Since the tourism in Croatia is increasingly trying to focus on sustainable development and nature and move away from the sun and the sea, the theme of this final work is ecotourism, which is defined as a tourism that includes the stay of tourists in nature and its connection with nature at a higher level. The area of Istria is known for its beautiful coastal area that attracts many tourists, but this peninsula lies far more than that. The key part of the work defines the notion of ecotourism, mentioning its advantages, explaining the importance of conservation of nature and the ways in which it can be achieved, and concentrates on the area of central Istria due to the great potential for the development of this form of tourism. The paper states the current state of tourism and ecotourism of this area, defining deficiencies such as insufficient reclamation, poorly categorized facilities for rest in the nature, poor road conditions and others, as well as advantages such as large preserved natural areas designed to enabling nature tourism, good transport links with neighboring countries, and tradition that is a common theme for various events. In order to stimulate the development of nature-related tourism in the area of central Istria, projects highlighting the advantages of this area are proposed, and suggest ways in which these resources can best be used to make this type of specific forms of tourism as fast as possible in this part of Croatia, by now still more famous for sun and sea.