PULA GUIDE: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW

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Pula is the most important city in Istria and was our base for 9 days. From here we could do some other excursion (Rovinj and Bale), explore the best beaches of Istria and enjoy all that the ancient city offers.

Today we are going to tell you something more about it, with advice on where to eat and about everything there is to see and do in Pula.

Hey, we said little, no resoples! Pula's story is intrinsically linked to the romans: in 177 BC it was invaded by this very invaded town and they stayed here for a few hundred years. Perhaps for this reason there are pizzas in all Pula menus.

No, now seriously ... the Romans turned Pula into a leading city, with an incredibly powerful port and a development of the city in line with the Empire. At this time important buildings such as the amphitheater were built, which will directly make you fall in love.

With the passage of time Pula fell into the hands of the Ostrogoths, the Byzantines, the Grancos, the Venetians, the Genoese, the Austro-Hungarians, the Fascists, the free territory of Trieste, the Yugoslavs and the Croats . With this mix of cultures it is inevitable that the city will overflow history, culture and attractions, so we encourage you to continue reading our super guide ...

The mark that most surprises the visitor is undoubtedly the one left by the Romans. The main attractions of Pula are, in fact, a witness of this era. It is the case of:

- Roman amphitheater

The city's star monument, one of the 6 largest Roman amphitheaters in the world that hosted shows for more than 20,000 people. It is also one of the best preserved Roman amphitheaters. Sincerely it impacts a lot, so prepare the camera and make a good paparazzata: he deserves it.

We do not advise you to enter and pay the 40 Kunas of the ticket (just over € 5) since from the outside you can enjoy the almost global views of the monument. In summer season they show gladiatorial shows for quite interesting nights, the entrance costs 50 kunas (almost € 7).

- Temple of Augustus

Dedicated to Emperor Augustus, this temple, located in the ancient Roman forum, is one of our favorite corners of Pula. During World War II it was shot down by bombing and rebuilt following the original pattern. Today it houses the Archaeological Museum of Pula (10 Kunas, € 1.3). Near it stands the old Pula Town Hall.

In the same square, the most frequented of Pula, is the building of town hall, with a beautiful arcaded facade.

- Roman mosaic "Punishment of Dirce"

If the bombings of World War II destroyed the temple of Augustus, they also allowed us to discover this beautiful mosaic of the 12th century, 12 x 6m, where the mythological scene of Dirce's punishment is depicted. It's amazing how a treasure like this beautiful and well-preserved mosaic is so hard to find (and almost no one knows its existence!). It is located in Ulica Sergijevaca 18, after parking in a hole (not seen from Sergijevaca street), in a kind of booth. It can be seen for free.

- Sergio Arc

An arc of triumph that rose in 27 BC and today is one of the main meeting points of the city. If we pass under this Corinthian arch we will find ourselves in one of the main arteries of Pula, the lively street Sergijevaca

- Kastel

The Kastel is a fortress that rises on the highest hill in the city and from there upstairs there are good views of toooodo around Pula (although the views of the historic center are not good). If you decide to enter (it costs 20 kunas about € 2.5), you can visit a history museum of the city that will discover curiosities of its past. We do not enter but we decided to surround the walls and enjoy the sunset. There's a Roman theatre behind the open access Kastel.

- Zerostrasse underground galleries

In the Twin Doors You will find the entrance to one of these underground tunnels, built in the Austro-Hungarian period and that cover the subsoil of Pula in several meter centers, being in a central hall, which coincides with the Kastel. Admission costs 15 kunas (€ 2).

- Further…

Strolling around Pula you will encounter other interesting places, such as theSan Francisco Church and Franciscan Monastery (entrance 10 kunas, € 1.3), the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, the chapel of Santa María Formosa,wave Orthodox Church of St. Nicholas. Another beautiful area is the port, especially at sunset.

Do you have more time? Take an excursion such as Rovinj, the Premantura peninsula or the Brioni National Park

Here we leave the map with the essential things to see and visit in Pula

There are several sites nearby that are worth visiting. It is the case of Rovinj, one of the most beautiful cities in all of Istria (and we would dare to say of all Croatia) or of Bale (a very nice town halfway between Pula and Rovinj). And if you are traveling by car from Slovenia you will probably pass through the curious town of Motovun, high on a hill.

If you have more time, we recommend a few things to see and do in Istria.

Pula is a very pleasant city to visit, full of places to try the occasional local delight. These are the restaurants we tried (0 who advised us to try):

Orfej: We had dinner here 3 times! The reason? Good food, hearty dishes and cheap prices ... what else can you ask for? The place has a nice terrace and is very central. We advise you to try the pizza that is very rich (30-50Kunas) and the grilled or fried squid (40 kunas).
Pompei: We had already come last year and we repeated. We tried pizza (it was delicious but better than Orfej's), lasagna (normal) and a mixed meat dish (very good).
Farabutto: We did not come here (we were a little out of control), but our Airbnb hostess told us that it was one of the best restaurants in terms of quality / price ratio.
Tivoli: where they say Pula's best pizza is… we didn't go because it caught us away.
Odisej: Here they prepare the best cevapcici in the city (35 Kunas).

If you are interested in knowing how much it costs to eat in Croatia you can take a look at this article.

We stay in an Airbnb apartment (if you register with our link we will give you € 25 of credit for your next trip!). The floor was this. We recommend it 100%: it was an independent apartment on the ground floor of a house of hospitable people and very nice. Nice, clean, well located (about 20 minutes walk from the center and next to the supermarket area), let's go… perfect to explore the area by car and very comfortable to go to beaches (the center of Pula, if you have a car it's quite messy). We pay € 30 per night between the 4 (really the apartment only has a double room, an extra bed and a sofa bed ... maybe for 4 it is a bit small but as we have used it only for sleeping, no problems!).

If you want to see more offers of cheap accommodation in Pula see this link.

If you prefer not to do the excursions for free, here we leave you the most interesting tours from Pula:

Tips to visit Pula

Here we leave you more useful information and some tips for you to plan your visit to Pula:

There is a tourist office in the main square of the city.
If you like wine you should try a glass of Malvasia, a white wine typical of Istria.
And if you want to try something typical look for a roadside restaurant (in the direction of Rovinj there are some) and ask for the roast pork or lamb. We have not heard very well of what it is called (in the menu it put directly porchetta, the Italian name) but googleing a bit it looks like this: “odojak”
Try to sleep for at least 3 nights ... Istria is well worth it and Pula is the ideal base to explore the region! We stayed 9 nights and we still have things to see 🙂
You can download this free APP to virtually explore the city (it has a map and explanation of the main points of interest)