01Best Beaches in Brijuni
Brijuni National Park has 14 islands and 12 islets, but visitors can reach only Veliki Brijun and Mali Brijun. Beaches here are rocky or pebbled, with pine shade right behind the shoreline. They are not sandy resort beaches. Anyone expecting sand should look at the mainland coast around Fažana instead.
Saluga Beach, Veliki Brijun
Saluga is the main swimming spot and the one hotel guests use. It sits about 500–600 m from the port and the Hotel Istra and Neptun area, a walk of under 10 minutes. The shore is rocky and pebbled, so water shoes are useful. Sunbeds are available nearby, and hotel guests have been charged a reduced rate of around €5 per day.
Rocky coves along the island's coast
Veliki Brijun has a long, indented coastline with many small rocky coves and flat rock platforms used for swimming. Reaching them takes a bike or a walk along the park paths. Swimming outside designated areas is allowed in most places, but the park's rules on nature protection apply, and no lifeguards are present.
Boat-tour swim stops
Boat tours from Fažana and Pula add swim and snorkel stops in bays around the archipelago, including areas that day visitors on the standard ticket never reach. Prices for these tours start around €25–30 per person, with lunch and drinks packages costing more.
> Opinion: Day visitors overrate the beach side of Brijuni. A standard visit is built around the Safari Park, the Roman remains and the tourist train, and there is little time left to swim. Anyone who mainly wants a beach day will get better value from a swim-and-snorkel boat tour or a mainland Istrian beach.
02Beachfront Apartments in Brijuni: What Exists
Independent holiday rentals do not exist on the islands. All accommodation is run by the national park, which means no private apartment listings. The seafront options are on Veliki Brijun, around the main port.
Hotel Istra and Hotel Neptun annex
Hotel Istra has 32 double rooms over three floors, on the seafront in the main port. Sea-view rooms face the port, the Fažana Channel and the Istrian mainland. The Neptun annex is in the same port, in Austro-Hungarian style, and offers rooms and sea-facing apartments. Per-person prices with breakfast in 2026 ran from about €62 for a standard park-view double at Istra up to about €145 for a superior room in peak summer. Neptun apartments ran from about €61 to €94 per person.
Rooms Karmen
Karmen is a simple 2★ property with 53 rooms on three floors, by the sea near the Neptun-Istra complex. Rooms have no minibar, and there is one sea-side apartment. It is the cheapest official option.
Luxury villas
The park also rents out Villa Dubravka, Villa Lovorka and Villa Primorka. Prices are quoted on request.
What the price includes
- Breakfast (dinner is an optional extra, usually a buffet)
- Boat transfer from Fažana, one crossing per day on the park's regular line
- National park entry and insurance
- A discount of around 15–20% on park programmes for hotel guests
A stay of at least 3 nights is typically required for the apartments. Pets are not allowed in most units. Bicycles cannot be brought to the island, but they can be hired there.
03How to Get to Brijuni
The only access is the park's boat from Fažana, a crossing of about 15 minutes. Fažana is roughly 8 km from Pula. Guarded parking in Fažana cost €12 per vehicle per day in 2026, rising to €15 in June, July, August and September.
04Ticket Prices
| Ticket | Oct–May | Jun–Sep |
|---|---|---|
| Self-guided, adult | €30 | €40 |
| Guided with train, adult | €35 | €50 |
| Child 7–18, guided | €15 | €20 |
| Evening entry (Jul–Aug) | – | €15 |
Children under 7 go free, and a dog ticket costs €15. Dogs cannot enter the Safari Park, the train or the museums. Individual visits are not possible in January and February.
05Insider Tips
- The €15 evening ticket (departures at 18:00, 19:00 and 20:00 in high season) is the cheapest way to swim at Saluga and eat dinner on the island, though it skips the main sights.
- Book July and August weekends well ahead, since boat capacity is limited.
- Bring water shoes and a mask. The coast is rocky, and the water is clear.
- A stay of 2–3 nights lets visitors swim in the early morning, before day-trip boats arrive.
- Hotel guests walk only a few steps from the port to the hotel entrance, so luggage is easy.
06Best Time to Visit
Sea temperatures suit swimming from June to September. May and October are quieter and cheaper, with a €30 self-guided ticket, but the water is cooler.
