MADAME:
Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia. It is the smallest European capital; it is never crowded but is packed full of atmosphere, culture, history, gastronomy and life.
We stayed at the Grand Plaza Hotel within easy walking distance to the city centre. With a spacious room on the 15th floor and views across the city, we were ideally located. With a great buffet breakfast too, we were set for a day of exploring.
En-route while walking into the city, you cannot miss stopping at the Vurnik house; it is one of Ljubljana's most famous buildings. Its brightly coloured Art Nouveau and richly decorated facade makes it stand out from the surrounding buildings. Built in 1921 it is one of the finest examples of Slovenian national style architecture.
Closed to cars since 2007, the old city is a delight to walk around with many bridges criss-crossing the curving Ljubljanica River, which is lined with restaurants, cafes and bars to suit all tastes.
Come rain or shine, the Slovenians love to sit outside and even on the coldest days, heaters, rugs and blankets are on offer to keep you warm while enjoying a drink. An added bonus was that there was no international coffee shop in sight – Ljubljana is truly authentic!
If you don’t wish to walk everywhere, then bicycle hire is a great option and with very reasonable rates.
The city has stunning Art Nouveau architecture and many museums to explore. The 900 year old Ljubljana Castle is a must see with its variety of architecture and uses, making it a real asset to the city.
Accessed either on foot via a winding path up the hill or by funicular railway, not only do you get stunning views across the whole city and as far as the eye can see to the huge snow-capped mountains on the horizon, but the complex offers a museum on Slovenian history, a puppet museum, the Chapel of St George with its stunning Coat of Arms ceiling, the recently refurbished Prison and the ‘Virtual Castle’; a 15mins video of the castle’s history.
Back in the heart of the city is the central market, an open-air market selling fresh local produce as well as clothes, bags, scarves and souvenirs. Opposite is the ‘Mercado cubierto de Plečnika’ or Plečnika Arcade’; a covered market of small shops located in a colonnade running alongside the river, designed by Ljubljana's famous architect Jože Plečnik. Each small shop sells local speciality cheeses, hams, and local beers. There are also a few outside stalls selling woven baskets and local herbs.
Across the road is the enclosed market, located in a semi-basement. Once inside you absorb the sights and smells of the local honey, breads, meats and cheese. We bought some of the traditional ‘Potica’; delicious brioche-style bread with a ground nut filling rolled through it! Don’t forget to buy some of Slovenia’s famous honey too!
While on the topic of food, throughout our trip, Slovenia wine was always present and it was stunning! Be sure to buy a bottle or two to bring home. Light yet full of flavour, it went with everything (except breakfast!)
Back to sightseeing! Behind the market is Ljubljana Cathedral; a Roman Catholic cathedral with a baroque interior, including gilded columns & ceiling frescoes.
One thing you will notice in Ljubljana are the many bridges; each unique in style and essential to making the city accessible. The Dragon Bridge has four fierce dragons and is a superb example of Art Nouveau architecture, built in the early 1900’s. It was one of the largest bridges of its kind to be built in Europe at the time!
The Butchers' Bridge is Ljubljana's love bridge, with hundreds of padlocks along its railings. Cobblers' Bridge, was formerly a covered wooden bridge that provided space for cobblers' workshops - hence the name Cobblers' Bridge!
The main bridge is the Triple Bridge which has stood since 1842, and designed by Jože Plečnik. The central bridge replaced a strategically important medieval wooden bridge, before the two additional bridges either side were added mainly for pedestrians. Of course today there are no cars in the city centre at all, allowing you to appreciate the unique bridge design.
The bridge acted as one of the city gates leading to medieval Ljubljana and now meets the central Prešernov trg square. Within the square is a Franciscan church built in the 17th century as well as a statue of Slovenia’s most famous Poet, France Prešeren.
The city is delightful to just wander around and don’t be afraid to walk up smaller alleys and the many cobbled streets; there are many interesting shops along the way, all housed in historic buildings. Don’t miss a look at Slovenian other well-known commodity; Crystal! The river is its main feature enhanced with plenty of trees dotted all along its embankment making it very picturesque.
At ‘Parc Zvezda’, or Congress Square, the tree fringed square also has plenty of seats. The buildings facing into the square include the Philomonic building, the university and a school museum. For an authentic coffee stop, try Zvezda (there are several dotted across the city, but this one is the most traditionally decorated). However, don’t hope to order from the printed menu – you order only from what you see in the cake display case!
The Town Hall located in the Town Square, which is really just a widened road was originally built in the late 15th century, but over time has seen many changes and additions; however that does not detract from its beautiful interior or the ornate clock tower. In the arched courtyard stands Francesco Robba's Narcissus Fountain from Bokalce Castle, while there are regular free exhibitions on display or events held within the large entrance hallway.
You can easily discover the city in a couple of days, which is exactly what we did, but there are a wide variety of tours and workshops to do too if you wish. From walking or cycling tours, to the Beer Experience, the Yummy Market walk, the Moustache Tour to pottery or printing workshops, umbrella repair, or metalwork, all still focused on the recycle and reuse philosophy.
We took a walking tour with a recognised local city tour guide, Simona, who was fun and gave just the right amount of information, while also checking if there was anything in particular we wanted to focus on.
The only negative aspect of the trip is getting to it! With limited direct flights into Ljubljana International Airport, (especially in Winter, when we went), access is via the international airports of Zagreb in Croatia, Trieste or Venice in Italy, each with an 1½-2hr transfer time each way. Having said that, transport connections are set up to make the city as accessible as possible, but it just takes a bit more organising to get there…. But it is worth it and you will not be disappointed!
It is no wonder Ljubljana won the European Best Destination in 2022!
Now you too need to go and see why!
MADEMOISELLE:
Ljubljana, an old city but with modern, future ideas that has given them the recognition of being one of the top cities for being green and eco-friendly.
As flight connections are not very strong or frequent coming into Ljubljana, out of season, alternative routes can take you to Zagreb, Croatia which is an hour and half drive to Ljubljana or to Venice, Italy which is a 2-hour drive. We flew into Zagreb.
We checked into the Grand Plaza Hotel, which is a 10-15mins walk into the city centre. The hotel’s style is modern art deco with crystal stone pattern prints on the walls, on all floors and rooms, giving it a touch of luxury. It has six styles of rooms, we had a tour of three of the rooms; Junior Suit, Grand twin, and Superior King room. Each were unique and varied to suit different needs and people.
The breakfast buffet had something for everyone. I am a pastry breakfast person in the morning, always going for the croissants or pain au raisin, so I was impressed when the croissants were flaky and not raw inside, which I have found is often an issue in hotels. The atmosphere where breakfast was served was relaxing and a nice way to start your day.
The weather in Ljubljana was perfect, cold but sunny, which I love. It gave us a great opportunity to take good pictures and really capture the city in its true beauty. As the city is not big, we had a walking tour which was fantastic. Our tour guide was exceptional, she made it enjoyable, giving us fun stories and myths of the city whilst getting to the point and giving us relevant facts.
Sometimes I think taking a tour and listening to someone can be boring but not with our tour guide. We started our tour in the square were the main church was, which reminded me of our trip to Lithuania. The street next to the church had a building which had the design and colours that you would more likely find in Spain, which I thought was unusual.
The city had many wine bars with outside seating which are scenic especially in the summer, located next to the river which runs through the city and has multiple bridges, similar to Venice. Locals were still willing to sit outside even in the cold, enjoying their glass of wine or coffee with blankets and outside heaters which is different to see as if people sat outside in the cold in the UK we would call them crazy!
We took the cable car up to Ljubljana Castle. There is a small courtyard in the middle of the castle with a restaurant on one side, the museum a shop and a hall which can be hired out for various events. In the summer it is very busy as people come and watch the sunset over the city whilst sipping on delicious sweet Slovenian wine (which I had plenty of!). We went up the tower, to the very top (lots of spiral stairs) but worth it as the view was incredible.
You could see the snowy mountains in the far distance and as it had been snowing, the rooftops were covered and it just looked magical! To really get the scope and understand Ljubljana as a city in Europe, seeing it from above is a must.
As we came back down, walking the cobbled streets, there is a section along the river which had canal style houses just like in Amsterdam. I felt that with every street you walked down, with its architecture and style it bought together certain things from varies countries; Italy, Lithuania, Poland, Spain and Amsterdam with these elements of these countries, it somehow moulded them to make its own culture and history that has the power to attract tourists but also locals to stay in Ljubljana and build their lives.
Ljubljana is not a big city and can be seen in two days, which is perfect for a weekend away.
However, what Slovenia has to offer does not end there as you have Bled, located in the foothills of Slovenia and which is famous for the church in the middle of a lake which I would love to go and see and experience Slovenian nature. In addition, you have the coast of Slovenia, on the Adriatic sea which looks bliss in the summer.
My Slovenian experience has just begun and I am eager to explore more and I hope you do too once you explore Ljubljana.
February 2023
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