The city is full of well-preserved Roman monuments. Don’t miss the Arena, the world’s sixth-largest Roman amphitheatre, the Arch of the Sergii and the Roman mosaic The Punishment of Dirce. In summer the Arena hosts festivals and concerts, so there is always something on.
The places around Pula have just as much to offer. Explore the beaches along the coast from Štinjan to Barbariga and visit Brijuni National Park, reached by boat from nearby Fažana. Vodnjan, Fažana and Galižana are covered in the Vodnjan - Fažana area.
Roman Pula
The Arena from the 1st century dominates the harbour, but Roman Pula is more than that. On the Forum, once the centre of the Roman town, stands the Temple of Augustus, and beside the Arch of the Sergii you will find the Twin Gates, a surviving part of the old town walls. Above the old town rises the Kaštel, a 17th-century fortress with views over the whole town and the harbour. It houses the Historical and Maritime Museum of Istria. All of this can be seen on foot in a single morning.
Pula is also a town that Austria-Hungary built up as its main naval port. The market hall, an iron-and-glass building from 1903, is still where locals buy fish, vegetables and olive oil. The Irish writer James Joyce lived and taught in Pula for two years, in 1904 and 1905, and a statue of him stands in the centre of town.
The sea and the beaches
The coast around Pula is deeply indented, with many coves and seaside paths. The Verudela and Stoja peninsulas offer swimming and shade, and the Pula Aquarium, set in a fort on Verudela, is a good choice for a rainy day with children. The beaches are mostly rocky or pebbly and the sea is clear. To the north the coast leads towards Štinjan and Barbariga, and to the south towards Medulin and Cape Kamenjak. Barbariga and Emily Beach appear in our villas’ data as the nearest beaches for several houses, along with Pomer, Puntižela and Kavran cove.
Where the villas are
Lovely Istria has 16 houses in and around Pula: some in the town itself and others in surrounding places such as Valtura, Klarići, Loborika, Muntić, Jadreški, Juršići, Čabrunići, Šikići and Pješčana Uvala. The nearest villa is about 650 m from the sea and most are a few kilometres away, while the farthest is about 10 km. From Pula Airport some villas are only 1.5 km away and the farthest about 16 km. In many villages the village centre is close at hand, and some villas stand within 70 m of it. These distances are measured on the map, as the crow flies, so the actual drive is usually a little longer.
Food and drink
In Pula you eat what the sea and the Istrian countryside provide: fresh fish, squid and shellfish, and alongside them olive oil, truffles, homemade pasta such as fuži and pljukanci, and the wines Malvazija and Teran. The best place to start is the market, where you will find local cheeses, cured ham and vegetables.