This trip was made in May 2026 and the plan was to use Ljubljana as a base from which to visit Marabor, Celje and Kranj, then go on to Trieste…
I flew to Ljubljana from Manchester Airport with easyJet. Scheduled departure at 13.10 and arriving at 16.35. There’s a taxi booking office in the arrivals hall if you haven’t already arranged a transfer to the city. Jože Pučnik Airport, also known by its previous name Brnik Airport, is the international airport serving Ljubljana and is about 25km from the city centre.
BA and easyJet fly directly from the UK to Ljubljana during their summer schedules. At other times it means flying via hubs such as Amsterdam, Frankfurt and Zurich…
There isn’t a currency exchange at the airport but, as Slovenia is in the eurozone, it doesn’t really need one.
The central bridge of the three forming the Triple Bridge was built in 1842, replacing a medieval wooden bridge. Between 1929 and 1932, the side bridges were added to the original stone bridge to a design by the architect Jože Plečnik…The Franciscan Church of the Annunciation on the left, Urbanc House in the centre and Mayerjeva palača (Mayer Palace) on the right…Statue of the poet, France Prešeren (1800–1849), who wrote mostly in Slovenian and is best known for his sonnets, was one of Europe’s great Romantic poets…Franciscan Church of the AnnunciationFranciscan Church of the AnnunciationThe Galerija Emporium is housed in Urbanc House, a renovated Art Nouveau palace, that was home to Ljubljana’s first department store, that opened in 1903…Hauptmann House was built in 1873 and was one of the city’s few buildings to survive the great earthquake of 1895 almost intact. After the earthquake, it was bought by local paint merchant Adolf Hauptmann, who commissioned the architect Ciril Metod Koch to redesign the façade and roof. The house was rebuilt in 1904 in the Viennese Secession style, fashionable at the time. The façade was decorated with a geometric pattern of coloured ceramic tiles…In Prešernov trg (square) looking over towards Ljubljana’s St Nicholas Cathedral in the background…In Prešernov trg looking over the triple bridge and up at at Ljubljana Castle that dominates the skyline…
River Ljubljanica:
Ljubljanica River, 41km, rises in the town of Vrhnika, flowing through the Ljubljana Marshes and the centre of Ljubljana. It then joins the Sava River near Podgrad where the Kamnik Bistrica also joins the Sava…
Poljanska cesta:
Poljanska cesta runs through the heart of Lubljana’s historic centre from the Central Market to the Church of St Jacob at Karlovška ceste…
To make life easier, it changes names several times. So, if you start off at the Central Market in Vodnikov trg, Poljanska cesta then becomes Ciril Metodov trg and then Mestni trg (roughly at the Town Hall) before becoming Stari trg. It’s a lot easier in reality as it is essentially one street – albeit a beautiful and fascinating one…
It is mostly pedestrianised – just keep an eye out for cyclists, e-scooters, the odd taxi and occasional delivery vehicle…
The Robba Fountain and the Mestna hiša (town hall)…Ljubljana’s Town Hall (Mestna hiša, Magistrat or Rotovž), is the seat of the Municipality of Ljubljana. It was built in the late 15th century and gained its present appearance between 1717 and 1719. The building was later altered several times, the most recent was in 1963. The Town Hall façade reflects Venetian architectural influences. The vestibule provides space for a late Gothic plaque with a coat of arms surviving from the original Town Hall building and a 17th century statue of Hercules with a lion, previously a part of the Hercules Fountain which used to stand in the middle of the nearby Stari trg square. In the Town Hall’s arched courtyard stands Francesco Robba’s Narcissus Fountain (Narcisov vodnjak) from Bokalce Castle (Grad Bokalce)…The Robba Fountain, one of Ljubljana’s best known Baroque monuments, also known as The Fountain of Three Carniolan Rivers, stands at the edge of the Mestni trg square. It was created between 1743 and 1751 by the Venetian-born sculptor and architect Francesco Robba (1698-1757), who spent most of his life in Ljubljana and is considered to be the city’s greatest Baroque master sculptor working in stone. The Robba Fountain is modelled on famous Roman fountains. The sculptures of three river gods adorning it are believed to represent three Carniolan rivers: the Sava, the Ljubljanica and the Krka…The Church of St Jacob
Ljubljana Cathedral of St Nicholas:
There has been a church on this site since 1262. After a fire in 1361 it was re-built in the Gothic style and underwent further alterations and additions until it was burnt down in 1469. Between 1701 and 1706, a new Baroque hall church with side chapels shaped in the form of the Latin cross was built to a design by the Jesuit architect Andrea Pozzo. The dome was added in 1841…The Slovene Door was added in 1996 to commemorate the visit by Pope John Paul II. It depicts the 6 bishops of the 20th century standing over the body of Christ – eerily it looks like they have conspired to kill Jesus and are admiring their handiwork and not commemorating the 1250 years since the introduction of Christianity the door was designed to represent…
Kongresni trg:
View from my room at the Occidental Hotel…The Ljubljana marathon was being held during my stay – it began and ended here. Othere events are held here, too…The impressive University of Ljubljana was founded in 1919. It is the oldest and largest in Slovenia with around 40,000 students. This is the main building, with other faculties in the city centre and newer university buildings on the outskirts of Ljubljana…
Ljubljana Castle:
Ljubljana Castle, standing on a hill above the city for about 900 years, is Ljubljana’s main attraction. The castle’s Outlook Tower and ramparts offer some of the most beautiful views of the city, while the castle houses a museum exhibition on Slovenian history, a puppet museum, and a number of historical rooms such as the Chapel of St George, the Prison, and a video presentation room called Virtual Castle…
If you don’t fancy waiting for the funicular there is a nice walk up to the hotel that is a mixture of slopes and steps. The trail is signposted and starts off in Študentovska ulica, which is just off Vodnikov trg. It doesn’t look very promising initially…Nice viewing platform on the walk up to the castle – adjacent to the funicular, as you can see…I timed my visit well as it was a free day – there were lots of activities for families to get involved in and market stalls…Restoration underway…Ljubljana has three mountain ranges close by: the Kamnik-Savinja Alps, the Julian Alps and the Karavanks…
Museums and Galleries:
The National Museum, National Art Gallery, Modern Art Gallery, Opera House, American Embassy and the Orthodox Church of Saints Cyril and Methodius…
The National MuseumThe National Art GalleryThe Modern Art GalleryThe most interesting exhibit in the modern art gallery – the rest is what you’d expect from a “modern art” gallery…The Museum of Contemporary Art is dismal…
AKC Metelkova Mesto:
Anyone familiar with the independent republic of Užupis in Vilnius or Freetown Christiana in Copenhagen will get the idea of this place, which is adjacent to the Museum of Contemporary Art…
Other Buildings of Interest:
The Opera HouseThe American Embassy…The Cooperative Business Bank (Vurnik House) on Miklošičeva cestaThe oddly named Centre of Excellence in Finance on Cankarjeva cesta Ursuline Church of the Holy TrinitySt. Peter’s Parish ChurchThe Orthodox Church of Saints Cyril and MethodiusThe best ice cream in Ljubljana – their vanilja excelsa is indeed excellent
Statues and Monuments:
The “Monument to the Revolution” in Republic Square, is a memorial that commemorates the WWII victory of the Yugoslav Partisans…Not the gates of hell but very similar…An intriguing collection of homunculiAt the excellent Parlament Pub on Šubičeva ulica, which is just off Slovenska Cesta and adjacent to the building with the display of homunculi…
Žale Cemetery:
Central Station:
The central bus station is in front of the central station – the railway station is being rebuilt…FlixBus and Nomago services arrive and depart from here – it can get a bit chaotic if 2 or 3 FlixBus services arrive at the same time…The new station is scheduled to open in July 2026, hmmm…
Getting Around:
I didn’t make it to Maribor, Celje and Kranj as the rail network was in a state of flux at the time of my visit and I hadn’t planned accordingly, which was astonishingly dim…
GoOpti offers a useful network of routes around Slovenia and I used them to go from Ljubljana to Trieste. They use a fleet of minibuses and operate a bit like a taxi firm but run to timetables and you share the ride with other travellers: http://www.goopti.com
FlixBus run several routes through Slovenia, concentrating on major cities: http://www.flixbus.co.uk
Nomago is a Slovenian bus company running various routes around the country: http://www.nomago.si
Given that Maribor is only 130km from Ljubljana it does seem strange that some of the FlixBus and Nomago services take around 4 hours, while GoOpti takes around 1hr30.
Future Visits:
Note to self: BA and easyJet fly direct to Ljubljana in the summer – check their websites to determine exactly when they fly. All year round options include Lufthansa via Zurich or Frankfurt and KLM via Amsterdam. Check the rail network status and also hope that Slovenian rail have significantly improved their app…
Hi Terry – thank you for your message, sorry I’ve taken so long to reply! Ljubljana is a lovely, friendly city – during the summer flight schedules it’s reasonably easy to get direct flights from the UK. A lot of people drive around and through the country as the roads are good and it’s the most straightforward way of seeing the country. It was my first visit in over 20 years and lovely to see how the city has blossomed. Hope you’re well and have lots of trips planned – Barnaby
Fascinating insight into a place that would not be on many people’s tourist radar I should imagine Barnaby.
Looks like a stunning place to visit.
Hi Terry – thank you for your message, sorry I’ve taken so long to reply! Ljubljana is a lovely, friendly city – during the summer flight schedules it’s reasonably easy to get direct flights from the UK. A lot of people drive around and through the country as the roads are good and it’s the most straightforward way of seeing the country. It was my first visit in over 20 years and lovely to see how the city has blossomed. Hope you’re well and have lots of trips planned – Barnaby