Transport in Ljubljana - Lonely Planet Travel Information

Getting there & away

Land
Hitching

Land

Bus

Buses to destinations both within Slovenia and abroad leave from the same shedlike bus station (234 46 01, information 090 42 30; www.ap-ljubljana.si; Trg OF 4; 5.30am-10.30pm Mon-Sat, 8am-8pm Sun) opposite the train station. Next to the ticket windows are bilingual information phones and touch-screen computers. The posted timetable is useful once you get the hang of it.

You do not usually have to buy your ticket in advance; just pay as you board the bus. But for long-distance trips on Friday, just before the school break and public holidays, you are running the risk of not getting a seat. Book one the day before and reserve a seat (€1/3.60 domestic/international).

You can reach virtually anywhere in the country by bus – as close as Kamnik (€3, 45 minutes, 23km, every half-hour) or as far away as Brežice (€9.60, three hours, 109km, four a day). Here are some sample one-way fares (return fares are double), travel times, distances and frequencies from the capital: Bled (€6.15, 1¼ hours, 57km, hourly), Bohinj (€8, two hours, 86km, hourly), Koper (€10.75, 2½ hours, 122km, up to 11 daily), Maribor (€11.20, three hours, 127km; between two and eight daily), Murska Sobota (€15.70, 4¼ hours, 187km, one or two a day), Novo Mesto (€7, two hours, 72km, seven to 10 a day), Piran (€11.70, three hours, 140km, up to seven daily) and Postojna (€5.75, one hour, 53km, up to 24 daily).

Car & motorcycle

All the big international car-rental firms have offices in Ljubljana, including Avis (430 80 10; www.avis.si; Čufarjeva ulica 2; 8am-6pm Mon-Fri, 8-11am & 6-8pm Sat, 8-11am Sun), Budget (421 73 40; www.budget-slovenia.com; Grand Hotel Union Business, Miklošičeva cesta 3; 8am-4pm Mon-Fri, 9am-noon Sat) and Hertz (434 01 47; www.hertz.si; Trdinova ulica 9; 8am-6pm Mon-Fri, 8am-1pm Sat, 8am-noon Sun). However, you should get a better deal at one of the local firms listed below.

ABC Rent a Car Cityhotel Turist (510 43 20, 031-382 051; infoabc@siol.net; Cityhotel Turist, Dalmatinova ulica 15, enter from Tavčarjeva ulica; 8am-4pm Mon-Fri, 8-11am & 6-8pm Sat, 8-11am Sun); airport (04-236 79 90; Brnik Airport; 8am-9pm) Has its own fleet and acts as an agent for Europcar (www.europcar.si).

Atet Rent a Car (513 70 17; www.atet.si; Derčeva ulica 4; 8am-6pm Mon-Fri, 8am-noon Sat) In the M Hotel.

AutoRent (234 46 50; www.rentacarslo.com; Trg OF 5; 8am-6pm Mon-Fri, 8am-1 Sat, 8am-noon Sun) Next to the post office.

Train

Domestic and international trains arrive at and depart from central Ljubljana’s lone train station (291 33 32; www.slo-zeleznice.si; Trg OF 6; 5am-10pm). You can get rail information from window no 10. Buy domestic tickets from window nos 1 to 8 and international ones from nos 9 and 10. You’ll also find a branch of the Ljubljana Tourist Information Centre here.

The following are some one-way 2nd-class domestic fares, travel times, distances and frequencies from Ljubljana: Bled (€3.90 to €5.30, 55 minutes, 51km, up to 17 a day), Koper (€7.30 to €8.70, 2½ hours, 153km, four times a day), Maribor (€7.30 to €12.40, 1¾ hours, 156km, up to 25 a day), Murska Sobota (€9.90 to €14.50, 4¼ hour, 216km, up to eight a day) and Novo Mesto (€5, 1½ hours, 75km, up to 14 daily). Return fares are double the price, and there’s a surcharge of between €1.45 to €1.80 on domestic InterCity (IC) train tickets.