ex - the trail of st. maurus

Welcome to the trail that will take you from the glittering mosaics to the stars! Does it seem unreal? Choose the St Mauro trail and you will soon understand the meaning of these words. Therefore, set off from Poreč, the town where you can find material and spiritual evidences of great cultures at every step. Ride along the old city centre and you will find there the Roman Forum which was once a fortified Roman camp, magnificent palaces from different historical periods, e.g. the “House of the two Saints” and the famous Euphrasian Basilica.

The complex of the Basilica and the three church naves are the most beautiful preserved monuments of the early Byzantine art from the 6th century included on the UNESCO World Heritage list in the year 1997. When you enter the Basilica and walk to the apse the breathtaking glittering mosaics will appear in front of you. If you look carefully at the mosaics depicting the procession of saints with the Mother of God and the Christ in the middle, among the saints you will also recognize the Bishop Euphrasy holding the model of the Basilica in his hand and St Mauro, the saint protector of the city of Poreč after whom this trail has been named.

If you would like to see the city from the bird’s eye view climb the top of the church belfry and enjoy a magnificent view of the city and its surrounding. When you get tired of the flurry of the city and streets swarming with people ride to the hotel Materada, pass through the bay of St Martin and the campsite Ulika (Olive) and continue along the sea towards Červar Porat. The ride along this trail is particularly pleasant because all the time you are riding along the coastline with beautiful bays where you can enjoy the breathtaking Mediterranean landscape. When you reach Santa Marina bay you can carry your bicycle over a brook and take the asphalt road via Vabriga to Tar.

Continuing along the trail you will arrive to Kaštelir where you can enjoy a pleasant landscape with green vineyards and olive groves and taste home made food, wine, brandy and honey produced in this area. Continuing along the trail, you will reach Višnjan, a little place that vaunts an astronomical observatory ranked among the 5 most important observatories in the world. If you have found here your guiding star, or if you have refreshed yourself with a glass of excellent home made wine, continue along Bačva, Žikovići, Vežnaveri and Kosinožići towards Stancija Portun and the trail will lead you back to Poreč, where your adventure along the St Mauro trail has, actually, began.