Lovran

Sister cities

• Budapest District XVII
• Castel San Pietro Terme

History

Lovran is one of the oldest coastal settlements on the eastern shore of Istrian peninsula. According to one legend, the town was created when the Roman patrician and statesman Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa built his summer residence on the site in the first century AD. The name of the settlement was first mentioned in the 7th century, as Lauriana, which reveals that the place was named after the aromatic laurel. By the early Middle Ages it was an important urban and shipbuilding center of the northern Adriatic. Following the sudden development of port towns in the vicinity (Trieste, Pula, and Rijeka) which became the new and dominant urban centers in the region, Lovran lost its significance. However, by the mid 19th century, the area gains prominence as it becomes a fashionable resort for the Austro-Hungarian nobility. The long tradition of tourism is still strongly felt in the Lovran region, and it forms the backbone of the economy. The region is rich with cultural-historical heritage. A parish church with medieval frescoes and Glagolitic inscriptions, and the 14th-century tower of St George's Square within the old urban core, as well as rural ambiances and architectural edifices – namely turn-of-the-century villas with surrounding parks, are general points of interest.