Poreč old town walking tour: from the Decumanus to the harbour

Poreč old town walking tour: route, length and start

The Istria Tourist Board describes a circular walk through Poreč old town that is 2,500 metres long. How long it takes depends, according to the tourist board, on how long you spend at each monument and on how crowded it is. The stops below follow this route and the order of its streets.

The walk starts and ends at Trg Slobode, Freedom Square, on the edge of the old town. From Villa Matea in the north of Poreč it is a 15 to 20 minute walk, so you can leave the car behind. If you do drive into town, everything you need is in our guide to parking in Poreč.

• Trg Slobode: the Church of Our Lady of the Angels, with the entrance to the old town opposite
• The Decumanus: Pentagonal Tower, Gothic Palace, Sinčić Palace, Zuccato Palace
• The Euphrasian Basilica and the Canonica, then Trg Marafor with the temple remains and the Romanesque House
• Ulica sv. Maura and Ribarski trg back to the Pentagonal Tower, then on to Narodni trg with the theatre and the Round Tower
• The waterfront (Obala maršala Tita) with a view of Sveti Nikola island
• Obala Matka Laginje with the Istrian Assembly Hall
• Obala dr. Ante Šonje on Peškera Bay with the North Tower, back to Trg Slobode

Trg Slobode and the Decumanus: town gate, Pentagonal Tower and palaces

On Trg Slobode stands the Church of Our Lady of the Angels (Gospa od Anđela), which the Poreč tourist board describes as a Baroque building from 1770 on the remains of a Romanesque church. Inside are Baroque paintings, one of which originally came from Poreč Cathedral. The marble Altar of the Holy Cross from 1727 is here too; it was made for the Franciscan church that is now the Istrian Assembly Hall, which you will see at the end of the walk.

Opposite the church you enter the old town. This is where the east town gate stood. It has not survived, but one of its sides was reinforced to form the Pentagonal Tower. At one time a moat in front of the east walls turned Poreč into an island; the bridge to the gate was found during works in 2005 and now lies under the paving. The Pentagonal Tower was built in 1447 under podestà Nicolò Lion, on an earlier medieval tower that itself stood on ancient remains. Since research in the late 20th century, all three building layers have been left visible. Look for the relief of Saint Mark near the top of the outer wall: it names the builders, Ivan and Lazar de Pari. The tower now houses a restaurant, and according to the Istria Tourist Board you can climb it.

The Decumanus is the longest street in the old town, and wealthy families built their palaces along it. Besides the Gothic Palace from 1473 at number 5, the tourist board lists well-preserved palaces at numbers 10, 15 and 30. At number 9 stands the Sinčić Palace, which the tourist board calls the largest and most important Baroque palace in town, built in the 18th century at the initiative of Antonio Sincich. Since 1952 it has housed the Poreč Heritage Museum (Zavičajni muzej Poreštine); according to the museum, its permanent exhibition is currently closed while the building is renovated and a new exhibition is prepared. On the corner of the Decumanus and the Cardo stands the Zuccato Palace, now a gallery.

Euphrasian Basilica, Trg Marafor and the Romanesque House

At the junction with Ulica sv. Eleuterija, turn right to the Euphrasian Basilica. The 6th-century episcopal complex has been on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 1997; we describe its mosaics, baptistery and bishop's palace in things to do in Poreč. Inside the basilica there is also a marble ciborium, a canopy over the altar, commissioned by Bishop Otto in 1277. At the same address stands the Canonica from 1251, which the tourist board describes as the oldest Romanesque house in Poreč with its original exterior intact. The construction date is recorded next to the original stone portal, and the parish priests of Poreč still live and work here.

Follow Eufrazijeva ulica past Park Jurja Dobrile and turn left onto Trg Marafor, the ancient forum. The name probably comes from Mars; another reading is forum maximus, the large square. Written sources do not say which gods the temples were dedicated to, but they do record the building of the harbour and the renovation of a temple in the 1st century under Titus Abudius Verus, a vice-admiral of the Ravenna fleet. What survives are column fragments of the smaller temple, allegedly dedicated to Neptune, and parts of three monumental walls and a piece of the gable of the supposed Temple of Mars. You can see part of the ancient paving on the north-west side of the square and, according to the tourist board, inside the Town Library and the Children's Library on the square.

On the square, at Marafor 1, stands the Romanesque House from the 13th century. The double window on the main facade is typically Romanesque; the well-known wooden balcony was probably only added in the 18th century. Until the Second World War the house was part of a residential block that was destroyed by bombing and never rebuilt, which is why it now stands alone. Its exhibition on living culture in Poreč in the 19th and 20th centuries covers about 70 square metres on three floors. According to the tourist board it has been open on weekdays from 11 am to 2 pm since 27 January 2025; check before you go.

Through the lanes to Narodni trg and the Round Tower

Head back along the Decumanus to Ulica sv. Eleuterija, then turn right into Ulica sv. Maura. At number 16 stands the House of Two Saints (Kuća dvaju svetaca), a simple Renaissance building from the 15th century. It is named after two Romanesque reliefs of saints on its facade, probably taken from another building, perhaps the former monastery on nearby Trg Frana Supila. On that small square, which locals call Predol, the only thing that catches the eye at first is a little Gothic house. The interesting part lies under the paving: in the late 20th century the foundations of a medieval monastery were found here, built over an ancient house with mosaic floors.

Trg Matije Gupca is worth a short detour. In Venetian times it was called Piazza dei signori, and the south town gate once led from here to the harbour. A row of Gothic and Baroque palaces survives; the west side of the square was destroyed, mainly by bombing in the Second World War, and is now a park.

Via Ribarski trg and Ulica Franje Glavinića you come back to the Decumanus and the Pentagonal Tower. Behind it, Ulica Vladimira Nazora leads to Narodni trg. The theatre here was built in 1887 as the Teatro Giuseppe Verdi; its facade has largely kept its original look, and today the building is used by the Open University (Pučko otvoreno učilište). A little further on is the Town Hall from 1910, designed by the Trieste architect Arduino Berlam, with its original wooden visitors' loggia. On Narodni trg rises the Round Tower, built in 1475 on the orders of podestà Pietro de Mula. Inside, the loopholes and the steep original stone stairs survive, and the top is now a terrace with a bar.

Waterfront and harbour: Sveti Nikola, Assembly Hall and North Tower

From Narodni trg, head to the waterfront, Obala maršala Tita. The harbour is closed off by the island of Sveti Nikola; according to the Istria Tourist Board a small boat runs there in summer, and according to the hotel operator on the island the crossing from the waterfront pier takes about five minutes. On the west side of the island the Venetians built a 15-metre lighthouse in 1403, according to the Istria Tourist Board the tallest on the eastern Adriatic coast at the time. For centuries a fire of wood from the island burned at the top; in the 17th century it was replaced by a large lantern. Where to swim on the island and around Poreč is covered in our beach guide.

The waterfront continues to Obala Matka Laginje and the Istrian Assembly Hall (Istarska sabornica, in Italian Dieta istriana). It was once the Gothic church and monastery of St Francis, built on the foundations of a 5th-century church of St Thomas; wall remains and small mosaic fragments are on show on the ground floor under a glass staircase. The church was deconsecrated in 1806 under Napoleon, and Marquis Francesco Polesini later had it divided into two floors. From 1861 the Istrian regional assembly met upstairs, while the ground floor became a wine cellar whose built-in, glass-lined barrels survive to this day. The hall's ceiling, 25 metres long and 9 metres wide, has stuccowork from 1751 by a master from Bologna and frescoes by the Venetian painter Angelo Venturini. Today it hosts exhibitions, including the Poreč Annale, which the tourist board calls the longest-running art exhibition in Croatia.

On Obala dr. Ante Šonje, looking out over Peškera Bay, are the remains of the North Tower, built in 1473 under podestà Francesco Bondulmier. The tower is a ruin awaiting research and renovation; you can make out gun ports and loopholes on its outer walls. A section of the old town wall joins it on the south side, and to the north you can see the arched passage that once held a town gate. Via Tesline ulica and Ulica Pina Budicina you return to Trg Slobode.

A short history of Poreč old town

Much of what you see on the walk belongs to one of these periods. The dates come from the Poreč tourist board.

• 6th and 4th centuries BC: Ancient Greek historians and geographers mention a small fishing village.
• Around the 2nd century BC: The Romans build a settlement that, with its natural harbour, becomes a military camp. The street grid with the Cardo Maximus and the Decumanus and the forum, today's Marafor, date from this era.
• First half of the 1st century AD: Town status and the name Colonia Iulia Parentium.
• 3rd to 6th centuries: The first bishop, Saint Maurus, dies a martyr and becomes the town's patron saint. In the 4th century an early Christian church is built where he died, and in the 6th century the basilica of Euphrasius. Byzantine rule begins in 539.
• 12th and 13th centuries: Poreč has a town government and, around 1250, its first statute. The Canonica and the Romanesque House are built, and the town walls are extensively rebuilt on their ancient foundations.
• 1267 to 1797: Venice rules for about 500 years. Facing the threat of Ottoman invasion, the towers go up in the 15th century: the Pentagonal Tower in 1447, the North Tower in 1473 and the Round Tower in 1475.
• 1797 to 1918: After the fall of Venice, Austrian rule and a short period of French rule under Napoleon alternate, and then Poreč belongs to Austria until 1918. From 1861 it is the capital of Istria and the seat of the Istrian Parliament.
• 1920 to 1943: Italy rules the town.
• Second World War: Bombing destroys parts of the old town, such as the block next to the Romanesque House and the west side of Trg Matije Gupca.
• From 1943: Poreč and the rest of Istria become part of Croatia. Since 1997 the Episcopal Complex of the Euphrasian Basilica has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

When Poreč old town is quieter

There are no figures on crowds by time of day. The Istria Tourist Board does say when it gets busy in summer: in the evenings and on cloudy days, especially along the waterfront and the Decumanus. If you want fewer crowds in summer, avoid the evening and overcast days. Visitor numbers also change a lot through the year: in August 2025 the Poreč tourist board counted 847,099 overnight stays, in October 2025 143,965, about one sixth. More in our guide to Poreč weather and the best time to visit.

From Villa Matea you reach Trg Slobode on foot in 15 to 20 minutes, so you can set off at any time of day without moving the car. The house in the north of Poreč has three holiday apartments with a kitchen, air conditioning and free parking in the enclosed courtyard: see the apartments. For where to eat after your walk, see our guide to food and drink in Poreč.