I wanted to stay in Istria next. I was a bit torn when choosing a hotel, but the location alone was a clear argument in favour of the Grand Park Rovinj. What's more, there were two Michelin-starred restaurants in the hotel and the top suite looked great with a fairly large private paddling pool.
When booking, I actually wanted to book through Virtuoso, but then a very favourable rate appeared on the Leading Hotels of the World website, which was over �300 per night lower("only 1.417�) than all other offers. I quickly seized the opportunity, and such a rate has never been available again.
Shortly after our visit, the hotel was ranked 48th by �The World's Best 50 Hotels�. Well, everyone who knows me knows what I think of these lists. Without giving too much away, here's a guessing game: what sentence did I actually say during our stay?
1. Wow, that's world-class luxury!
2. Well, it's not a real luxury hotel, so you shouldn't expect too much.

The journey from Trieste went quite quickly. The hotel is located on the outskirts of Rovinj in a kind of hotel complex. Maestra Hotels (a Croatian chain) has nine hotels in Rovinj, four of which are located close together here.
After pulling up in front of the hotel, we got out of the car and nothing happened. The doormen didn't seem to know what to do, but when we opened the boot, one of them eventually came over to us. That�s real class and the perfect start of the stay. I guess not more than 47 hotels worldwide are able to do it better. Otherwise, you could see that the hotel had a modern design. If it�s beautiful is another question.






Incidentally, there are charging stations opposite the hotel. They are not operated by the hotel itself, but by Telekom. None of my charging cards worked at the time; you have to pay in advance. I did so, with a minimum charge of �10. But when I had charged �6, I realized that you can only charge with a minimum credit of �5. Great thing, I would put something like that in front of my door as a luxury hotel.
We then went to the large reception desk, where we waited our turn. This can take a while, but I don't mind waiting. In fact, I love it � what else would I do with my time? Check-in was very technical, and we weren't offered an escort to our room (which is also really in the luxury sector, only offered in the best 46 hotels of the world).

The lobby extends over two floors with lots of glass. The main restaurant is located on the lower level.

With the key cards in hand, we headed to the third floor. The hallways are completely windowless.



Here's an overview of the floor. It's a long way to the room, but that doesn't matter.

Then let's go to the suite. Let's take a look at the suite. As you can see, the Signature Suite is significantly larger than the other rooms. It measures 173 square meters and extends over two levels.

When you enter, you first find yourself in a hallway with a cupboard.

The guest bathroom is also located there. They installed a nice heavy door here that always closes quickly. Once it caught my heel, which is not so great.


The living room was large, although the large counter, for example, is not really necessary. Another point of criticism is the furniture. It all looks quite nice (well, the concrete walls are not necessarily to my taste), but the sofa, for example, was extremely uncomfortable as well as the chairs.










Small kitchen.

The real highlight was the glass windows and the view, especially from the balcony.






But the glass windows also had their downside. When I looked outside, I saw a dead bird (yes, I attract them) lying in the roof garden, having met its end on the window pane. That's not so nice.
Since we had already been waiting for our luggage for quite some time, we called the reception desk to inquire about it and request that the bird be removed. Someone came immediately to deal with the bird (kudos for that), but we had to make another inquiry about the luggage, which took over an hour (no kudos for that).

Then let's go down the stairs.



Here, too, everything is kept quite stringent and clean. Once again, the chairs were more for show than for sitting on.



The dressing room looks quite simple, but it has plenty of space.



The bathroom was large and fine (though not my style), but unfortunately the door to the toilet was slightly defective and creaked every time it was opened and closed.



The high-gloss surfaces require a great deal of work, which was not always successful.

There is a small �garden,� but it is completely hidden from view. It is quite well shielded and can only be seen from the adjacent room.




The pool was actually quite large, but unfortunately also quite cold. This meant that relaxing and splashing around was only possible to a limited extent, which was of course a shame.
Safety first!

The evening was really nice again.










The suite from outside.

I�ve visited a mix of older and newer destinations, and each has its own charm. Older countries and historic cities feel rich in culture, architecture, and traditions, and you can really feel the history when walking through old towns and monuments. Newer countries and modern cities are more organized, with better infrastructure, transport, and modern attractions. I personally enjoy a combination of both, as it�s interesting to experience ancient history and modern lifestyle in one trip.

I haven't been back to Rovinj since the summer of 1994, when it was used by the Croatian Army for R&R. It looks different, your hotel appears to be in the place of the old Army facilities.

That's very interesting. I can imagine it's such a development area.

Interesting interpretation of my title. I didn't had this in in, but it would also fit as explanation.

It was time to explore the surroundings, so we took the lift all the way down to the bottom floor. There is a second lobby there with a kind of library and a counter, but no check-ins or anything like that are carried out there.



In front of the hotel is a promenade with a harbour, where you will find a 2-star restaurant, a caf� and several shops.

Then we went to Rovinj. She wishes me a pleasant journey, as long as I leave her alone.

Always along the water's edge.



Republiq Square with the Venetian lion and the Balbi�s arch.






We made our way upwards through the alleys.

On the hill stands the Church of St. Euphemia.


Some views.



The interior of the church.