Parenzana: a three-day trip departing from the Gulf of Trieste, the North-East corner of Italy, discovering Istria in its countryside, through vineyards and forests, and on the endless coastline, between rock shores and historic cities by the sea. The name of the route comes from “Parenzo” the Italian naming of the destination of Poreč at the end of the trip.

The ride runs along the route of an old Austro-Hungarian railway, opened in 1902 and abandoned in 1935, which connected Trieste (IT) to Poreč (HR). This means that the path is always smooth, slopes always less than 5%, making large curves around the hills.
The modernization in the last half of the century has unfortunately affected several stretches of the "rail road", but not for this reason the built cycle paths diminish the beauty of the track, indeed allowing to reach places impossible by a locomotive.

Although the development seems really simple and absolutely feasible, the distances and - in particular - the available support points go instead to complicate the realization of the trip.
MTB Friuli is available to participate together in the creation of the itinerary.
For information, curiosity or to take this venture together:

  Contact us!

Our journey consists of three sections for three days:
- Trieste - Portorose/Portorož, 57 km, 570 m;
- Portorose/Portorož - Montona/Motovun, 60 km, 520 m;
- Montona/Motovun - Parenzo/Poreč, 34 km, 230 m;
TOT: 151 km length, 1320 m elevation gain;

Lengths are not equally balanced, and this comes from the locations of the places where we choose to stay along the overall route as well as allowing a suitable time of arrival at the end of the day.

The start of the ride is from the train station of Trieste and in about 15 km we reach the border between Italy and Slovenia. Here the real cycle path starts alongside countryside and waterfront, alternating within touristic locations until the nice city of Portorose where we spent the first night. Once left Portorose it’s soon reached the passage to Croatia and its dirt roads, sometimes tens of kilometers without crossing residential areas.
Transition from the hilly interior of Istria to its coast represents the end of the journey, descending to Poreč and its beautiful old town and seaside resorts.

Biking is therefore along dedicated cycle paths and on unpaved or asphalted roads, free from traffic. It should also be taken into consideration that outside Italy, there are less roadside barriers e.g. along rivers and sea. To be mentioned also that rarely (or almost never) it’s possible to find villages where to stop and get water or refresh. Do not underestimate the abundant presence of mosquitoes - at least in the period when MTB Friuli made it.

In conclusion, Parenzana is a route open to different types of bikes, of experiences and of training. Certainly, using a mountain bike that softens the roughness of the gravel is a great plus point for a long trip. It is also possible to ride with travel bike, distributing baggage and relative weights to the bicycle and not to the cyclist.
There is no section which requires strong experience on bike conduction, and this is also make so famous and touristic the route. Gradients and slopes are of medium level, neither too high nor too light. By the way a minimum of preparation is necessary to support the three days of cycling and enjoy the surrounding without struggling.
MTB Friuli thanks Lucio, Alfio, Fulvio, Luca, Beppe and Simona for their participation and, above all, for the friendship created!
Looking forward to proposing again the trip, fell free to contact the team for any info or support.