The Trieste coast has lots of options for sleeping and eating. Look for agroturismi and B&B’s in every village. There are many campsites scattered around, namely Carso camp or Pineta near Sistiana. Or – stay in Slovenia, since everything is quite close.

We would definitely recommend staying in these climber-tested establishments:

VOVK CAMP

POD KOSTANJI 

OCIZLA HOSTEL 

BEST SEASON Summer is the best time, if it‘s not too hot and the wall is dry. The conditions can vary at any time, so you need some luck. The cave is much cooler than its surroundings, but any rain will drip through quite fast.

SUN & SHADE The cave is always in the shade.

RAIN Most of the routes are under the roof, but they will get wet after heavy rain and take a long time to dry.

STYLE & ROUTES Most routes are nice endurance pieces, which get abruptly interrupted by brutal cruxes, often right near the anchor. Shorter routes have emphasis on power endurance. Apart from endurance and power it is beneficial if you‘re well versed in climbing overhangs, roofs and using the tufas. Beware – some might still break.

GEAR & SAFETY The quality of the bolts varies, which applies also to the pre-placed quickdraws, though they are mostly OK. The rock itself is pretty solid, albeit a bit slippery. The routes are generally not long, but the new ones are generously bolted, so bring enough quickdraws.

KIDS & COMFORT The base of the wall is comfortable and children can play here, as they will probably not climb much.

BEGINNERS You’ve got only a couple of routes and even those are hard. 1/5

ADVANCED There are enough routes, but are mostly short and it’s good if the powerful style suits you. 2/5

THE BEST  The best have the biggest selection of routes, but they are very specific and rarely friendly for the grade. 3/5

NOTES Until recently Grotta was a secret spot – the parking is very small. Try to be as discreet as possible. A lot of effort went into cleaning of the wall and the surroundings, so keep it like that in the future. Building the fire is strictly forbidden. Climbers share the wall with drytoolers! There are lots of spits from drytoolers in the wall, making the lines and anchors a bit confusing. Routes for drytooling are marked with DRY OK. Names of some other routes are written on the wall.