Istria Food & Wine Tours
Istria is the heart-shaped peninsula where Croatia eats best: white truffles from the Motovun woods, Malvazija and Teran from the hills above Buje and Momjan, olive oil that keeps winning the world rankings, and Venetian fishing towns where the scampi come off the boat in front of you. This is our Istria hub. Below are the top-rated food and wine experiences in the region, then our pages for truffle hunting, wine tours, olive oil tastings, Rovinj food tours and Pula cooking classes.
Our picks: the food and wine experiences to book in Istria
A short, hand-picked spread across truffle hunts, family wineries and farm-to-table tables, shown live from GetYourGuide with current prices and reviews.
The big three: truffle hunting with dogs in the Mirna valley; wine tours for Malvazija, Teran and Momjan Muscat; olive oil tastings at the mills around Vodnjan and Buje.
On the coast: Rovinj food tours and Pula market tours and cooking classes.
The table: fuži and pljukanci pasta, pršut dried in the bora wind, boškarin ox, maneštra soup, sheep cheese, fritule, and a glass of biska, the mistletoe brandy.
Food and wine in Istria: what to know
Istria spent centuries under Venice and a few decades under Italy, and its kitchen shows it: hand-rolled fuži pasta, prosciutto cured in the wind rather than smoke, polenta, and truffles that the Italians across the border in Friuli quietly buy. The interior is hill towns and oak woods, Motovun, Grožnjan, Buzet, Oprtalj, where the truffles and the best wines come from; the coast is Rovinj, Poreč, Pula and Novigrad, where the seafood is. Everything is within an hour of everything else, which is why a food trip to Istria works as a base-and-day-trips holiday rather than a tour.
Truffles
White truffles grow in the Mirna valley around Motovun, Livade and Buzet from September to January, with the peak in October and November; black summer truffles fill the rest of the year. Hunts run with lagotto and mixed-breed dogs and end at a table with fuži or scrambled eggs shaved with what you found. Livade holds the record for the largest white truffle ever found, 1.31 kilograms in 1999. See Istria truffle hunting.
Wine
Malvazija istarska is the white, dry and saline, and the wine most of Istria makes; Teran is the red, dark and acidic, at home on the red soil of the Buje and Karst hills; Momjan Muscat is the sweet wine of one village. Tastings cluster around Momjan, Buje, Brtonigla and Vižinada, and Poreč hosts the Vinistra wine fair each May. See Istria wine tours.
Olive oil
Flos Olei has named Istria the best olive oil region in the world nine times. The mills around Vodnjan, the olive capital, and Buje press Buža, Istarska bjelica and Leccino olives in October and November; tastings run year-round. See Istria olive oil tours.
Rovinj and Pula
Rovinj is the Venetian fishing town, all campanile and batana boats, with the region’s best food tours; Pula has the Roman arena, a 1903 iron market hall and a cooking class that starts there. See Rovinj food tours and Pula food tours and cooking classes.
When to come
Wild asparagus in March and April, new Malvazija and the Vinistra fair in May, the sea from June, harvest in September with Buzet’s giant truffle omelette on the second weekend, truffles and olive harvest in October and November. July and August are hot and full on the coast but calm inland. Much of the coast closes from November to March; the truffle towns do not.
Read our Istria guides
Go deeper on the region, from when the truffles run to what the wines taste like:
- The Best Truffle Hunting in Istria: Where to Go, When, and Which Hunt to Book Istrian truffle hunts compared: a family hunt above Motovun with a truffle meal, a ninety-minute walk from Livade, the top Viator option,…
- Croatian Wine Grapes Explained: Malvazija, Teran, Plavac Mali, Pošip and More Croatia's wine grapes explained: Malvazija and Teran in Istria, Plavac Mali, Pošip, Grk and Babić in Dalmatia, Graševina in Slavonia, what they…
- Istria Food & Wine Calendar: Truffles, Wine and Olive Oil, Month by Month A month-by-month guide to eating and drinking in Istria, Croatia: white truffle season, the Malvazija harvest, new olive oil, wild asparagus, and…
Read next: 3 days in Istria: truffles, wine & olive oil · Croatia food & wine road trip: Istria to Dalmatia
How we choose
We list only experiences with a strong rating over a meaningful number of reviews and free cancellation where available, and we favour small-group and family-run hosts. FindEatLocal earns a commission when you book through GetYourGuide or Viator links on this page; it doesn’t change the price you pay. More about how we choose.
FAQ about Istria Food & Wine Tours
Frequently asked questions
Why Istria?
Because it has everything Tuscany has, truffles, wine, olive oil, hill towns, at a third of the price and a fraction of the crowds, and the sea is twenty minutes from any of it.
What is Istria known for in food?
Truffles, Malvazija and Teran wines, olive oil, pršut, fuži pasta, boškarin beef and Adriatic scampi.
When is truffle season in Istria?
White truffles from September to January, peaking in October and November; black summer truffles from May to September.
Where should I stay in Istria for food?
Rovinj or Poreč for the coast and the food tours, Motovun or Buje for the truffles and wine. Nothing is more than an hour from anything else.
Is Istria similar to Tuscany?
In its hill towns, truffles, wine and oil, yes; it is smaller, cheaper and quieter, and it has a coastline twenty minutes away.
How do I get to Istria?
Pula airport, or by road from Trieste, Ljubljana or Zagreb in one and a half to three hours. Tours collect from Rovinj, Poreč and Pula.