Slovenia Road Trips: Ljubljana to Bled

Start your Slovenia road trip in the capital city of Ljubljana. It’s not only the economic and political centre of Slovenia, it’s also the geographic mid-point of the country – so it is perfect as a starting point for exploring the multifaceted state on the Adriatic.

Lively Ljubljana is also gaining popularity as an exciting new city break destination. To read more about Ljubljana, Click Here: Ljubljana City Guide. 

Triglav National Park, with an area of about 850 square kilometres is located just 55 kilometres northwest of Ljubljana. The major part of the National Park is situated in the Julian Alps, a range of limestone mountains with bizarre rock formations and caves that are still largely unexplored. The eastern border of Triglav National Park is formed by the thousand year old city of Bled and its lake. 

In the west, the nature preserve borders on the white-water sports paradise surrounding the small town of Bovec. Triglav National Park is an attractive natural destination that is particularly popular among mountain climbers and hiking enthusiasts.

Slovenia Road Trips: Kamnik and the Logar Valley

It also does not take long to get to Kamnik, which is located about 23 kilometres north of Ljubljana. The small medieval town is the gateway to the rugged peaks and idyllic valleys of the Kamniške Alps and is thus an ideal base for hiking the high mountain trails. Two castle ruins tower above Kamnik: the small castle (Mali grad) and the old castle (Stari grad). From here, visitors can enjoy a breathtaking view over the plain towards Ljubljana as well as the Alps.

To the north, the Logar Valley - one of the most beautiful Slovenian alpine valleys - snakes its way into the Kamniške and the Savinja Alps. This fascinating region enthrals visitors with its breathtaking landscape and the heartfelt hospitality of its rustic inns and taverns.

Slovenia Road Trips: Maribor to Pomurje and the Mura River

Heading in a northeastwardly direction, sooner or later you will end up in Maribor, the city of the “Lent” Festival. The university town is located on the banks of the River Drava between luxuriant vineyards on the one side and the dark wooded slopes of the Pohorje Mountains on the other. The heart of the town boasts of numerous well-preserved castles and palaces; by contrast, the Old Town is characterised by medieval squares. Every year in June in particular, Maribor is transformed into a real crowd puller, when it hosts Slovenia’s largest and most important music and cultural festival – the “Lent” Festival – with more than half a million guests.

In the eastern part of the country, Pomurje, a dreamy landscape along the Mura River, enchants visitors with its wide-open fields, gently rolling hills, water mills, picturesque vineyards and its health spa resorts.

Slovenia Road Trips: The Dolenjska Region and Bela krajina

In the Dolenjska Region, about 70 kilometres southeast of Ljubljana, dense forest growth lines the river valleys of the Krka and the Kolpa, romantic castle hotels pamper guests with sumptuous canopy beds and karst caverns offer a taste of the underworld. The region surrounding Novo Mesto as well as the karst landscape of Bela krajina (“White Country”) in the southwest is an almost untouched part of Slovenia that has hardly been developed yet.

Slovenia Road Trips: Adriatic Coast Slovenian Beaches

The seaside is also only a hop, skip and a jump away from the “City of Love”: the Slovenian Adriatic Coast, which is only 46 kilometres long, is characterised by one small Venetian-style town after another like a string of pearls. Enthusiasts describe Piran as a real “jewel”: the town is situated on a spit of land that is surrounded on three sides by water and juts far out into the sea; it is encircled by a city wall, which makes it look like the prow of a ship. The town’s economic wealth was built on the salt trade - the salt works of Secovlje in the vicinity are still in operation and every year in August they are the focus of the Salt Harvest Festival.

On the road from the coast to Ljubljana, travellers to Slovenia will discover the town of Lipica, which is famous for its dressage horses, as well as the fascinating caves and caverns of Postojna.

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