pja1

Hi all,

We are looking to add Slovenia to a possible trip next Sept. or October. Our plan would be to fly into Munich, get a rental car, stay in Zell am See the first 2 nights and then our last 3 nights in the Berchtesgaden area before flying out of Munich. Below is what we're looking to do in between these two places.

Would this make sense...
2 nights at the Tourist Farm Hudicevec to visit Predjama Castle and spend at least a day and evening visiting Ljubljiana, then 4 nights in/near Lake Bled (thinking Pension Berc, Pension Alp or The Dolinar-Krainer) to visit Lake Bled, Lake Bohinj, Vogel cable car, day trip to drive Vrsic Pass and a day in Logarska Dolina area with a drive of the Panorama Road there. Wondering if this is a sensible plan. We don't want to stay "in" Ljubljiana itself, but nearby as we're looking forward to staying in a scenic area and preferably on a farm. We're not hikers but do enjoy alpine scenery.

Thanks in advance for any help or suggestions.

Paul

kja

Sounds like a reasonable plan to me.

If weather permits, you might also consider visiting the Vintgar Gorge from Lake Bled. (Andrew may disagree!)

pja1

Hi kja,

Thank you for the response.

Paul

xyz99

We spent about the same amount of time in Slovenia this September, and had a great time. The Lake Bled area is beautiful, and 4 days there will be fantastic. We stayed at Pension Meyer, right across the street from Pension Berc – great location. Have dinner one night at Pension Meyer’s restaurant, it was one of our best meals; have the deer goulash.

We loved Vintgar Gorge, it’s an easy walk in a beautiful setting. It was chilly in the morning before the sun got up, so have a light jacket that you can take off later.
We drove over the Vrsic pass to Piran, and it was a very nice drive. Do you plan to go back and forth the same way in one day? Or do a loop over the pass? If the latter, it is a long drive…leave early. The road is very good, but has a lot of hair pin curves, it is slow driving. Unfortunately, not a lot of places you can pull over for pictures. Probably the best way would be to do the pass on your way back to Germany, but I don’t have a map in front of me…

Ljubljana is a very nice town – we only spent ½ day there, and it was pouring. Wish we had more…
Slovenia is absolutely gorgeous, and people are extremely friendly. You will love it there.
http://ioana-mark.smugmug.com/Travel...5900&k=gpSHqrq

pja1

Hi xyz99,

Beautiful photo's! We've taken 9 trips to Austria so far and decided to add Slovenia next time. Sounds like an especially good idea now!

We plan on driving the Vrsic Pass and then back to Lake Bled. Probably back tracking, but not sure yet. Thank you for the Pension Meyer recommendation.

This is our tentative plan:

Day 1 - arrive early morning at Munich airport and drive to Zell am See, Austria. Afternoon/night around Zell am See.
Day 2 - Drive the Grossglockner Hochalpenstrasse (we've done it before and loved it). Stay in Zell am See.
Day 3 - Drive to Postojna area, maybe see Predjama Castle - stay in Postojna area.
Day 4 - See Predjama castle (if we didn't already) and Piran - stay in Postojna area.
Day 5 - Drive to Lake Bled, walk around the lake, etc - stay Lake Bled
Day 6 - Lake Bohinj and Vogel Mt. cable car - stay Lake Bled
Day 7 - Drive the Vrsic Pass loop - stay Lake Bled
Day 8 - Drive to Logarska Dolina area - stay Lake Bled
Day 9 - Drive to Ramsau bei Berchtesgaden - stay in Ramsau
Day 10 - Visit Salzburg - stay in Ramsau.
Day 11 - Visit Ramsau, Berchtesgaden, Konigsee - stay in Ramsau.
Day 12 - drive to Munich airport for an afternoon flight home.

Appreciate any other advice or something you think we may be missing.

xyz99

Pja1,
9 trips to Austria, wow, I’m jealous…such a beautiful country, and so easy to visit! We only had 2, and we know we only scratched the surface. Hopefully more in the future.
We were hoping to drive the Grossglockner Hochalpenstrasse this time, but we could not fit that into the itinerary, so we are saving it for some other time.

Do you have your flights already purchased? If not, consider an open jaw ticket, fly into Munich (do the Germany/Austria part first), then drive to Slovenia and fly out of Ljubljana (or maybe Zagreb). Your rental might cost more, but you would have a more streamlined trip, without backtracking.

I don’t know if our case was an exception, but when I tried to book Pension Brec in Jan/Feb for Sept, it was already booked. That’s how we ended up at Pension Meyer, which was a great choice, too. Just be aware of that it seems to book early.

In Postojna, make sure you visit the cave. On your Vrsic pass loop, leave some time to stop on the Soca river valley. The water is amazing, pure turquoise. For the Vogel Mt. cable car, make sure it is a clear day.
Happy planning, have a great trip!

pja1

Hi,

We've done so many trips to Austria (with Bavaria and the Dolomites) because everytime we plan to go somewhere else, we ultimately decide we want to back again. This time we decided to simply add a new "element" (Slovenia).

No, no flights purchased yet. We prefer the Munich r/t, as it wouldn't seem like a vacation without ending in Ramsau bei Berchtesgaden. We don't mind "backtracking", especially through these area's.

Good to know now that these places book up early. Jan./Feb. for Sept. is really early! We'll make a point of booking way in advance. Thanks again, as we would never have even considered booking so far in advance. Thanks for all the info and for sharing your photo's!

FYI: if you do go back to Austria and drive the Grossglockner Hochalpenstrasse, stop in Heiligenblut for a night and then head into the Dolomites. They are spectacular and like nothing else you'll see in the Alps, plus driving the Dolomites Passes is as good, or even better, than the Grossglockner, at least in my opinion.

If interested:

www.worldisround.com/home/pja1/index.html

Paul

kja

Your latest plan doesn't seem to include Ljubljana. Have you changed your mind about visiting it? It is a uniquely delightful city; I would encourage you to find time for it if you can!

pja1

Hi kja,

Ljubljana is a must visit for us. I plan on spending one afternoon and evening while we are based in Lake Bled. I see I left it out on the itinerary.