25 Things to Do in Piran | Piran Travel Guide, Slovenia
Piran is a gorgeous, small, Venetian-style town in Slovenia. It is made up of sparkly blue waters, seafood restaurants, red roofs, cobbled back alleys, churches and museums. For such a compact place there are many things to do in Piran.
This blog is going to list the top 25 Piran things to do while you’re on the coast of Slovenia and the Northern tip of Istria! Read on for the Piran travel guide.
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Where is Piran?
Piran is found on the Northern Coast of the Istria Peninsula. Istria is made up of three countries: Italy, Slovenia, Croatia. Piran is part of Slovenia.
Maps Piran:
How to Get to Piran Slovenia
Piran is easily accessed by car or bus from other parts of Istria, Slovenia, Croatia or Italy and this coastal resort is one of the best things to see in Slovenia.
Flights to Piran will go to Trieste in Italy (Trieste is located on Istria Island) and Trieste to Piran takes just 1 hour.
I went from Ljubljana to Piran by bus using the local Slovenian buses but you can also use Flixbus and takes just 2 hours, making it an excellent day trip from Ljubljana.
Note: Flixbus will only go as far as Portoroz but the Portoroz Piran bus is every 15 minutes and just 10 minutes from one another.
Piran Travel Guide: Things You Should Know
- While many places take card, cash is preferred.
- There is only 1 ATM in Piran.
- Piran is very small and best way to travel around is by foot.
- Parking in Piran Slovenia is outside the town for longer stays. Click here for all your parking needs.
- There are local buses arriving on the Tartini Piran Square every few minutes. Check the bus schedules.
- For taxis in Piran and Portoroz, see the Taxi Piran website here. Uber has not yet made it to Slovenia.
- Check out the Live Cam Piran here before you visit. (Live Camera Piran was a popular armchair travel activity during world lockdowns).
Top Things to Do in Piran, Slovenia
1. Walk The Perimeter of Piran
Piran is surrounded by the Adriatic Sea on three sides and does a loop shape making it the perfect place for walks. You cannot walk directly next to the sea the entire way though.
- Starting at the Piran bus station with the sea on your left, walk the entire length of the path and around the lighthouse as far as the furthest pebbled beach in Piran.
- Before the pebbled beach, you will need to take a right into the cobbled back alleys and from there find steps that take you up to St George’s Parish Church where you can walk along the higher wall overlooking the sea and town, and then back down into town.
2. St George’s Parish Church
If you visit Piran you won’t miss this. Towering over the town stands the tall St George’s Parish Church, dedicated to its namesake Saint George, with a giant clock and pointy steeple.
The church bells always go off at random intervals and if you’re wondering why, it’s because you can pay (€1) to climb the church and ring the bells for luck. If climbing the church you will get a stunning view over Piran but the wall and path beneath the church has a gorgeous view too.
3. Pebbled Beaches in Piran
There is the main pebbled beach past the lighthouse and facing out to the North and there is another pebbled beach near the bus station at the beginning of the town looking out to the East. The former is definitely the better Piran beach to relax at.
Note: If you’re looking for a sandy beach Piran doesn’t have any I’m afraid.
4. Tartini Square Piran
The main area and centre of Piran is the square named after violinist Giuseppe Tartini born in the republic of Venice. Here is where everyone gathers and is the central meeting spot. You’ll find markets, events, the tourist centre, bus stop and town hall here. Grab a coffee by day and Slovenian beer by night to enjoy the surroundings.
5. Wander the Cobbled Back Alleys
Take one step behind Tartini Square and you’ll feel like you actually stepping into Venice. The cobbled back alleys are no friend to suitcases but make for great photos with the tall buildings, washing hanging out of windows, walls florally decorated and vespas parked up.
There’s also spots of street art dotted around so for Piran things to do, wander the alleys and look out for some interesting art.
6. Lighthouse
At the end of the path where the coast is on your left is a pretty lighthouse marking the middle of the path around the coast and as you turn the corner, Italy comes into view!
There are two other places which look like lighthouses and i’ve seen in various ports over Europe which are green and red posts and I believe they are markers for the boats coming in and out of the harbour. Please correct me if I’ve got this completely wrong as at first I thought it was a post box. That’s the British in me.
7. Mermaid Statue
Along the edge of the coastline, adjacent to the lighthouse, is a Piran must see – a statue of a mermaid carved out of stones and makes for a nice view over her shoulder.
Queue men posing for pictures touching the mermaid’s breasts.
8. Go Crabbing
When you walk along the entire Piran coast and get to the end, past the mermaid and lighthouse, you’ll find an area of rocks next the wall where you sit right next to the ocean and find lots of crabs and other residents of the shore such as mussels and clams.
If you’re lucky you might spot a dolphin on the horizon ;).
9. Ancient Walls
For ultimate Piran sightseeing, this is one of the best things for what to do in Piran Slovenia. It takes a short walk to get there but once there you can explore the town walls Piran has had since the 7th century!
Entry is only €2 per adult and you get incredible views of Piran peninsula, out to sea and all three countries of Istria.
To get there, walk to the top of Ulica IX Korpusa street and turn right before the wall that looks out to sea. Keep walking all the way to the top of the hill and you’ll find the entrance on the left.
10. Visit The Magical World of Shells
For such a small place, Piran has a lot of museums. One of the being the Shell museum where you can look at and learn about over 4000 pieces of shell. Entry is €4 per adult.
11. Local Shopping
There are also a lot of shops in Piran so spend an hour or so finding great gifts, souvenirs or something for yourself. There’s a tasty chocolate shop, cute shell shop, trinkets, clothes store and tourist shops.
12. Explore the Aquarium
The aquarium can be found next to Cafe Galleria Piran in front of the marina to the right of Tartini Square and is an easy Piran to do come rain or shine! Entry is €5 per adult.
13. Go to The Museum of Underwater Activities
Is this another museum in Piran? Yes it is.
Learn about underworld life here and outside is a large figure of a submarine diver but be careful as you’ll get charged for a photo.
14. Learn at Mediadom Pyrhani
This is Piran’s history museum so you can learn all about the town of Piran, its history and geography and Istria as an island and is a good thing for what to see in Piran.
15. Peruse The Markets
There are outdoor markets that pop up on specific days of the week (like the crafts market on a Friday) but there is the fresh fruit and veg market everyday behind Tartini Square providing extremely cheap produce.
I got tomatoes, lettuce and red onions for just €1.50 to make myself a salad. HOWEVER, as I was washing the lettuce I noticed I had a little friend. There was a giant slug munching on my lettuce! So I let him have it and settled for no greens.
16. Gelato Treats
I had three ice creams in three days in Piran! They were THAT good. Although there are many gelatos around Piran, my favourite was called Slaščičarna Piran. I tried Pistachio, Raspberry Cheesecake, and a mix of Lavender and Kinder. They were all amazing and I’m not even picking a favourite.
17. Eat Local Food (definitely Seafood)!
This is the number one thing to do in Piran for me, especially eating seafood. I ate seafood pizza, catch of the day fish, black pasta with seafood and seafood pasta. See below for more about Slovenian food, where to eat in Piran and my favourite restaurant in Piran.
18. Join an Olive Oil Tour and Tasting
The olive oil is special in Istria. I bought an olive oil with chilli from Istria in Ljubljana festival which I carried on our Europe trip and it was the perfect thing to pack. You can learn about why it’s so good here, how popular it is and the health benefits that the locals swear by.
This was the same on the Zadar food tour I took and is found all down the Dalmatia Coast. Join a tour in Piran to learn more about this essential thing to eat on all holidays to Piran Slovenia.
19. Visit the Salt Nature Reserve
‘Piran is made of salt’.
There are famous salt reserves in Slovenia located on Istria in the outskirts of Piran which you can visit to learn about the unique process that has been used for centuries and its uses. You can have a spa there, use the salt for cooking or seasoning, or add to your baths.
20. Learn about Piran Salt and buy your own at Soline Pridelava Soli D.O.O.
Going to the Salt Nature Reserve or not, you have to visit the shop in Piran which sells every kind of salt you can think of! I got a bag of Salt for seasoning and also carried it through my Europe trip along with the Olive Oil and we used it all the time. Tasty!
The shop is located on Tartini Square.
21. Podlanica: A Restaurant on a Boat
For a unique dining experience in Istria, head to Podlanica which isn’t really a fully-fledged restaurant and the only notice is a small barrel on the harbour where it docks like this:
Make a reservation on the day or day before you want to visit as they get busy when word gets out. It’s run by a couple, one if the chef and the other is the host. There is no menu just whatever the catch of the day is, pasta, salad and bread.
There’s also no prices so ask before you order unlike us who ordered seafood pasta and seabass and beers and cost €68!! Oops.
I also ran into a fellow travel blogger on this tiny boat which is always lovely when the universe works like that :)!
22. Dive!
Diving Piran wasn’t available while I was there in April/May but opens for Summer so explore the wonders of the Adriatic Sea by joining a diving tour. But if you don’t fancy going in yourself…
23. Take a Boat Tour with Glass Bottom!
There is a company called Subaquatic which was recommended by other travellers where you can take a boat ride and see the underwater creatures through the glass bottom for around €20 per person. Again, it wasn’t open for us in April/May but I would definitely do this if I visited in Summer.
24. Day Trips From Piran
From Portoroz to Fiesa Piran has a few day trips options. Visit Fiesa or Fornace for beaches near Piran, or Portoroz for a more lively and younger vibe.
25. Witness a Piran Sunset
Perfectly, the last thing is a sunset in Piran at the end of the coastal path which is simply stunning. The water is either side of you if you go to the corner and differs in colours and currents making for a lovely view as the sun goes down.
Best Restaurants in Piran Slovenia
Piran restaurants are found in abundance from the marina to the depths of the cobbled alleys as well as Piran food tours for a guided lesson on the food and wine of Piran. As said before if you’re looking for a seafood restaurant Piran has lots! The best being Podlinca of course but there are other options depending on what you’re looking for:
- For self-service go to Fritolin Pri Cantini Piran to order fresh Calamari and wait for your number to be called to collect from the counter yourself.
- For a pizzeria Piran has several options but try Porta Marciana for a home-made dough in an Italian restaurant. I had the Fruits of the Sea pizza and it was delicious!
- Another popular Italian restaurant is Pri Mari Piran to try the Istrian pasta called Fuzi with local delicacy, truffles.
- The best restaurant Piran had for me was Piran right on the marina where we had fresh seafood on black pasta and fresh Swordfish of the day with vegetables, beer and bread.
Hotels in Piran Slovenia
When looking for where to stay in Piran, there’s not a huge amount of options because the town is so small but what you’re likely to find is quality accommodation in Piran Slovenia.
My hotel in Piran was called Traditional House Piran which was a converted Piran home turned into a hostel.
Each room was named after a place in Istria / Slovenia, private and locked with allocated fridge and shelf space in the shared kitchen.
You have to share the two bathrooms and the roof terrace. The roof was the absolute best part of this accommodation and I would definitely stay here again for the prime views, sunbathing spot and breakfast table that the terrace provides.
Find your own hotel Piran has to offer here:
Booking.comDay Trips To Piran and After Piran
If you’d prefer to spend just one day in Piran then you can take a day trip to Piran from Ljubljana or other places in Slovenia like Bled, Portoroz or Koper. Find day trips from Ljubljana to Piran.
For onward travel from Piran, you can visit other parts of Slovenia by bus such as Ljubljana to Lake Bled, drive to Trieste in Italy, catch the Piran to Venice ferry or explore the rest of Istria like Rovinj and Pula.
I hope this post has inspired you to visit the Slovenian coastal town of Piran!
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