A Week in Rovinj, Croatia
A narrow alley in Old Town Rovinj, Croatia
Spending a Week Cycling, Hiking, Kayaking, and Windsurfing at a Yoga Retreat in the Cozy Town of Rovinj
Along the west coast of the Istrian Peninsula on the Adriatic Sea, you will find the quaint and cozy town of Rovinj. The Old Town with its cobblestone streets, markets, restaurants, and cafés has a welcoming atmosphere.
The area offers a myriad of activities, dining or relaxing at the beaches. We spent a week in this little gem of a town during a workaway stay.
Exploring Rovinj by bike
Flying to Pula
We flew Ryan Air from Brussels to Pula, Croatia. Another first for us. Welcome to super discount airlines. It was an experience. Not devastating but certainly interesting. Everything comes at an extra cost including the lottery tickets we were offered inflight.
Car Rental
A red VW Up was our rental for the week, booked with Expedia at $100.00 for a week. Please note our usual insurance coverage via MasterCard did not work here and we had to pay an additional fee.
I do not have the exact amount but it came close to the actual rental cost. This has been the only country so far on our trip where this has been an issue.
Harbor front in Old Town Rovinj, Croatia
Using our GPS, we found our hosts at the Five Elements Retreat Centre in Rovinj about 45 minutes away from the airport. We had not expected the super modern highways. We received a warm welcome from Christopher and Katie, two other workawayers, and Marin and Natali, our hosts.
Five Elements in Rovinj
The plan was to stay with the Five Elements gang for a week of cultural exchange and to help with a project for next summer season.
Marin and Natali showed us the area and we were privileged to try a variety of activities including windsurfing, biking, kayaking, hiking, and yoga.
We were treated to tasty Croatian specialties and in turn, each of us workawayers shared our talents and passions. Chris is a videographer, Katie is a graphic designer, and I, take one guess, captured a few images. Di helped with strategic planning and proofreading of a book project. We made an awesome team.
Natali at Five Elements Yoga Retreat in Rovinj, Croatia
Explore Rovinj Old Town
Wandering the narrow streets with colorful houses, shops, and cafés is a must-do in Rovinj. With a population of just over 14,000, everything is small-scale here and nothing seems to be over the top.
We visited Rovinj in late September in the off-season and the temperatures were hovering around a pleasant 20 degrees.
Locals and tourists were milling around on the harbor front, in the Old Town, and at the market but it never felt crowded. With its towering steeple, the church of St. Euphemia is located in the center on top of the hill.
Learning to windsurf in Rovinj
Windsurfing
During our week with Five Elements Guesthouse in Rovinj, Croatia, Marin, and Natali introduced us to windsurfing. To be more specific, Di was introduced to the sport.
By the time it was my turn, the wind had completely died down. No problem as I still had plenty of fun in the kayak with the camera. Chris was in front with the video camera and I was in the back.
Staying with an outfit such as Five Elements Retreat center is a great idea as they provide access to all the equipment needed and you get to try a new sport. We had a nice wrap-up to the day around the evening fire with sangria and a bit of drum and guitar.
Kayaking
A definite highlight from our week in Rovinj was our late afternoon and early evening sea kayaking trip to one of the islands off the coast.
It was nerve-racking to bring all my camera gear along. Especially after Katie's kayak flipped two minutes in! We did have a dry bag and all the electronic gear, including Katie's iPhone, was securely stored.
Once away from the shore, we settled into a good rhythm in the kayak and again marveled at the path we are on. After arriving at the island and a short hike we found a rocky beach where we could enjoy the late afternoon sun and dive in from the cliffs.
Kayak tour at sunset
The warm salt water was invigorating. Chris kept asking for one more dive as he was filming me from all angles with his Go-Pro. Make sure to check Chris’ video below.
The shadows were drawing closer as we made our way back to the kayaks and set out for the mainland. As we paddled back to shore we were rewarded with a beautiful sunset.
Sunset at Lim Fjord, Rovinj
Hiking
There is a fjord near Rovinj which bears a name remarkably similar to the name of the body of water near my hometown of Lemvig in Denmark. Here in Croatia, the fjord is called the Lim Fjord or Limski Fjord. The fjord in my hometown is Limfjorden.
According to Wikipedia, neither of them is actually fjords but that may be too technical for this post. Before enjoying the views at the Lim Fjord we hiked and bushwacked our way to a couple of caves hidden in the hills.
Calm winds made windsurfing tricky
Yoga Retreat in Rovinj
Based on the five great nature-made elements, fire, water, air, earth, and spirit you can do yoga, meditate and enjoy great food in Rovinj. At Five Elements Retreat Center, they combine these with the other activities mentioned in this post.
Cycling
A bike trip around Rovinj wrapped up our week of adventures with Marin, Natali, Katie, and Christopher. Biking along the perimeter of the city we saw many gems we wished we had explored earlier in the week. All the more reason to come back someday.
Check out the video below, created by Christopher Yu during our stay. You may catch a glimpse of the two of us.
The end of another wonderful day in Rovinj
Rovinj - Final Thoughts
Rovinj was a very pleasant surprise for us. Being part of a creative team at Five Elements Guesthouse made it all the more fun. We have been told the northern parts of Croatia are not as touristy as the South with the Dubrovnik region being the main draw.
We certainly felt a very relaxed vibe here. Thanks to Marin, Natali, Katie, and Chris for another unforgettable adventure.
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The photos in this article are made using a Fujifilm X-Pro2. Lenses: XF 14mm f/2.8 R - XF 23mm f/1.4 R - XF 35mm f/1.4 R - XF 90mm f/2 R WR (links to my camera and lens reviews). Editing was done in Lightroom. I used Fujifilm film simulations in some of the photos.
