Definitely one of my most favorite places in Istria, if not overall Croatia is a small place, the town of Fazana. Having this in mind, we decided to build our house as close as possible to it. True to be told, when we were looking for a place to build our house, available lands in Fazana were just too expensive. Luckily for us, we have found an even more beautiful place, that has a direct view of Fazana´s coast and neighboring islands.

A perfect location

It has a really perfect location, just like Galizana, except for being directly on the coast. Pula is next to it on the south, Galizana on the east, and Vodnjan, Rovinj, and Bale on the north. From here you can also go to islands Brijuni, one of the eighth National parks in Croatia. Boats drive constantly and you will need only 15 minutes to get there. We always recommend our guests to visit Fazana first. Once you sit in one of many coffee places directly on the beach or order some food in one of the numerous restaurants, your batteries will be full again from the long drive.

Wine and olive oil

Like basically in the whole Istria, you can´t come to Fazana without trying some of the local olive oils and wines. Actually, if you start discovering town from the south side, you can´t miss a park with many olive trees. The street next to it is called “Aleja Maslina” or Olive Street. If you will be there in early autumn, you could also participate in picking up olives which the town organizes for everybody. Next to this park, you can also find a big children’s playground with many restaurants. There are also many restaurants in the old town, but if you prefer eating and having your children playing next to the restaurant, this is the place. From here also the city beach starts, and it goes all the way to Pula.

The old town Fazana

Where the park of Olives finishes, the old town starts. Next to the sea, you can find many restaurants. Like in all Mediterranean cities, it is not unusual that waiters or owners are standing in front of the restaurants and inviting you to choose their restaurant. Normally this is not that bad if they are not too aggressive of course. Useful thing is to find out recommended dish for that day. You could also negotiate to get drinks, or dessert for free if you choose a certain more expensive dish, like a specific type of fish.

Fazana is quite small so don´t be afraid to move from the seafront into the small streets on the side. Here you can find even more romantic and traditional smaller restaurants. The highlight of the old town is definitely the church of St. Cosmas and Damian. The building started in the 15th century and has a combination of Gothic and Renaissance styles. Inside you can also find many paintings dated from the 16th century. The most famous picture is “The last supper” by Croatian painter Zorzi Ventura.

The even older church that could be found in the old town is the church of our Lady of Mount Carmel. The building started in the 14th century and continued throughout the 17th century. Here you can find the wooden sculpture of Virgin with Child, dated from the 15th century.

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The smallest street in Istria

Did you know that Fazana has one of the smallest and narrowest streets in the whole of Istria? It was named after the swallow bird, on Italian La Rondinella. That name is not by accident. According to the legend, the street was so narrowed that only swallows could fly from one side to another. If other birds could also fly through, it is not known.

When you come back to the seafront, be sure the check many boats anchored in the town port. If you are lucky you could see one of the many traditional fishing boats called Batana. Interesting for these boats is that families used to paint the sail of the boat with family symbols. In this way, people on the coast could recognize who was returning back from the fishing. Nowadays boats normally no longer have sails, but check by yourself, maybe you will find one original.

Kilometers of the beach

The most beautiful part of the city is the fact that the beach starts almost from the old town and continues for kilometers all the way to Pula. It is made from pebbles so it is suitable for the whole family, even for the smallest children. As mentioned earlier, here you can find many restaurants and playgrounds. This area you will also visit if you are looking for some nightlife. There are quite a few cocktail beach bars along the seafront. Here you could also enjoy some water fun/sport activities as there is more than 1 place where you could rent different equipment.

Fazana – place to come back to

Although Fazana is not that big as other touristic places like Pula or Rovinj, you will immediately fall in love with it. Amazing location next to the sea, small streets full of romantic restaurants and coffee places will keep you coming back. During the high season, there are also different activities in the evening organized by the city. They include different gastronomy or music festivals, like famous fishermen´s nights and festivals of stars, candles, and lanterns. Be sure to regularly check the calendar of events.

See you in Fazana.

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