Opatija to Miramare Castle and Predjama Castle: Day trip

Miramare Castle stands on a rocky promontory jutting into the Gulf of Trieste — a white Habsburg fantasy built between 1856 and 1860 for Archduke Maximilian of Austria, whose romantic idealism and tragic fate give the castle its haunting atmosphere.

What to see

• The interior — the original furnishings survive almost intact, including Maximilian's study, the nautically themed rooms reflecting his passion for the sea, and Charlotte of Belgium's apartments
• The park — 22 hectares of gardens descending to the Adriatic, planted with exotic species brought from Maximilian's global voyages
• The cliff walk — a path along the rocky shoreline below the castle gives the most dramatic views of the promontory and the Gulf

What to eat

• Jota — a Triestine bean and sauerkraut soup that reflects the city's Central European and Mediterranean crossroads character; served at the restaurants in the nearby Grignano village

Predjama Castle clings to the mouth of a cave halfway up a 123-meter cliff face in the Karst plateau — the most dramatically sited medieval fortress in Europe, and the former stronghold of the outlaw knight Erasmus of Lueg, whose defiance of the Habsburg emperor became Slovenian legend.

What to see

• The castle's four floors of rooms built directly into the cave — passages lead through the mountain to a hidden natural exit that allowed Erasmus to resupply during a year-long siege
• The cave system behind the castle — the Postojna Cave system extends for kilometers behind Predjama; separate cave tours are available
• The cliffside exterior — the approach from the valley floor gives the full impact of the castle's seemingly impossible position

Take note

• The castle is open year-round; the nearby Postojna Cave makes a natural pairing for a full day's visit