Pula
Istria’s largest city, Pula brims with historical sights, the grandest of which is certainly the Roman amphitheater. Locally known as the Arena, it is one of the best-preserved Roman Imperial buildings in the world, testifying to the turbulent and millennia-long history of this region. The enormous natural harbor has been used since early Antiquity, and it served as the main naval harbor of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy.
In the immediate vicinity of Pula are the Brijuni Islands, once among the most prestigious summer resorts visited by emperors, presidents, world leaders and stars of Hollywood’s golden age. For thousands of years Pula has been both a center of Istria and a gateway to it, one of the ideal starting points for an exploration of natural, cultural and culinary riches of the peninsula that is often described as an untouched, pristine version of Tuscany.
Pula has the world’s largest amphorae find site. More than two thousand amphorae were found in the waters around Pula, and a permanent exhibition of these unusual vessels, used in antiquity for storing and transporting olive oil, wine, salted fish and preserved fruit, can be visited in the underground passages of the Pula Amphitheatre. The renowned National Geographic Traveler recommended a visit to Istria and its capital of Pula to its readers, ranking them among the 10 most attractive travel destinations in the world.
