Visiting Ljubljana, Slovenia: My Experience

I love this town a lot. We visited in September last year and it was not crowded at all. The weather was nice and there was outdoor concert by the park. We also visited lake Bled and hiked to the castle. I really enjoyed the food, it was good and so very reasonable. We bought their famous honey and forgot to check-in as a result it got confiscated, err so mad to myself. All in all, if I go back to Eastern Europe, this will be on top of my list to revisit.

I was in Slovenia in the fall of 2007.. stunning blue skies with autumn leaves, hiking in the julian alps, gorgeous country with nary a tourist. Sorry you had awful weather.

I am going to Slovenia in 5 days for my 35th birthday in a few weeks. Also going to Montenegro after seeing your reviews on Aman. Very excited!

160 EUR a night in Ljubljana seems a bit excessive, really...

This city was beautiful in February and the Intercontinental is a great hotel with pool and spa and great Club Lounge. It is a few minutes walk from the railway station for a train ride to Vienna or Zagreb. Wonderful city to visit and easy to walk around and a funicular up to the castle!

This is one of the loveliest and tourist friendly cities of Europe. I've seen them all, and this is my hands-down favorite. Intimate, friendly, clean, quiet, picturesque, modern, hip, and reasonably priced. It will not sleep forever!! Go Now! The Slovenes have a sweet spot.

*quick, lets run around and take some pics so they dont say we just spent all our time in the hotel again*

And as for Ljubljana undiscovered - come back in July. Its been a hotspot for at least a decade.

Have you ever calculated your carbon footprint? Why not stay one place for longer and cut that fuel emissions in half vs another short trip back.

Visited last year. The whole country, and also Croatia, is beautiful. Would love to go back,

I traveled through Slovenia over six months. Exquisite! Easily my fav European destination.

Ljubljana seems so charming. I love the architecture. Hopefully you'll be able to go back and experience it under better weather conditions.

The hotel looks amazing

Visited last October for five days. It was wonderful as others have described to you. Interesting and beautiful architecture, sufficient people for an energetic vibe especially along the river and its cafes yet not over-crowded, friendly people, fluent communication in English, great food for excellent value, easy to navigate and yes, the honey liqueur was terrific. Fun corners to explore. Market was open and fun. Bled in the sun is spectacular. I plan a return.

I visited last September just before going hiking in the Julian Alps. I was lucky to have perfect weather and to be able to partake in the open kitchen Street market they was mentioned. Great little city (and country)...and I did enjoy the Intercontinental as well...but I certainly didn't get the Virtuoso perks.

We visited Ljubljana in early October, 2018. It is a wonderful small city with interesting art, architecture, culture, and surprisingly outstanding food. More importantly, the people were welcoming and engaging. You should seek an opportunity to return in the "dry season." The entire country was beautiful. We actually enjoyed it more than Croatia (and we like Croatia a lot!).

Visited last May and spent time in Ljubljana, Lake Bled and visited the caves near Skocjan. Also, rented a vehicle and drove through the Julian Alps into Italy. One of our favorite trips/countries.

My maternal grandmother was born near Ljubljana, but came to the US prior to WWI. No one in my family had ever visited, so before my mom and her siblings passed away, I decided to visit in May 2006. We spent 2.5 days there before traveling on to Croatia. This was before it became a hotspot.
My husband was turned off when we walked through the fish market and the smell of rotting fish wafted through the air, but I thought the city was so interesting.
On our morning out to Lake Bled we were able to take a pletna boat out to the island but it started to pour as we hiked up to the castle so we went for coffee instead. But the funny story was getting our rental car from the Union Hotel where we stayed. They offered a package of room plus 1 day rental of a Smart car that was LESS money than just booking a room. Say what? And when we went to pick it up at the rental desk, the person just handed us the keys - no asking for ID, license or anything! One of those indelible travel memories.
Would love to go back and see more of the country.

There is a lovely SPG property an hour away from Ljubljana just outside of Trieste, Italy called Falisia, a Luxury Collection. It’s pretty new and a beautiful property in a less travelled area. We stayed there and day tripped Ljubljana and Bled...very easy drive just need to buy the cheap vignette at the border. Sorry the weather wasn’t good. I really enjoyed hiking up and around Bled to get the beautiful vistas of the center island.

Nice. but what about the food? drinks? nightlife?

It's unfortunate the weather didn't co-operate during your visit, although your photos of Lake Bled still seem magical.

We were there just a few weeks ago for two nights and also had a great stay at the Intercontinental (thanks to Ford's help booking the Virtuoso rate).

If you have the chance to return, would definitely recommend a visit to Rovinj in Croatia. With few crowds during low season, beautiful scenery, and an excellent hotel on the town square, it was an amazing experience.

@schar: what would you like to know?

Nice place to visit. Thank you Lucky for posting such an excellent article.

You should give it a try on a sunny Friday when that open kitchen is in function.. It gets really vibrant with lovely evening outdoor performances in summer Next to the Bled, there's Bohinj Lake also, lovely place to see also and hike around..

@schar
Ha ha ha.....good one. Ben doesn’t do night life and rarely dines outside of hotel restaurants

All that way for 1.5 days?

I enjoyed Ljubljana when I was there and Lake Bled was incredibly gorgeous! We also went to Vintgar Gorge which isn't too far of a hike from Lake Bled.

How many years before it turns into another European theme park for the Chinese?

I have several of the same pictures as you from my trip to Ljublana 10 years ago. LOL

I have to say that even one weekend is too much for the city. Don't know about the surroundings, but there is really not much in the "city" (village?) itself.
And the prices are just incredible for eastern europe: 3.5€ für 0.2 Coke? Really? I don't even pay that in Germany.
Besides the prices there is really nothing special at all about Ljubljana, there was nothing I haven't seen in 20 other cities.