3 Days in Ljubljana
After more than 5 weeks in the Slovenian and Italian nature and more than 500 km of hiking on the Alpe Adria and the Juliana Trailwe were happy like little children to have some civilization around us once again. And after more than 5 weeks in the tent and in the hammock, such a hotel bed also had its appeal. Shower, kitchen, room - what a luxury!
About two weeks ago, we made a three-hour stopover in the dragon city of Ljubljana. There we caught our first glimpse of Ljubljana's old town. Young, lively, full of bars and restaurants. Live music penetrated to us from the Ljubljana Festival, so also through the open windows of the music academy.
Late summer, beautiful weather, all of Ljubljana was on the streets to celebrate life.
Just as we left Ljubljana behind two weeks ago when we left for the hike on the Juliana Trail so the lively city welcomed us back.
We booked a hotel room for 3 days in Ljubljana. Was that enough time to get to know the city?
Before we get to the answer, first a few practical questions.
3 days in Ljubljana - How to get there?
Train and Bus
We traveled by train and bus. Ljubljana's main train station is located just a kilometer north of the city center. It serves not only as a hub for Slovenia but also as a connection for Central and Eastern Europe, as well as the Balkan states.
Thus, there are good train connections to Zagreb in Croatia and Villach and Vienna in Austria.
Note that Slovenian trains are prone to delays. So we were half an hour late arriving in Jesenice from Villach, as well as half an hour late traveling from Ljubljana to Villach (which caused us to miss our connection in Villach. The transportation office at the Villach station seemed to be aware of the problem; we were quickly rebooked on the next connection).
Short routes you can pay directly on the train where there is no ticket office. International routes we booked either on the website of the Austrianor German railway depending on the destination or departure station.
Car
Ljubljana can also be reached easily by car from anywhere. It is a small city, but this doesn't mean that it doesn't suffer from the same diseases as all other cities (for example, traffic jams during rush hours).
It should be mentioned that the beautiful old town is pleasantly car-free. .
Interesting for campers: A little outside the city there are 2 campgrounds where you can leave your car, camper and the like to get to the center by bus or bike. More about that in a moment.
3 days in Ljubljana - Where to stay?
Camping
- Camping @ Nogometni Golf Ljubljana
Very basic campsite 6 km northeast of the city center. Friendly operators, cold shower, toilets could be cleaner - Ljubljana Resort Hotel & Camping
Although not very well rated because poor price-quality ratio, but the old town is only 5 km away and easy to reach due to well-developed bike paths.
As of 09/21. Details on park4night or googlemaps
Hotels/Hostels/Appartments
On Airbnb and Booking.com you can find a variety of accommodations.
For longer stays, we usually choose Airbnb, as these accommodations are usually equipped with a kitchen. This time, however, we found what we were looking for on Booking.com.
InLina Roomswe found a spacious room with two single beds (No. 3), a shared bathroom, and even a small kitchen. For 40 euros a night very decent and within our budget. About 20 minutes walk from the city center.
They also rent an apartment and beds in a mixed dormitory.
3 Days in Ljubljana - Fun things to do
In Ljubljana
As it is common in big cities, you can take the whole range of sightseeing tours in Ljubljana.
Guided tours of the city, historical tours of the country's communist era, boat trips on the Ljubljanica across the old town, bicycle tours, tourist train rides, various museums...
All of this we didn't do. But if you are interested in these things, you can find all the details at www.visitljubljana.com
We, on the other hand, were perfectly happy to stroll through the alleyways, stopping now and then in a bar (like the Tozd, to which we always enjoyed returning) to drink one of the local beers and watch the crowds of exciting people.
But not only the colorful people impressed us. The city itself also has a lot of interesting things to offer, such as many antique stores, flea markets, inviting restaurants, and tons of colorful facades, some in need of renovation, which make perfect photo subjects.
Although we didn't go into the castle and the view of the city from the tower is supposed to be even more impressive than from outside it, we wanted to see the Ljubljana Castle and the park on the hill.
Well, this wasn't an outstanding excursion, but it was nice to get out of the city and into nature.
But the castle definitely looks best when viewed from below with the old town in the foreground.
The beginning of September seemed the perfect time to visit Ljubljana. We spent almost every moment outside in pleasant sunny and warm weather.
We also enjoyed the live music from time to time. On the centrally located Congress Square, a large concert stage was set up for the Ljubljana Festival, which we walked by every now and then to see what was playing.
Dann war da noch das „Bier&Burger“ Festival am Wochenende. Mikrobrauereien vom ganzen Land und Burgerenthusiasten boten ihre Produkte feil. Logisch, dass nicht nur wir, sondern ganz Ljubljana hier einen sich lohnenden Stopp einlegte.
Around Ljubljana
After mastering the Alpe Adria Trail a few weeks earlier, we hiked to Croatia to the sea.
There we met Andrej and his two sons on a small campground.
"Call me when you're in Ljubljana and we'll arrange something together!"
Andrej, his wife, and 2 children, who live just outside Ljubljana, picked us up on Sunday to take us to the Arboretum, a large botanical garden, 20 km outside the city.
As we strolled through the colorful park, we learned many interesting facts about life as a family in Slovenia.
Also about the Arboretum Andrej knew a lot because one of his friends worked here. Every season there is a new flower show here. Tulips, roses, cacti, even a small butterfly house is part of it.
The park is huge. Many green areas, typical English gardens and - something for me - life-size, albeit somewhat aged dinosaurs and whales, which do not quite want to fit into the landscape.
We will definitely remember Andrej's lovely family who welcomed us so open-mindedly. We're happy to have met you!
3 Days in Ljubljana - Where to next?
Well, that's not difficult to answer. Have you hiked in the Triglav National Park? Have you paddled on the Bohinj lake? Have you visited the Pokljuka Gorge, which is smaller than the caves in Postojna, but not overrun with tourists?
We write about all this in our article:
And if you don't know the western part of Triglav National Park yet, read our post:
ALPE ADRIA TRAIL
From the Alps to the Sea
In it, we describe our hike from the north of Slovenia through the wild Soča Valley, along the historic border with Italy down to the picturesque coastal town of Piran on the Adriatic Sea.
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2 Comments
Regina Ramseyer
Herrlich diese bunte, spannende und informative Fotoreportage, Simon und Seraina. So konnte ich geistig ein wenig mitwandern, mitbesuchen, mitgeniessen – danke vielmal für diese aufwendige Zusammenstellung, im Video sogar mit Musik umrahmt. Zu Fuss unterwegs zu sein macht wirklich Spass und wie man sieht kommt man auch gut vorwärts.
Simon
Vielen Dank für den lieben Kommentar, Slowenien zu Fuss zu erleben war fantastisch – sehr empfehlenswert! Vor dem Juliana Trail erwanderten wir den Alpe Adria Trail. Dieser Beitrag wird noch länger und aufwendiger, ich mache mich jetzt an die Arbeit 😉