We spent two nights in the Studio Ritz on our trip to Rovinj and are very glad we did so.

Picking up the key involved the sort of shenanigans we’re starting to expect from the continent – arranging a time to meet someone instead of someone being on site – this is no chain hotel after all!

In our case we came over from Venice on the ferry so arrived after 8:30pm and therefore arranged to meet the owner at the bar he also owned. We managed to navigate through the cobbled streets of the Old Town in the dark to the bar and asked for the owner, and after a short wait one of the staff told us that he’d take us to him. We then proceeded to walk back through the Old Town, and the owner met us at the apartment.

First of all it’s down a quiet side street. The cobbled streets in the Old Town are very narrow, too narrow for cars, resulting in very little street noise. The apartment is on a narrower side street – making for an even quieter stay.

Upon entry you’re immediately impressed with the size of the room – not one of your 30 sqm (100 sq ft) studio apartments here! The layout also contributes to the feeling of space – a kitchenette to your right as you enter, and the massive bed against the far wall (more on that later). Also at the front door was a stand with an umbrella – much appreciated the following day when it rained for close to 24 hours straight.

The bathroom was very well appointed with a rain forest shower head and smart finishings. Bright lighting and a bidet system completed a well appointed washing area.

The bed was the best part of the room and the stay. It was a little higher off the ground than I’m used to, but it was firm yet had some give that made it divine to sleep on. We were raving about the bed for days afterwards.

The local stores are literally a two minute walk from the front door, and the fridge and cooking capability gives a great alternative to the myriad of restaurants nearby.

Checking out was interesting – we were instructed to make payment and drop the keys off to the lady in the art shop next to the owner’s bar.

Pros & Cons

Would I Go Back?

If I went back to Rovinj I wouldn’t hesitate to stay here again, the bed alone makes it worth the while.

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We’d arranged our lunch at La Puntulina through the Istria Tourism Board and had scouted the restaurant location the night before on our way to our hotel – even in the evening light we could tell there was something special about the location, perched precariously on the rocks on a headland with unparalleled views across the harbour to Red Island. We’d seen pictures of tables and chairs literally inches from the water but, with the inclement weather, the outdoor eating area had been cleared. Ange was most disappointed, believing that if given half a chance I would end up in the water.

We deposit our umbrellas in a handy receptacle at the front of the restaurant and are shown to our table. We’ve got views straight out over the water and during our meal are treated to a view of various yachts, fishing boats and ferries plying the waters – which was surprising considering the bad weather.

To the meal! We start with an amuse-bouche of sardine and olive on bruschetta which sets the tone – from what I know about Croatian food, it’s going to heavily influenced by Italian cuisine.

The wine that accompanies the first course (the Kozlović Malvazija) is very much like a NZ Sauvignon Blanc to my palate – fruity and clean.

The starter is a variety of fish served different ways – salmon, pureed white fish, a delicate dollop of fried fish and shrimps accompanied with mini cherry tomatoes and rocket.

The Italian influence is proved by the pasta course – a handmade thick noodle called Pljukanci accompanying shrimps and scampi. We move on to the Radovan Malvazija Istarska – another local white, which is not quite as light on the palate, but a good match for the pasta.

The main comes and we see why La Puntulina has such a good reputation (4.8/5 reviews) – there are two different servings of battered fish. One is delicate and flaky, but the other has an olive crust and the saltiness of the olive matches the fish to perfection. Delicious! They’re accompanied by three different sauces – a sweet chilli, a pesto and a pink concoction which I’m not quite able to nail down.

But the dessert is where we are really wowed: I’m not sure what they call it, but it is a deconstructed mille feuille with a yellow custard creme and covered in berries. I try the “look at all that fruit – it must be healthy” line, but it is really decadence on a plate. Ange asks why the Italian/Croatian cuisine would have such an obviously French pastry. I tell her that the Croats served in Napolean’s army so maybe they spread it that way.

La Puntulina is not a cheap place to eat, and in the summer it becomes impossible to get into, but from our experience, it’s well worth the extra effort to get in and well worth the extra Euros for the quality. A brilliant dining experience that we both enjoy immensely.

Ange and I collect our umbrellas and head back outside. The rain has stopped and we make our way back home, avoiding puddles and taking care on the slick cobbles.

La Puntulina and the Istra Tourism Board supported our Summer 2017: UNESCO tour by providing lunch and wine. All opinions remain our own.

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We arrive by ferry – and are surprised at it docking on the north side of Rovinj. Google Maps had assured us that the ferry port was on the south side and so we had routed our onward journey accordingly. I go so far as to ask the staff on the ferry to be sure and the look of disdain indicates no further movement of the ship should be expected. 

We decide a taxi may be in order so approach a cluster of drivers nearby. But the guy we speak to says the address we give him is in the old town, and so off limits to taxis. I figure if a taxi driver is passing up a fare it’s too close or as he says, inaccessible, so we restart google maps to navigate us a route and head off.

We’re picking up the key to our accommodation from a bar which sounds kind of dodgy, but apparently the bar owner also runs the hotel, and we’re arriving too late for them to meet us at the room, so fair enough. 

The first thing that strikes me about Rovinj is that it’s tiny, its only an extra 5-10 minutes from where the ferry actually stopped to where we thought it would stop, and in that time we’ve walked about half the circumference of the town. 

We ask for the owner at the bar and the barman says that they’re not there but he can ring them. He talks and talks and talks and then wanders off, chatting on the phone.

We’re standing there for five minutes looking at each other and when he wanders past again I collar him. “Excuse me, whats going on?”. 

He grins and says, “I have the key, follow me”. I’m a bit relieved because the hotel doesn’t appear on Google Maps, and so I hadn’t wanted to have to find it alone. The address from the booking confirmation is for a street that exists but nothing seems to match the hotel – a personal guide therefore sounded perfect.

The walk to the hotel is picturesque: we complete a circuit of the town with our guide pointing out a few of the landmarks. The restaurant we’re having lunch at the following day gets high praise which is a good sign. 

After checking in we head off back to the harbour for dinner. Unlike most Italian cities it looks like they don’t eat this late: it’s 10pm and a lot of the eateries are closed or closing.

We stop off at one restaurant to peruse the menu board. Ange frowns and points out that the menus all look the same. I glance over and it looks like she’s right. One of the waiters comes over, presumably to answer any questions we may have, but he doesn’t say anything and just lurks awkwardly.

We continue along the harbour until the last eatery, Aqua2, catches our eye. A quick squizz at the menu prompts a waitress to come over and she regales us with the specials. Enough appeals to warrant sitting down, and over menus the waitress continues with her recommendations. It’s pleasant enough: certainly not the hard sell. The closest she gets to that is bringing over a platter of the fish of the day. I’m a fan of seafood, but I don’t know how long my fishy friends have been staring at people from the their platter, so I pass and have the mixed grill instead. Ange has the risotto.

We had passed a number of gelateria on the way through the restaurant section of town and decided to stop off on the way back to partake in the local ice cream. While I am up at the counter ordering, one of the local elder gentlemen has decided that Ange needs a flower, plucked from a nearby bush. I pretend to be upset that a stranger is giving Ange a flower, so he laughs and gives me one too. We all grin and Ange and I wander off back towards our room.

Day One

The next day dawns wet and doesn’t stop raining all day. I nip out first thing with an umbrella to go to the grocery store which I was told was two minutes walk from the front door. I initially mistake the fish market as the entrance to the grocery store, but even before my morning coffee I figure out my mistake and find the correct door.

We’ve got a booking at La Puntalina at lunchtime, so catch up on some work until then, listening to the rain on the cobbled streets and alleys outside.

After lunch the rain pauses, so we head back to our room the long way and enjoy the sights while we can. We prepare for dinner in the evening by collecting all our local currency, 118 Croatian Kuna. Ideally we will be able to spend all that for our last evening meal and exhaust our supply of Kuna. We head out to the port and its restaurants with the goal of spending exactly 59 kuna each on dinner (the exchange rate for the Euro was about 7.5 Kuna to a Euro).

Sitting on the water beside the port with views out to the island is a pizza and grill restaurant called the Copacobana. After singing the song to ourselves we check out the menu outside. There are a couple of dishes for 59 Kuna so we figure we can have one of them each and come out of Croatia with minimal local currency. Success!

We take a seat inside and then take a look through the menu. A huge section of the menu is devoted to desserts and their siren song calls from the plastic laminated pages. We tell ourselves we’ll order something from the dessert menu and split the bill so we use up our Kuna and then pay the rest on the credit card. the flaw in our plan is not running it past the waitress before ordering.

This only becomes apparent when we go to pay the bill and are told that we can only pay all cash or all credit card – not a combination. Bugger!

Day Two

In the morning we get up very early for the ferry back to Venice. We arrive at the docks at 6am and are the first onboard. We’d sacrificed sleep in order to be able to react quickly should the ferry’s starting point be elsewhere from where we got off – a bit paranoid I guess, but better to be safe than having to pay for additional tickets!

We get good seats by the window and are just thinking that we should be underway when a frantic woman rushes up to the gangplank outside and starts beckoning to someone down the road. We’re curious as to whether the staff will allow this late-comer onboard when a huge line of teenaged girls come into view. Apparently someone overslept and a school group has only just made the sailing.

After checking everyone in, the table with the laptop on it gets folded away and placed in a bag and in a jiffy we’ve cast off from shore and are heading up the coast to Poreč (amusingly pronounced “porridge”) for passport inspections. The dash across the Adriatic is less bumpy than our first and in no time at all we’re cruising past Lido into Venice’s lagoon.

We listen as the trip across to Venice consists of a sales pitch to buy various things from the ferry company and look bemused at each other as they sell Vaporetta tickets for €27 (€20 at the machines) and maps for €10(free at most hotels). The selling continues with the promise of accompanied walking tour to St Mark’s Square, a tourist meal (“it won’t be the best meal you ever had”) and a shared gondola ride. Ange sums it up well – if you wanted to do Venice in a day it’s not a terrible way of cramming everything into the time available, but they just don’t know that they’re getting ripped off. Ah well.

Would I Go Back?

Rovinj was lovely – a beautiful old town with flash new hotels nestled in trees across the harbour. I’m happy I went but wouldn’t go back – there’s not enough to draw me back for a return visit when there’s so much more of the world to explore.

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