Posted by Portoroz is the big tourist resort by the sea in Slovenia. More than 100 years ago, Portoroz was already a well-known spa town. The many stylish, huge buildings in the town bear witness to the splendour of times gone by. Until World War I, the region was part of Austria.
At the beginning of the 20th century, Portoroz was one of the largest and most glamorous health resorts in Europe.
Book day tours Slovenia online
You can book many great day trips within Slovenia by bus online.
Many of these tickets are available on the well-known website Getyourguide.com
– Bus tours to the Postojna Caves: click here
– Tours to and from Lake Bled: click here
– Tours and bus trips Ljubljana: click here
Today Portoroz is a very nice seaside resort. There are three big casinos and still many wellness offers for wealthy tourists. The price level is a bit higher than in most other places in Slovenia. But more and more young people are coming to the town on the Slovenian Adriatic. There are some hostels, disco clubs and water sports facilities.
Tours Coast Slovenia: Various day trips by bus to and from Piran, Portoroz and the short coast of Slovenia can be booked online at Getyourguide.
The place name Portoroz (spelled Portorož in Slovenian) comes from the Italian language and translates as Rose Harbour. This is also the now obsolete Austrian name of the town. Portoroz does not have a real town centre or even an old town. It is actually only a suburb of the town of Piran, which has its centre a few kilometres further along the sea. Piran is considered the most beautiful town in Slovenia, and the spa town of Portoroz is something of a tourist stronghold in the region.
Book day tours Slovenia online
You can book many great day trips within Slovenia by bus online.
Many of these tickets are available on the well-known website Getyourguide.com
– Bus tours to the Postojna Caves: click here
– Tours to and from Lake Bled: click here
– Tours and bus trips Ljubljana: click here
Orientation and description Portoroz
Along the shore in the centre is a long, beautiful pedestrian promenade. Behind it are some artificial beach sections (sand and grass), cafes and restaurants.
A few metres further from the beach is the main road. Behind it, the road climbs steeply up a slope. At the bottom of this slope are the large casinos and hotels. You can see the magnificent buildings particularly well from the shore.
Those who can afford a room with a sea view in the large luxury hotels have a wonderful panorama of the Mediterranean.
On the waterfront in Portorož there are ladders where you can get into the sea. There is no real beach, as in many resorts in Slovenia and Croatia.
A top attraction in Portoroz are the luxury hotels. Since 2019, there is a small museum of handbags in the centre of the town that is worth seeing.
Portoroz casinos
To our knowledge, there are three large casinos in the resort town of Portoroz. Many of the players come from abroad; in nearby Italy, gambling is severely restricted due to government regulations.
We visited the Casino Riviera opposite the beach. It is open 24/7 (24 hours, 7 days a week). For a winter’s day in the morning, the casino was busy. We saw two large roulette tables and many slot machines. Most of the guests in the Casino Riviera Portoroz spoke Italian. Many drinks (cola, water, beer and wine) and cakes were free. The entrance fee was free. You didn’t have to buy chips or anything like that either.
Water sports Portoroz
There is a water sports centre right in the centre by the sea. You can rent pedal boats and much more.
Restaurants Portoroz
At least 50 restaurants offer their services in Portoroz. The majority offer Slovenian and Italian cuisine. Among the restaurants in Portoroz are some luxury restaurants of the highest class. In the following recommendations, we will limit ourselves to restaurants with normal price levels.
On average, the restaurants in the spa town are somewhat more expensive than in other places in Slovenia. This is especially true for the area around the promenade on the Adriatic Sea in the centre of town. In some taverns, a normal pizza costs over 10 euros. We have tried to find restaurants that are not overpriced but still offer good quality. All of the following recommendations are in the centre of Portorož.
A great restaurant in the centre on the beach is Ostarija. Especially the meat and fish dishes are tasty and, for this area, not expensive. A mixed fish platter, for example, costs 12 euros, a rump steak 12.50. The children’s plates, such as spaghetti for 5 euros, are great. As a starter, you can try Istrainian cold cuts in the Ostarijaden restaurant.
It is not a mistake to go to Meduza. It is a restavracija, as they say in Slovenian, which can also be found in the centre not far from the coast. We enjoyed the pork fillet with vegetables, the cevapcici and the grilled calamari at Meduza. There are also dishes that German-speaking tourists know from home. Wiener schnitzel of turkey with fries costs just under 10 euros at Meduza. The salads, such as the Meduza salad with prawns, are also ok.
The Staro Sidro (Old Anchor) on the other side of Portoroz’s main street has a large menu. The prices are ok for Portoroz. Lots of good starters, meat and good fish.
Most of the information on this page is from 2019.
City map Portoroz
By bus to Portoroz
There are buses from Portroz to Koper several times an hour (about 40 minutes, fare: €2.70). In the other direction, buses of the same line continue to nearby Piran (journey time under 10 minutes). A frequent city bus line additionally connects Portoroz with Piran several times an hour. There are also a few buses daily to more distant destinations such as Trieste or Ljubljana.
The bus station is in the centre on the through road on the opposite side from the sea. There is no ticket office at the bus station in Portoroz, all tickets can be bought from the bus driver. There is a free public toilet at the small “bus station”. The bus to Koper and Piran also stops at several other stops in Portoroz along the thoroughfare.