Going to Slovenia this summer, any suggestions?

[Matata]

Still in early planning stages -- so far, itinerary includes Bled, Split, Plitvice & Ljubljana. Will probably fly into Munich & train from there. Are we missing out if we don't include Istria? Anyone have suggestions on accommodations? We're using Rick Steves guide but welcome suggestions.

 

[Loves Vintage]

Hi Matata,

I've only been to Croatia, so can't comment on your Slovenian destinations -- only to say that I am jealous! We do have a poster (Astra) from Croatia, but I don't know if she posts any longer.

How long do you plan to spend in Plitvice and Split? We spent two nights in Plitvice and stayed in a nice (and inexpensive) apartment, which was more or less inside the park. I am not sure if there are any hotels inside the park itself. I will look for a link to the apartment later this evening and will post for you. It was fairly basic, but comfortable, and very very peaceful. Plitvice was wonderful. It was on my list of must-see places after seeing the PBS special -- http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/fallinglakes/. I'm happy to hear it's on your itinerary already.

I was in Split only for a few hours. We departed from there to Hvar, which is where we got married. Have you considered adding Hvar to your itinerary? It is so beautiful there, but of course, the whole country is! It is hard to go wrong!

We also spent a few days in Opatija, a seaside resort town and a wonderful place to relax and eat well! We drove from Opatija to Istria one day and spent the day visiting a few hill-top towns and even made it to Pula and back the same night. Istria was certainly very nice to see. I know people like spending a whole week in Istria, just enjoying the countryside.

Be sure to leave extra room in your luggage to bring back some lovely Croatian olive oil. We picked up some at more touristy type places (like the shops in Istria), but I purchased quite a few bottles from a local grocery store and thought is was the best ever!

 

[dinamit]

Hi Matata,

Well, I happen to come from former Yugoslavia, and my brother lives in Ljubljana, so ask away!

Ljubljana is a great city, with a fab cultural scene. Bled is wonderful. There is another lake, called Bohinj, that is as famous but the beauty there is more wild. Great for walks. Make sure to go to the Postojna cave - it's out of this world.

The beautiful thing about that part of the world is that everything is so near. My brother drives to Klagenfurt in Austria for work, might pop to Italy briefly, and back to Ljubljana all in a day. You could go to the seaside town of Piran (Slovenia), that is often referred to as miniature Dubrovnik, which is right on the Italian border. From there, you could take a day trip to Venice by boat. The possibilities are endless.

I am not that mad about Istria, and prefer southern regions of Croatia, namely Dalmatia. However, if you are going to Istria anyway, the town of Rovinj is the most charming. Croatia, and it's many islands is stunning, but unless you are going for quite a while I would leave that for another trip. I wouldn't spend more than a couple of days, if that, in Split. Yes, it is beautiful city with a wonderful palace to see, but ultimately it's a big port.

I hope that helps. Please let me know if you'd like to know anything else.

Happy holiday planning!

P.S. It might be an idea to fly to Trieste in Italy instead of Munich as it's much closer to both Slovenia and Istria and you can get cheap flights from most European destinations. I don't know where you are based.

 

[Matata]

Thanks LV & dinamit. Can either of you advise on the best way to return to the US from Plitvice -- fly out of Zagreb or somewhere else?

 

[dinamit]

Wow Matata, that is a long way to come to visit Slovenia. Yes, Zagreb airport is the nearest at about 140km away.

 

[Loves Vintage]

We flew JFK to Zagreb and connected through Paris/CDG. We flew back the same route. If you will be in Zagreb, even for one night, I must recommend The Regent Esplanade: http://www.theregentzagreb.com/ . You'll be greeted with a glass of Champagne while checking in at one of the lovely desks in their gorgeous lobby! Loved our stay there.

dinamit - If you wouldn't mind, I wanted to ask you about the tunnels in Croatia. Are there similar tunnels in Slovenia? You mentioned your brother's driving to Austria daily, so I wondered if the highways are similar in Slovenia. When were the tunnels built? I was quite surprised by how long they were and how new they seemed. I haven't seen similar tunnels in the US, and I would imagine such a tunnel would take at least a decade to build here!!