Villa Eugenia

Lovran: old town, great beaches, wonderful nature

by tijs

"St. George"

A midle age structure with typical mediteranian houses forms the old town of Lovran. Originally the old town had town walls and bastions,but now you can see that later they built houses that follow the fortification structure of the town. Near the busstop you can still find one of the original towers, at Trg Svetog. Next to the tower is the beautiful townhall, that used to be the magistrate is during the middle ges. Since the beginning of the 19th century the portal is decorated with an image of St. George, who kills a dragon with his sword. On the same square you will find the St. George's Church with frescoes dating from the 15th century.

"Old town"

When we arrived it was still raining, as you can see on the photo. But that did not bother us to stroll for some time through the narrow alleys of it and taste the atmosphere. A dog followed us for hours and even joined us when we went to a terrace for a drink. Unfortunately we did not manage to find a room for the night in the town center, because we would have loved to sleep here. Westwards we found another little church, dating from the 14th century, built by the brothers St. John the devil. They found remaining structures under it from an even older church. Eastwards is a city tower with a narrow gate called 'Stubica' (steps) that leads to the harbour.

"Villas"

Like in other towns of the Opatia Riviera, Lovran developed very fast from the 1870's, as a health resort for the happy few of the Habsburg empire. Lots of nice villas north and south of the old town remember of these times and many are still - or again - used as pensions, guesthouses and hotels. Villa Fernandea, built in 1873, was the first object in this region that was especially built for the tourist industry. Lovran was and is especially attractive because it has the most beautiful beaches of the Opatia Riviera. One of them can be found at the roundabout of the busses in the south part of town.

Also check out my pages about:
Opatia

The Island of Cres