Istria Private Day Trip

Posted By : IreneI556
I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND this tour and our driver, Sini, to anyone who wants to spend a day in Istria. Sini (sini@istria-tours.hr) was AMAZING! He picked us up at our hotel in Rovinj in his comfortable Mercedes and suggested an itinerary which included a medieval town of Groznjan, beautiful Buje and Motovun, which is THE place for any truffle lover. When we mentioned that we were interested in wine tasting, Sini immediately picked up the phone and set up a wine tasting at Kozlovic Winery which was a delightful experience in a gorgeous setting. The fact that this was a private tour enabled us to move at our own pace and custom tailor it to our particular interests. The entire day was relaxing and unhurried, leaving us with wonderful memories of Istria.
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Posted On : 2023-10-10

Posted By : rosebrid
We really enjoyed this day, an extra special memory beyond beach days. I arranged an itinerary beforehand on email and it was full but not exhaustingly so. We had driven ten years ago around Istria in a hire car for a day and very much enjoyed it but I was rather more nervous about doing it this time (you lose nerve as you get older) so took the easy option. There are now parking charges for Groznjan and Motovun and a charge for the Motovun walls which certainly wasn't the case then! Sini picked us up from our apartment in Rovinj at 9 dead on time, and we drove first to Groznjan which we have very fond memories of, and it is still a lovely charming artistic place. Met an artist at work in his studio as well. Some amazing facts and figures on his paintings. Had time to wander before on the road again to a place I was interested in seeing, Zavrsje, which is almost completely abandoned, and a contrast to the other towns. All through the day we enjoyed a near constant stream of conversation on Croatia and Istria plus life generally, Sini has a very dry British type wit and is great company. Zavrsje is well worth a stop. Tiny, one small street through. Abandoned houses all overgrown. Eerie. Very atmospheric and haunting. Then on to Oprtalj which we didn't have time for before on our drive in 2013 to Groznjan, Motovun and Hum. It was smaller than I was expecting! But very sweet and an impressive loggia for the size of the town (meeting place/council building). All through the day by the way there was plenty of time to admire the surrounding countryside which is just amazing. Completely unspoilt, nothing but trees, hills, agriculture, and large skies, hope it stays that way. Nothing at all to spoil views on 3d vistas. Just stunning. We had a sandwich stop in Oprtalj before getting to the Livade forest out of Motovun for our agreed truffle hunting demo with Nikola (think it is right) which was hilarious as well as informative..loved his two dogs as well. If you do this, take insect repellant, we forgot but thankfully Nikola had some! Sini left us to that for 40 minutes before taking us to Motovun, walls included. Had a walk around, yes the views are worth it from those walls and visit tasting olive oil and truffles at a shop. Then a lovely drink at a cafe where we could see the views, and home by way of photo stops at the Limski Canal. Sini is really accommodating in agreeing an itinerary, so get familiar with various towns in a Rough Guide or online before as it is well worth doing detours and less famous places, I will always remember Zavrsje. It was a wonderful day.
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Posted On : 2023-07-12

Posted By : Tracy J
We did a 3 day tour of Istria Croatia with Sini. We have been traveling for about a month and have had many your guides. Sini, by far, is the absolute best. He is knowledgeable, kind and patient. He made sure that we not only got the most out of time in Istria but that we did it in a pace that worked for us. We never felt rushed by him and he was always very accommodating. Croatia is a beautiful country and Istria is just special. Spending 3 days is not enough and we will be back. We will definitely be contacting Sini again when we do get back. He made this special place even more welcoming and wonderful. I cannot recommend him enough. Fantastic to work with. Thank you Sini for making this trip so special.
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Posted On : 2023-05-29

Posted By : Margie K
Excellent tour of Rovinj, Motovun and Pula. It was wonderful meeting all of Sini's cousins (lol), and hearing about the history and current events of the area. We had a great day and he got us back to the ship in time!
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Posted On : 2022-10-22

Posted By : aichac797
We did a day trip with Sini around Istria. We had such a lovely day. Sini is a great guy, he took really good care of us he shared a lot about the places we visited and every place was so beautiful. Lunch with truffel pasta was also great and Sini was really relaxed and flexible adjusting to our pace so we could spend enough time everywhere. I can highly recommend booking a tour with Sini. Thanks for a great day.
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Posted On : 2021-05-26

Posted By : WeberStateU
Sini was perfect in every way! He managed our large group very well. Every detail was taken care of. We could not have had a better experience! He did all of the work---we sat back and enjoyed the adventure.
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Posted On : 2019-06-15

Posted By : Guðlaug Hildur B
Sini drove us through Istria and we got to see, taste and feel the countryside as well as beautiful seaside. What a wonderful place Istria. So vividly full of history since long before Christ! Sini is a real pro in his line of duty and we enjoyed his company very much.
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Posted On : 2018-06-27

Posted By : Anna H

Our guide was so knowledgeable about the colliseum and the whole town of Pula. He then took us Porec and showed us around there. He was prompt with the pick up and informed us also about the olive production in Croatia and many interesting facts about olive oil. Lunch of pig from the spit was absolutely delicious and succulent.

Posted By : Y5683GPfrankd
Wir haben mit Sini einen fantastischen Tagesausflug unternommen. Mit Abholung in Opatija und Besichtigung von Pula und Rovinj. Sini spricht hervorragend Deutsch und weiß viel über Land und Leute zu berichten. Die Führungen durch Pula und Rovinj waren sehr schön und informativ. Ausflüge mit Sini sind uneingeschränkt empfehlenswert.
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Posted On : 2022-09-04

Posted By : HGM8665
Wenn einen an Istrien nichts liegt und man nur WLAN, deutsche Speisekarten und eine freie Liege am Pool braucht, dann ist dieses Erlebnis sicher nicht naheliegend. Aber ohne eine solche Tour hätte man sich die Anreise in dieses sagenhafte Stückchen Erde auch sparen können. Wir waren begeistert über die vielen kleinen Geschichten und über die Gestalten, die dieser Landschaft ihren Charakter geben Sei es der Riese Dragonja, die Trapp-Familie, die geschlagene italienische Flotte, Sonja mit dem Kirchenschlüssel oder der leider verhinderte Marko, dessen ehemaliger Hof in Grožnjan heute noch aussieht wie ein geplatzter Farbenladen. Und auch die seltsame Welt der Trüffel hat sich uns ein wenig erschlossen... Unser weltgewandter Tourguide Sini ist mit seiner Aufgeschlossenheit und der perfekten Sprachkenntnis das ideale Bindeglied, ob nun am Lim Fjord, in der 'Wirtschaft' am Hof der Familie Štefanic oder beim Verkosten der Trüffelspezialitäten in Motovun. Kurzum, ein gelungener Tag, jeden Heller wert und er wird Istrien in unserem Gedächtnis prägen. Grüße an alle, die wir kennenlernen durften.
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Posted On : 2020-06-13