Things to do in Slovenia
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Emerald River Adventure
Agencies such as 3glav, Life Trek and OSA organise a wide range of outdoor activities in and around Bled. The 3glav agency's most popular trip is the Emerald River Adventure, an 11-hour hiking and swimming foray into Triglav National Park and along the Soča River. A two-day guided ascent of Triglav from Pokljuka, the Vrata Valley or Kot Valley costs around €150. More challenging mountaineering traverses lasting between three and five days cost between around €250 and around €500.
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Julija
Julija serves up decent risottos and pastas either outside on the pavement terrace or in a Delft-tiled backroom behind a cafe decorated with 1920s prints.
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Bled Castle
Perched atop a steep cliff more than 100m above the lake, Bled Castle is how most people imagine a medieval fortress to be - with towers, ramparts, moats and a terrace offering magnificent views on a clear day. The castle, which is built on two levels, dates back to the 11th century (although most of what stands here now is from the 16th century) and for 800 years was the seat of the Bishops of Brixen.
The baroque southern wing houses a museum collection that traces the history of Lake Bled and its settlements from the Bronze Age to the mid-19th century. None of the furniture is original to the castle, but it helps give you an idea of how the leisured class lived in the…
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Lake Bled
Lake Bled is not a very large body of water - it measures only 2km by 1380m - and the second-best way to see it is from the shore. A walk around the lake (6km) shouldn't take but a couple of hours at the most, including the short (but steep) climb to the brilliant Osojnica viewing point. Along the way, you'll pass linden, chestnut and willow trees hanging over the water, boat slips, wooden walkways, anglers, the start of several hikes and a couple of interesting sights.
On the south shore of Lake Bled you'll pass through the hamlet of Mlino, then leave the main road for a path that passes beneath the grand edifice of the Hotel Vila Bled. Around the far end of the lake,…
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Celje Old Castle
The largest fortress in Slovenia, the Celje Old Castle, is perched on a 407m-high escarpment about 2km southeast of the Old Town; the walk up via a footpath from Cesta na Grad takes about half an hour. The castle was originally built in the early 13th century and went through several transformations, especially under the Counts of Celje in the 14th and 15th centuries.
When the castle lost its strategic importance in the 15th century it was left to deteriorate, and subsequent owners used the stone blocks to build other structures, including parts of the Lower Castle and the Old County Palace. A surprisingly large portion remains intact, however, and has been restored,…
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Sokol
In this old vaulted house near the Central Market, traditional Slovenian food is served on heavy tables by costumed waiters. Pizza is available if traditional dishes like obara (veal stew around €6) and Krvavica sausage with cabbage don't appeal.
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Hot Horse
Hot Horse exists to supply Ljubljančani with a favourite treat: horse burgers. The branch in Park Tivoli is just down the hill from the Museum of Contemporary History .
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Taverna Tatjana
Looking like an old-world wooden-beamed cottage pub with a nautical theme, this is actually a rather exclusive fish restaurant with a lovely (and protected) back courtyard for the warmer months.
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outdoor activities
Agencies such as 3glav, Life Trek and OSA organise a wide range of outdoor activities in and around Bled, including trekking, mountaineering, rock climbing, ski touring, cross-country skiing, mountain biking, rafting, kayaking, canyoning, caving, horse riding and paragliding.
A 2½-hour rafting trip down the Sava Bohinjka/Soča River costs around €23/around €30, and a three-hour canyoning descent is around €45. Kayak trips lasting three hours cost around €38. Paragliding is around €70. Horse riding starts at around €40 for a two-hour outing.
A half-day tour of the (easy) Bobji Zob cave near Bohinjska Bela is around €20, while the more challenging Simnovo Brezno…
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Prešernov Trg
The centrepiece of Ljubljana's wonderful architectural aesthetic is this marvellous square, a public space of understated elegance that not only serves as the link between the Center district and the Old Town but as the city's favourite meeting point. The square itself is dominated by a monument to the national poet France Prešeren.
Immediately south of the statue is the city's architectural poster-child, the small but much celebrated Triple Bridge (Tromostovje). The original Špital Bridge (1842) was nothing spectacular, but between 1929 and 1932 superstar architect Jože Plečnik added the two pedestrian side bridges, furnished all three with stone balustrades and lamps…
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Abbey Church of St Daniel
A few steps to the northwest of the Water Tower is the Abbey Church of St Daniel, dating from the early 14th century. The church has some magnificent frescoes and tombstones, but its greatest treasure is a 15th-century carved wooden pietà in the Chapel of the Sorrowful Mother to the left of the sanctuary. The chapel has carved stone walls and vaults with remnants of frescoes from the early 15th century and carved effigies of the Apostles.
Parts of Celje's medieval walls and ramparts can be seen along Ulica na Okopih, west of the church.Contiguous with Slomškov trg is Glavni trg, the heart of the Old Town. It is filled with lovely townhouses dating from the 17th and 18th…
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Okarina
This very upmarket restaurant has lost its parklike location just northwest of the Pri Planincu and is now in a modern dining room next to the post office. Still, the ethnic decorations and traditional musical instruments (an okarina is a small clay flute) remain, and along with well-prepared Slovenian and international favourites, the Okarina's tandoor oven produces decent Indian dishes like chicken tikka and rogan josh. There are a fair few vegetarians choices.
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Gostilna As
The 'Ace Inn', in the passage linking Wolfova ulica and Slovenska cesta, is the place for a special occasion, with seafood, a good wine list, and a few classic Slovene dishes dominating the menu. You can also enter from Slovenska cesta 30. The As Lounge in both the cellar and a glassed-in terrace is much more informal, with sandwiches (around €4.15 to around €7.25), salads from(€4.15), and a few less elaborate main courses (from€8.30).
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Gostilna Pri Planincu
En situ since 1903, this is a homely pub-restaurant just down the hill from the Bledec Hostel near the castle. It offers simple Slovenian mains and grilled Balkan specialities like čevapčiči (spicy meatballs of beef or pork; around €6.65) and tasty pljeskavica z kajmakom (Serbian-style meat patties with mascarpone-like cream cheese).
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Pod Rožnikom
This place 'Under Mt Rožnik' (sort of) and just downwind from the zoo in Park Tivoli serves southern Slav-style grills, like pljeskavica (spicy meat patties) with ajvar (roasted red peppers, tomatoes and eggplant cooked into a purée) and starters such as prebranac (onions and beans cooked in an earthenware pot). Worth the trip.
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Manna
Festooned across the front of this canal-side restaurant in Trnovo is the slogan 'Manna - Bžanske Jedi na Zemlji' (Manna - Heavenly Food on Earth). It didn't feel quite like paradise the last time we visited, but the decor is stylish, there's a wonderful covered inner courtyard for dining almost al fresco and the setting is pretty nice.
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Smrekarjev Hram
Smrekar's House starters from €5, mains around €17. This Art Nouveau jewel run by the Grand Hotel Union and named after artist and illustrator Hinko Smrekar (1883-1942), famed (in certain circles) for his 'pan-Slavic' playing cards, has always been considered the poshest international restaurant in Ljubljana. It closes in summer.
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Pri Hrvatu
Two country-style restaurants make a trip to Srednja Vas, the next village over from Studor and about 5km from Ribčev Laz, worthwhile. The first restaurant is Gostišče Rupa. The second is Pri Hrvatu, an equally popular place that can trace its pedigree back eight decades.
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Ajdovo Zrno
A relatively recent arrival on the Ljubljana dining scene, 'Buckwheat Grain' serves soups, sandwiches, fried vegetables and lots of different salads. And they have terrific, freshly squeezed juices, including the unusual rose-petal juice with lemon. Enter from Mali trg.
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Lunch Café
More New York than Ljubljana, this cafe, from the people who brought you Pri Vitezu, is the perfect spot for a late breakfast (from €3.50), even later brunch (from €8.50) and nosh until late. Pasta dishes (from €3.75) are notable.
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Ljubljana Zoo
The 20-hectare Ljubljana Zoo, on the southern slope of Rožnik Hill (394m), contains 580 animals representing more than 150 species. There's also a petting zoo for children. It's an upbeat and well-landscaped menagerie.
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Sofra
Often touted as the most authentic Bosnian restaurant in town, there's also live music every night from September to June, when your fellow diners are likely to provide as much entertainment as those performing.
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Kitajska Zvezda
If you're looking for a fix of rice or noodles, try the 'Chinese Star' on the river just south of the Old Town. Szechuan dishes, including the mapo doufu (tofu with garlic and chilli) are quite good.
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Harambaša
At this small place in Krakovo you'll find authentic Bosnian - Sarajevan to be precise - cuisine served at low tables in a charming modern cottage atmosphere with quiet Balkan music and a lively crowd.
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Cantina Mexicana
The capital's most stylish Mexican restaurant has an eye-catching red-and-blue exterior and haciendalike decor, with sofas and lanterns inside. The fajitas (€7.50-€11.70) are great.
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