LEISURE ACTIVITIES

Destination

Villa Casa Manera is situated in the Istria County, the westernmost county of Croatia which includes the biggest part of the Istrian peninsula. Its coastline is 445 km long, and with islands 539.9 km. The westernmost point is at Savudrija, and the southernmost point is near Premantura (Kamenjak).
There are so called “white”, “grey” and “red” Istria. White Istria is around the mountain peaks, Grey Istria is the fertile inner land while Red Istria (red land called ‘crljenica’) is near the coastline.
The climate is Mediterranean, very pleasant, with the highest air temperature averaging 24°C in August and the lowest averaging 5°C in January. Summers are warm and dry, with more than 10 hours of sunshine daily.
Sites such as Baredine Jama – Grotta (The Baredine Cave) near Poreč or the underground river Foiba in Pazin are popular geological attractions. The Quarry near Rovinj is specifically designed for geological studies.
The well-known natural reservations, The National Park Brijuni and The Nature Park Učka are legally protected landscapes. Other interesting sites are Lim Canal, woods near Motovun, the Zlatni Rt Park and The Palud Reservation near Rovinj, The Park Wood Šijana and the protected landscape Kamenjak near Pula.
As far as the cultural heritage is concerned, Istria doesn’t fall behind any of the other regions. Istria can be proud of The Pula Amphitheatre or Arena, which is the largest and the best preserved ancient building in Croatia, The Euphrasian Basilica in Poreč as one of the most beautiful preserved monuments from the early Byzantine art in the Mediterranean, and many others…
Istria is famous for its gastronomy and its traditional flavours. Back in 537 AD Cassiodorus wrote that in this country “patricians live the lives of gods”. Here, symphonies of flavours are composed from diversities of underwater and underground treasures. Seashells, fish and crabs play together with famous Istrian truffles. It’s a land of the finest wines and the world’s best olive oil.
Istria combines gastronomy and tradition through active vacations, with a variety of wine cellars, taverns and oil mills, situated on wine and oil roads, each of them telling its own special story. In combination with natural beauty, rich historic and cultural heritage and gastronomy, Istria was and still is the most significant and the most popular tourist destination in Croatia.