Istra Inspirit – a unique experience of Istria

If you wish to travel back in time, have fun, and ‘relive’ some of the interesting events from our history, then Istria Inspirit is your answer :) This award winning project revives Istrian myths and legends at authentic locations and provides a unique experience to the visitors. Here is their story:

 

Istrian legends and myths as an inspiration through storytelling

 

Vacation in Istria is far from a classic tourist story which only includes the sun and the sea. Picturesque Istrian locations are hiding wonderful cultural heritage and tradition that Istra Inspirit uses as an inspiriation in developing storytelling experiences. Istra Inspirit turns into a journey through time full of ‘wow’ moments, feelings, music, dance and songs.

Istra Inspirit is a project of the County of Istria, Istrian Tourist board and  Istrian Tourism development agency whose aim is to enrich the cultural – tourist offer of the peninsula  through experiences which revive Istrian stories, legends and myths.

 

Where can Istra Inspirit  take you

During the five – year activity a large number of Istrian towns and sites have been included in the project. One Inspirit experience, which especially stands out, takes place in the medieval town of Dvigrad in Kanfanar, where you can meet  the legendary Captain Henry Morgan and his crew. All his visitors can be included in the real pirate party in the authentic ambience of Dvigrad.

What plays a huge role in our experiences are the costumes, which are especially attractive and can be seen when the peninsula Vižula near Medulin is visited by Crispus, the son of Constantine the Great. His faith is characterized by the dramatic events from the golden age of the Roman Empire, which are revived in the area of the archeological site.

During our travel through time, you will become familiar with the dark Middle Ages, in Svetvinčenat in central Istria. Mare Radoslovich was a local herbalist who helped the people in Svetvinčenat. Nevertheless, they accused her of concluding a contract with the devil and wanted her to be burnt at the stake. The conclusion of this dramatic story takes place in the courtyard of the castle Grimani – Morosini castle.

Istria and its people have always had a connection with the sea, which had a great influence on creating the Batana boat. In traditional Batana boats, the people of Rovinj were fishing all day long and then, together with the Rovinj farmers , they gathered in the basement called Spacio, which is also the name of one of our experiences. During our Spacio event, we want to revive the same atmosphere for our visitors.

Baroque was a period full of impressive costumes and richly decorated churches and buildings. Domenico Furlan stole part of the wealth from the tabernacle of the Euphrasian Basilica in Poreč. For that reason, he became known as a notorious thief. He was sentenced to  death, but  you can find out what really happened with Domenico during our event Iustitia in Poreč.

Apart from the above mentioned, we have many more Inspirit experiences.  However, we leave it to you to discover them on our Facebook and Instagram pages. From our newest experiences we present  our cooperation with the Poreč Open Air festival where we introduce the visitors to the magical world of Jules Verne on the beautiful island of St. Nikola in Poreč, and our cooperation with the Municipality od Vrsar within the Casanovafest.

Our results

Until now, the project has been recognized as an important and unique part of Istrian tourist offer, which is confirmed by winning prestigious awards in the five years of activity: CBTour – the award for the best creative program of Croatian business tourism in 2012. • MRAK (Network for Development and Creativity) – an award for the most creative and innovative tourism product in 2012. • Simply the Best – award from the UHPA and magazine Way to Croatia for the creative and innovative approach to creating tourism offers in 2012. • Golden Goat 2012 / Capra d’oro 2012 – for the best innovative product in Istrian Region • Golden Zoom Awards – Best Marketing Campaign for tourist destination in 2013 • „XVIII ediciónConcurso al mejorproducto de turismo”, FITUR, Madrid – nomination for the best international tourist product • Creative Tourism Awards – the most creative event in 2014. – awarded by Creative Tourism Network in 2015.

Istra Inspirit is still developing its offer and is trying continuously to interpret cultural heritage across the peninsula. We still use Istrian legends and myths as an inspiration, as well as our visitors, who we want to provide with a memorable experience  they will want to revisit.

 

Photo & text by Istra Inspirit