I love the knack Croatians have for taking a humble stretch of craggy shoreline and turning it into a wildly romantic bar or café. In the coastal town of Rovinj, several bars and restaurants offer tables atop the town's rocky seawall, and some provide you with a pillow – an invitation to find your own nook in the rocks overlooking the bay. As the sunset fades and the flames from tealight candles seem to brighten, you realize just how easy it is to enjoy a luxurious moment on the Adriatic coast.
Boasting thousands of miles of seafront and more than a thousand islands, Croatia’s coastline, with its pebbly beaches, predictably balmy summer weather, and melt-in-your-mouth seafood, is Central Europe’s Riviera. In fact, it’s sometimes difficult to distinguish this place from Italy – they're both so dreamy and popular. The most Italianesque stretch is on the northern peninsula of Istria.
Instead of the sheer limestone cliffs found along the rest of the Croatian shoreline, the Istrian coast has gentle green slopes, giving it a more serene feel. Though Istria has its share of tacky touristy beach towns, it also hosts my favorite Adriatic town, Rovinj. Surrounded by the sea on three sides, Rovinj is like a little hunk of Venice draped over a hill.
It’s simply romantic. Boats laden with kitschy shells for sale rock giddily in the harbor. The fountain on the main square celebrates the arrival of the water system – in 1959.
A bell tower with a rickety staircase requires an.