Nature Reserve
Baredine Cave
Poreč · Istria
QUICK INFORMATION
- CATEGORY
- Nature Reserve
- COUNTRY
- Croatia
- REGION
- Poreč · Istria
- DURATION
- 1 day
ABOUT THIS ATTRACTION
Five kilometres inland from Poreč, the Baredine Cave drops through five chambers to a depth of sixty metres — the only show cave on the Istrian coast and a strikingly different day out from the beaches. The guided route descends past formations named for what they resemble (the Babylon Tower, the Statue of the Virgin, the Leaning Tower of Pisa), past a small underground lake, to a chamber where the endemic olm — the blind, translucent cave salamander — swims in a protected pool. The cave keeps a constant fourteen degrees: it is the region’s most reliable escape from a hot afternoon.
HISTORY & BACKGROUND
The story behind it
The cave has been known to locals for generations — shepherds reportedly lowered their children on ropes to collect fertile soil from its depths — and was opened to visitors in 1995 after careful paths and lighting were installed. The star resident, the olm (čovječja ribica, “human fish”), is an amphibian found only in the Dinaric karst; Baredine is one of the few show caves in the world where visitors can reliably see one.
WHAT TO SEE
What to see here
WHY IT MATTERS
Why it matters
Baredine is the easy karst education — a real living cave, guided, safe and cool, close enough to Poreč to fill any hot afternoon without committing the whole day.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Before you go
THROUGH THE LENS
From the road
MAP & LOCATION
Baredine Cave
Baredine Cave, Poreč, Istria, Croatia
45.3169, 13.7122
MORE ATTRACTIONS
More to see in Poreč
FOOD & DRINK
Where to eat nearby
Konoba Dani — Istrian dishes near the basilica
Harbour-side konobas on the Decumanus — truffle pasta and fresh fish
Pizzerias and cafés along the harbour promenade
Agrotourisms in the surrounding villages — book ahead
HOTELS & STAYS
Where to stay nearby
Hotel Parentium — resort base on the peninsula
Old-town apartments near the basilica
Family hotels and residences along the Laguna coast
Campgrounds and mobile homes south of town
ITINERARIES
Day-by-day routes
NEARBY DESTINATIONS
Continue the journey
PART OF
Keep exploring
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