Portoroz

Portoroz is a synonymous for elite coastal tourism. Although Portoroz was known in its neighbourhood for its development of spa tourism already in the 13th century, it began with the renovation and construction of new tourist infrastructure only after year 1960.

Portoroz is a beautiful seaside resort on the Slovenian coast. City Portoroz belongs to the Municipality of Piran. Its origins date back to Roman times, archaeologists found the remains of a small harbor and farms on a place, where today are the salt warehouses and Marine High School.

Later in history, Portoroz experienced the arrival of the Byzantines, Lombards and Slavs, and the town began to connect with the Venetian Republic, which also lead to the arrival of Benedictine monks. They built the first Benedictine monasteries in the area. The church of Rosary Mary was built in Portoroz around 13th century. The harbor in the immediate vicinity was named after the church (Portus sanctae Mariae de Rosa), after this, later the city probably got its name.

Already in the 13th century, Portoroz was known as a health resort. Some diseases were treated by Benedictine monks with healing salts and mud from the salt pans, and there are even more records about healing, particularly on the treatment of rheumatism, dating back to the 17th century.

Portoroz, together with the nearby settlements, took advantage of the natural raw materials and coastal location. Here was, in addition to fisheries and salt-making, developed shipbuilding, brickmaking, and more.

Although the first ideas on the development of tourism in the town of Portoroz date back to the year 1865, when a Swiss trader offered to rent rooms for the accomodation of over 200 people, only after the year 1890 they began with the construction of the first major accomodation complexes and swimming pools. In 1910, Portoroz got the most famous hotel, the Palace Cur Hotel, later called the Palace, today, after a major renovation, it is named the Palace Hotel Kempinski.

Today, Portorož is a beautiful seaside resort with over 20 large hotels, casino, swimming pools, beaches and a civilian ports. Portoroz is one of the most modern and developed touristic parts of Slovenia.