Istrian-Italian Travel

08/21/2024

Exploring the former President of Yugoslavia's Island Retreat.

Exploring the big island of Brijuni (Otok Veliki Brijun) off the coast of P**a, Croatia on the Istrian peninsula. Spend the day with wild peacocks and other ...

06/23/2024

Our kind of shop. We’ll take one of each please!

06/20/2024

We have a few tickets left for the second seating of our Wine+Food workshop. We will be opening Istrian wines and teaching everyone how to properly test olive oil for purity. Come join us at the Charleston Wine + Food offices Thursday, June 27. Živjeli!

Join hosts Christy Irvin and Richie Swann from Istrian-Italian Travel as they transport you to the vineyards and olive groves of the Istrian region of Croatia for an experience that just so happens to align with Croatia’s 33rd birthday which is on June 25. At this beverage workshop guests will tas...

12/04/2023

Dinosaurs!! 🦖 Several islands of Brijuni have fossilized footprints and bones that date from the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods. A must stop for young explorers to imagine a time when carnivorous Therapods roamed the islands.

12/03/2023

Off the coast of on the large island of Brijuni (pronounced bree-yoo-nee), stands one of the oldest olive trees on the Mediterranean. Stara maslina is estimated to be around 1600 years old. It reminds us of the Angel Oak in our hometown of Charleston, SC.

11/28/2023

A GOOD RULE OF THUMB: “Mild oils are best paired with fish, salads and lighter fare; while spicier oils pair better with stronger dishes.” -Istria Tourist Board

11/17/2023

One of the biggest reasons we love Istria is the olive oil. In this region, olive oil is a lifestyle.

We love sitting down to a nice dinner and finding multiple blends on the table with varying levels of strength; or, having lunch by the sea and the server brings you the good stuff in the dark bottle that they keep away from the hot sun.

Locals have their favorite cuvées and not all of them can be purchased in a store. Sometimes you just have to know someone to have the experience.

Last June, I was talking to a man in Rovinj and he noticed my excitement about the olive oil culture. He offered me a bottle of his personal stash which he produced using an old unfiltered technique. “Please enjoy,” he said, “but do not tell me what you think.” Gestures like this are what make Croatia truly special.

08/27/2023

The season may be coming to an end, but we think the best days are ahead. People ask us all the time, “When is the best time to visit Croatia? and Where should we go?”. Without a doubt, it is September and October in Istria.

01/11/2023

Beautiful day at Kabola Winery in Buje. Our guests were super happy! We still have open dates for Spring and Fall tours.

SIDE NOTE: This beautiful estate was featured in starring Morgan Freeman, Samuel L. Jackson, Ryan Reynolds, and Salma Hayek.

01/05/2023

It doesn’t get any better than watching the sunset while dining seaside at La Puntalina. We’ve been coming here for years and it never gets old. The food, the staff, and the views all come together perfectly for a magical evening.

01/02/2023

What’s on the horizon for you in 2023? We are gearing up for Spring tours in May and early June. Contact us today to secure your travel dates.

03/27/2022

Church of St. Hieronymous, Hum, Croatia. Hum is known for being the smallest city in the world with 30 inhabitants and 2 streets. This single-nave Romanesque church with a semi-circular apse was built in the 12th century and restored in 1904. It houses three priceless frescoes: Annunciation, The Visit of the Wise Men and the Passion of Christ from the 12th Century. The frescoes were painted under the significant influence of the style painting and Glagolitic graffiti from the period between the 12th-16th centuries.

03/27/2022

We invite you to learn Hrvatski (Croatian) with us. And if you notice an error, please offer your corrections in the comments.
                         

03/25/2022

The light strikes the medieval architecture of the Church of Blessed Virgin Mary’s Birth in the old town of Labin, Croatia. A three-nave church built in 1336 on the foundations of the small church from the 11th century.

03/25/2022

Our previous word was “sretan” (Croatian for “happy”). The antonym for sretan is žalostan, which translates to sad. It’s ok to be sad. We should welcome all of the emotions of life. It is the gift of being human. In the words of the great Jim Valvano, “To me there are three things we all should do every day…Number one is laugh. You should laugh every day. Number two is think. You should spend some time in thought. And number three, you should have your emotions move to tears…Think about it, if you laugh, you think, and you cry, that’s a full day. That’s a heck of a day. You do that seven days a week, you’re going to have something special.”

03/22/2022

One of Istria’s finest offerings is the Meneghetti Wine Hotel & Winery - where you can enjoy the Istrian lifestyle at the highest level on this peaceful estate.

03/22/2022

We invite you to learn Hrvatski with us. And if you notice an error, please offer your corrections in the comments.