Cerknica

Introducing Cerknica

Cerknica is the largest town on a lake that isn’t always a lake – one of Slovenia’s most unusual natural phenomena. It’s close to Notranjska Regional Park and the gorge at Rakov Škocjan.

The area around Lake Cerknica has been settled since prehistoric times, and a trade route once ran over the Bloke Plateau to the east, linking Slovenia and Croatia. During the Roman period, Cerknica was a stopover on the road leading from Emona (Ljubljana) to the coast. Cerknica was given town status in the 11th century.

But Cerknica is a good example of how important communication lines are for the development of a town. The railway linking Trieste and Ljubljana opened in 1857, but it dodged Cerknica in favour of Rakek, 5km to the northwest. The highway from Ljubljana towards the coast follows the same route, and Cerknica remains something of a backwater.

Last updated: Feb 17, 2009