Croatia: parasidical beaches and towering cliffs

Kamenjak: Natural Park in Croatia

Hello again! As I promised, here I am bringing you a new entry with lots of information about Kamenjak, a Natural Park in Pula. It is a really big headland, full of cliffs, beaches and hiking routes which you can lose yourself amongst. It is close to Premantura, which is a small town situated right before the start of the headland. It took us around 40 minutes to get to Kamenjak from the centre of Pula.

How to get around Kamenjak

There are several ways of getting around the headland. You can go by foot, by bike or by car. Kamenjak is really big and we only had a day to visit it, so we decided to go around by car. If you decide to go by foot, it will take you a lot longer and to be honest, being under the burning sun didn't appeal to us, we just wanted to be in the water. Going around by bike or by foot is free, but going there by car costs 80 kunas. There are no problems parking. There are enough parking spaces for the whole park: before each beach, on the cliffs, near the bars, etc. Right at the entrance, they gave us a leaflet with information and a map where you could sea signs with all of the permitted parking areas, the hiking routes for walking and going on bike, the beaches, the farms, the fishing areas, the beach bars, etc. There are also more risky areas, since you have to take care at certain points since the current is really strong and you can't swim more than 100 metres away from the shore. And another important thing that you should know it that we should leave this natural park by 10pm, but don't worry, that is enough time to enjoy it. Later I will tell you the route that we took, step by step.

Pinizule

Kamenjak is enormous. There are hundreds of beaches to choose from, so my recommendation is that you choose a few randomly and spend a decent time at each of them. We started our route goig towards Uvala Pinizule. "Uvala" means beach in Croatian, and this was the first word that we learnt. We got there at 9.30am so it was basically empty. It is a pebbly beach, like 90 per cent of the beaches in Pula, so the best option is to look for a big and semi-flat stone and sunbathe there. Pinizule is a welcoming and small beach, although as the day progresses more people arrive. However, the atmosphere is very peaceful. Near to Pinizule there was a bar-restaurant where you can eat different dishes or have something to drink. The dishes aren't very varied, they are typical beach bar ones, but they are enough to satisfy your hunger. We prefered taking tupperware with us and eating on the beach, in a shady corner.

Polje

After having a few dips and enjoying them as if we were 10 years old again, we went to the second beach, which was very nearby; a 10 minute walk away so you didn't need to go by car. This beach is called Polje and it is as wild as the previous one. Here you can already see some little houses on the rocky landscape and in the sea there were some boats. The previous one was pure nature, there was nothing man-made there. I really liked both of them, but if I had to choose, I would have to go for the first one. We sat on the stones, which were quite uncomfortable to walk on, so my advice is to buy some beach shoes because flip-flops aren't comfy enough. In fact, I ended up killing my feet, they were covered in cuts. Buy beach shoes, even if you are only going to be there for a couple of days. In Polje we were swimming for a while and finally, we went to what would be the third and final beach of the day.

Plovanije

This final beach is called Plovanije and it was the one that I liked the most out of the three. We had to take the car to get there because it was in the middle of the headland, so it wasn't worth walking to in that heat. We parked nearby to a really pretty restaurant, decorated with flowers, which had wooden tables to eat at. From there, we walked to Plovanije. It is a small beach, the same style as the first one, but the water was a lot more blue and crystalline. Also, there were areas that you could jump off from. The water was so clear that when we were swimming underwater, it was incredible how clear it was to be able to see the bottom of the sea. You could also see the fishes swimming underneath us. They weren't scared nor did they try to escape, it was incredible seeing them up close. The temperature of the water was amazing of course, and the colour was amazing. As it was lunchtime, the beach was a bit busier than the previous two. We sunbathed a lot and I even had a nap.

The cliffs

After visiting these three beaches, we went to the place that we were most excited to visit. They are some cliffs which are at the top of the headland, so we took the car and parked right at the end. It was definitely the site where most people were, most likely because it is the best one. All this area is full of really high cliffs, which people jump from into the sea. I am scared of heights so I didn't dare to try it, the idea didn't even enter my head. There are lots of compilation videos on Youtube of the jumps, if you want to take a look and give yourself goosebumps. There are several hights to jump from and each time that someone jumps from the highest point, everyone claps, especially if someone does a somersault. The atmosphere is really cool. people of all kinds of ages are constantly jumping into the sea. The youngest kids were the ones who thought about it the least, they threw themselves off as if it were a slide. Everyone was wearing beach shoes, except for us, we were sticking out like a sore thumb. We even swimming near the cliffs at the end of the afternoon, we even went to an amazing cliff. It was really deep and we swum to the end of it, where there was a beach full of tiny little stones. We left the GoPro at home so there are no photos, you will have to go there to experience it for yourselves.

Safari Bar

The weather was amazing until suddenly some very dark clouds came which threatened a storm. We decided to get our stuff together and go to a bar which was really nearby. It is called Safari Bar and it is probably the most original bar I have ever been to. It isn't a conventional bar, because to start all of the bar is in an open area. It is enormous and each part is surrounded by plants and trees which really remind you of the rainforest. This is why it has that name. In the bar you can eat typical Croatian food, burgers, calamari... We went for a dish of green and black olives with little bits of cheese, the key to happiness.

We sat under a tree, on a wooden table and we enjoyed the sea views which were right in front of us. The location could not be better. After we went back around the bar since it had several areas. One of them had a ping-pong table, a slide and swings. They are really original because they are made of materials "which you'd find lying around the house", it is like living in the jungle. The floor is always covered with hay and you will always find yourself surrounded by leaves. You can even have your coffee in a cabin! Here are some photos, I loved it honestly! Also, as I told you, there were barely any people. We were very lucky. In short, it is bar for getting in contact with nature and enjoying yourself. If you go to Kamenjak, you have to go there no matter what. Of course, in the end the storm disappeared and it ended up being an amazing day.

After being in the bar, we headed home so we got the car and went back along the headland to the We went back to Pula, had dinner and then slept like logs because we were exhausted from the day, but what better feeling is there than that?

And that is the post for today! My final recommendation for Kamenjak is that you take a look at the map and make your own plan. In the end it is the most relaxing option. There are so many more beaches along the whole headland, caves and corners which I am sure are worth visiting. The best thing about a trip is doing it in your own way, so that you enjoy it as much as possible and remember it. After this magical day in this natural park, the only thing that I am feeling now is the urge to go back there and get in the sea, enjoy the beaches, the food and the landscape. In short, my first time in Croatia more than exceeded my expectations, I 100 percent recommend it. I hope that you have enjoyed the photos and I'll see you for the next post.

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