

Skip Motovun. I know Rick recommends it but we were just there last October and were so disappointed. Most of the artists he write about have moved on. There were many houses for sale. We like Poreć and Pula better. We’ve been to Postonja Caves but not Škocjan but they are very similar. There is a castle nearby which we are looking to visit in June.

Agree with Kenko. Piran is a beautiful harbourfront but if you are already coming from Venice it will likely be more of the same. Although it would be a good place to stop between Venice and Rovinj otherwise.

I loved Motovun when I was there in the fall but mostly as a curiousity and for the views. Again, if you are coming from Italy and have already visited a hill town or two it's not going to be much different. We only spent about 2.5 hours there including stopping for lunch, and we were also headed that way.. It also could make an easy side trip if you are spending some time in Rovinj anyways.

Loved Postojna caves but the earlier you go the better. We went for a 10AM slot and it seemed like the entire country was there when we left around noon.

Although Piran was part of the Venetian republic it's a small village really and not anything like Venice itself. I really enjoyed it there and think it's definitely worth a stop. Piran is somewhat similar to Rovinj. Motovum was nice, it did really look/feel like many Italian hilltowns. There are other hill towns near Motovum that I enjoyed more though. Here's my photos of the Istrian hilltowns - hover over each image for the name of the town. https://andiamo.zenfolio.com/p877843757

Thanks Isabele and Kevlar. Such good info. I really appreciate it!

Hi everyone! Wondering if some knowledgeable folks can help with this. My parents drove from the Istrian Peninsula to Venice in 2018. What should have been a 3 hour trip took almost 12 hours! Lots of rules about which borders they could cross. I've tried to figure out what happened since they may have to do that drive again, but I can't find any info. Has anyone here run into issues driving from the Istrian Peninsula (Rovinj, Pula etc) back into Italy? Many thanks!!

We just did this trip in May. We rented a car in Venice and drove along the Istrian Peninsula with no problem. I recommend downloading a Google map of the area before you go, which you can use offline when on your trip. I think it pings off the towers but doesn’t require wireless. We did have to show our passport when we crossed the sliver of the Bosnian coast and then again, leaving Bosnia but it did not take long. You basically have to show your passport when you go from an EU to non-EU country and vice versa. We found the road system easy to navigate with good maintenance and using Google maps. We also found the rest stops/ exits to be great! Clean restrooms, decent, healthy food and easy on/ off ramps. Have a great trip.

Look into Flixbus, it's awesome. Usually has wifi, outlets, drinks for sale, comfortable seats. It should be able to get you directly to Rovinj.

I only passed through Ljubljana unfortunately so can't help you on that end.