Jump

Hi everyone! These forums are a great resource. I'm looking for a review of my Slovenian itinerary along with any suggestions for the trip including hotels. Photography is a hobby so that will drive most of what I'm looking for. In addition to photo ops I'm interested in the old world architecture, food, culture, beer and wine!

I'll be visiting in September and flying into Venice where I'll be spending a few days and then renting a car to drive to Slovenia. Below is the itinerary I've put together at this point. Any suggestions, tips, pointers, etc. would be greatly appreciated!

Days 1-3 in Venice

Day 4 - Venice to Bovec - I’m showing this leg will take around 2.5 hours. I didn’t want to travel too far today as I don’t know how long it will take to pick up the rental car in Venice. I’ve read there is a nice waterfall near Bovec so the plan would be to visit that when I arrive. Are there any other sites I should take in?

Day 5 - Bovec to Lake Bled on Route 206 through Vrsic pass - I’ve read that this is a spectacular drive. Are there places to pull over with photo ops? Any stops along the way I should take in? (I’m showing 1 hour 20 minutes drive from Bovec to Lake Bled). Spend the night somewhere around Lake Bled.

Day 6 - Lake Bled to Lake Bohinj (I’m showing a 20 minute drive). Spend the night somewhere around Lake Bohinj

Day 7 - Bohinj to Ljubljana (I’m showing a 1 hour drive). Possible make a stop in Skofja Loka. Any other stops along the way I should make? Spend the night in Ljubljana.

Day 8 - Stay in Ljubljana

Day 9 - Day trip to Kamnik and then from Kamnik take 225 and 428 into the Logar Valley (I’m showing 34 minutes to Kamnik and a 52 minute drive from Kamnik to Logar Valley). Any other stops along the way? Return to Ljubljana and spend the night there.

Day 10 - Another day in Ljubljana.

Day 11 - Day trip to Predjama Castle and possibly the Postojna Caves (I’m showing a 40 minute druve to Postojna)

Day 12 - Return to Venice (I’m showing a 3 hour drive)

Thanks in advance!

qwovadis

Looks fine to me viamichelin.com routes might add Kotor on the coast come back up through Trieste. No clue if time but
balkanology.com Plitvice NP Croatia truly amazing not
to far between Zagreb and Zadar might work that in if possible.

Good luck beautiful places...

Kodmania

Hi there Jump!

All of Slovenia is scenic so you'll be taking snaps every few minutes!

Near Bovec is the Boka Falls but there is also the really nice historical walk in Kobarid which people do after visiting the museum. It goes to Kozjak Falls, another beautiful spot.

At Bohinj go to Mt Vogel and Vintgar Gorge in Bled. Around Postojna the Rakov Skocjan is a nice place to visit also.

The rest of it sounds great!

If you're interested, there are great photography tours from Adriatic to Alps, see http://adriatic2alps.com/

(I think qwo means Koper not Kotor! and thats another option)
Cheers

Midnightsun

A loop through the Julian Alps starting from either Lake Bled or Ljubljana is a magnificent way to spend a day, but we regret we didn't plan the loop for two days. I'm not usually a great fan of Rick Steves, but his loop through the Julian Alps is a great path for history and photo ops. I read A Farewell to Arms back in high school, and when I came to Slovenia 40 years later, I didn't realize that the Soca River valley is where much of that action took place. The valley and the drive over the mountain passes is incredibly scenic. The WWI museum in Kobarid was voted Europe's best small museum in the early 90's, and our quick glance told us why but didn't satisfy all our curiosity. We took a side trip for lunch up to the Pristava Lepena farm and saw their cabins and Lipizzaner horses. I really think we would have stayed here overnight, which is what we plan to do when we return. We thought we'd be driving the loop from Lake Bled and returning, but we realized by late afternoon that we'd not get back until well after dark, so we took the car train from Bohinjska Bistrica through the mountains, cutting off a long section of roadway that was probably very scenic. However, the rail trip was quite an adventure. You drive your car onto a flatbed, and you stay inside, as you zip through lovely valleys (which probably are not easily accessed by road) and pitch black tunnels. When you come to Most na Soči , it's a short drive back to Lake Bled. Friom Lake Bled, a trip to Radovljica, which is busy restoring its historical past, is definitely worth an afternoon (or late morning...the museum was closed between 12:00 and 2:00, or perhaps 1:00 and 3:00...check on that). The church there was a beautiful gem, and where else could you find a beekeeping museum and two or three small music festivals in a town of that size on a July afternoon. There is a lot to see in Slovenia, and we never did get past the Lake Bled region and Ljublana.

kja

I'm sure you'll have a fabulous time!

I was glad to spend an hour or so at lovely, quiet Lake Bohinj, and I was glad that I had a full day (2 nights) at Lake Bled, from which I visited Vintgar Gorge. You might want to think about tweaking that part of your plan.

Hope that helps!

Jump

Thanks for the comments and suggestions everyone! kja, I was actually just going to post a question exactly along the lines of what you suggested. Since they are only 20-30 minutes apart, it would make more sense to stay two nights in one location. Any recommendations on a hotel?

Thanks.

eluckhardt

Yes, I say you just stay in Bled for two nights and take a day trip to Bohinj. We also enjoyed Vintgar Gorge. Another easy trip from Bled.

I am a little fuzzy about the Julian Alps loop, but pp suggestion about breaking that up may be a good idea as well.

We've spent 2 nights in Skofja Loka, and while it is quite lovely, I would not consider it a must see.

kja

I had a wonderful experience at the Penzion Mayer in Bled.

Andrew

I thought the windy, scenic drive from Skofja Loka through Drazgose and Kropa to Bled was amazingly beautiful. Skofja Loka is a really nice town as well, but I think I'd be bored spending more than a few hours there.

I spent a few nights in Bled, with a day trip to Bohinj, then drove the Julian Alps loop/Vrsic Pass from Bled to Kobarid in one day (arrived in time to see the museum before closing, plus enough time to hike out to Kozjak Falls before dark). That gave me plenty of time for a slow pace and lots of stops, including several short hikes in the Soca Valley.

Really wanted to see Kamnik but timing and weather didn't cooperate. Next time...

Jump

Thanks again for all the suggestions everyone. The itinerary is falling into place nicely so now I can spend the remaining time between now and September focusing on the details!

rtt0921

Another suggestion: when going to Logar Valley (Logarska dolina), do a loop. Go one way via Jezersko and Austria and the other via Kamnik. Jezersko is a very scenic valley with a little lake and in terms of distance and time it is virtually the same.

Also, if time allows visit the Mangart Road from Bovec, it's a dead end road with a loop at the top at over 2000 metres, a very nice drive.

Jump

Great ideas rtt0921! Thanks. I assume that with proper passport and an International Drivers License, I should have no problem passing through Austria? Any idea how long that loop takes?

Thanks!

Andrew

Slovenia is in the European Union, so there is no border check with Austria (or Italy). You do not need an international driver's license to drive in Slovenia (or rent a car) if you have a US driver's license. Not sure about Austria or Italy but I assume the same applies.

FYI, when driving on the highways in Slovenia, you must have a vignette sticker valid for the days you drive there. If you rent a car in Italy, you'll have to buy a vignette immediately after crossing the border with Slovenia (at a gas station). If you don't have a vignette, you will likely receive a very stiff fine. Make sure you buy one - there are plenty of reports of Slovenian visitors who ignored this advice (or missed it entirely) and were dismayed by fines of several hundred euros!

If you aren't going to be driving Italy at all, consider taking a bus or train to Slovenia and renting your car there. You may find it cheaper, not sure (but it should already have a vignette), but I do know if you rent a car in Italy you must buy their insurance whereas in Slovenia you can use your own (e.g. via a credit card) instead. There are direct buses from Mestre (Venice) to Ljubljana, or you could take a train from Venice to Trieste, Italy, and then a bus up to Ljubljana.

Jump

Hi Andrew,

The train option does seem to make sense. It would probably save me money on the rental too because they increase the cost if you're driving from Italy into Slovenia. Do you have any idea what the cost of a round trip train ticked would be?

Thanks.

Andrew

In 2009, started in Venice and took a direct bus from Mestre to Ljubljana with a company called DRD. It cost 25 Euro one way (seeing same prices now on their website, www.drd.si - 45 Euro round trip ticket). Some people take a train from Venice to Trieste and then a bus from there to Ljubljana but that isn't going to save you time, probably take more time, and may cost about the same. There's also the option of taking a taxi or bus from Trieste to Sezana, Slovenia and a train from there to Ljubljana, but again, this will take more time than the direct bus. (Some people hate buses and/or prefer trains.)

Or you can take trains via a connection in Austria, but that's probably a few hours longer than the direct bus.

There's also a company called GoOpti that has shuttle service - never used them.

If you're comparing prices of renting the car in Italy vs. taking the bus and renting in Slovenia, consider that you save the fuel cost for a couple of hours driving each way, plus you'd have to buy the vignette. When I rented (from a company called Sixt) in Slovenia, the vignette was already included in my rental price; not sure if that is standard or not. Plus, factor in whether you have supplemental insurance for the car rental that you can use when renting in Slovenia but not when renting in Italy.

I guess if you don't save much money it may just be easier to rent the car in Italy. I'd still compare the rental price for each scenario.

bilboburgler

Timing looks good. You need to buy a permit at the border to use the motorways (not really motorways but thats what they call them) loads of places to pull over. Check the car rental company is happy to let you go to two countries. You may want to come back through Serbia say Pula

rtt0921

@bilboburgler: Why are they not motorways? In what sense? And Serbia? You probably mean Croatia. But even then the OP would have to drive back through Slovenia.

Otherwise there really are no train connections between Slovenia and Italy, not even via Austria. The service Andrew was referring to is operated by the Austrian state railways but is actually a bus service and is quite expensive.

Another thing to consider is that if you rent a car in Italy, the fuel prices there are a good 30 cents per litre higher than in Slovenia, so those legs in Italy will cost you a lot more in fuel, plus there are tolls (around €10 one-way from Venice to the border). Also, since you will be spending 9 days in Slovenia you will have to factor in buying a monthly vignette (€30) instead of the shorter 7-day version (€15).

Alternatively, you could avoid the motorway system on days 4 and 5 and then buy a 7-day vignette on Day 7 and save yourself €15. Or rent a car in Slovenia which usually already has a vignette provided.

The loop to Logar Valley takes about the same time as going there and back via Kamnik (without any stops of course), about 1.5 hrs per leg. There are no border controls with Austria and you'll only drive some 10 km through it before entering Slovenia again.

Jump

Thanks for the additional info rtt0921! Is this the route you propose:

Ljubljana to Kamnik - 24 km, 31 minutes
http://maps.google.com/maps?saddr=Ka...ra=ls&t=h&z=11
Kamnik to Jezersko 42 km, 46 min
http://maps.google.com/maps?saddr=Ka...ra=ls&t=h&z=11
Jezersko to Logarska Dolina, Solčava, Slovenia - 28km, 32 min
http://maps.google.com/maps?saddr=Je...1,2,3&t=h&z=13
Logarska Dolina, Solčava, Slovenia to Ljubljana 96 km 1.5 hours
http://maps.google.com/maps?saddr=Lo...ra=ls&t=h&z=10

rtt0921

I was trying to create the route I had in mind on Google Maps, but it seems it cannot be created, it doesn't want to cross one of the border crossings even though it's fully open.

This is the route, on Viamichelin:

http://www.viamichelin.com/web/Itine...routeConso=6.6

Jump

Looks good. Thanks!