The only reason why it's hard to leave Slovenia (sorry family) it’s its natural beauty. It is not possible to write average length article and covered all the interesting locations. I’ll mention some we have been to in 2017 and liked.
I know Bled is famous and it's hard to beat photos with an island in the middle of the lake and castle above the shore. But! If you are a bit of a nature lover and a bit less of attraction seeker, I would recommend Bohinj Lake. I’ve been there many times, and this year I realized it's beautiful no matter the season. With Leo, we went there in March, alone as a couple who need some privacy. We stayed for a night in a nearby hostel. The first day we took the whole day to walk around the lake and just enjoy in hidden places on the way. It is gorgeous, even when nature still sleeps its beauty sleep.
As you can see, we like lakes. Our beaches by the sea are not the best in the world, so we need to compensate. One lake we fancy, also because we can take the city bus to get there is a lake in Podpeč village. This year is our primary beach location. We opened the season in June when it was warm enough to swim. Kids enjoy jumping from the docks. No, correction, Lejla enjoys that, Erik enjoys to climb the ladder. He just goes down, puts his toe in the water and he is up the ladder again. In July when we got a visit from Gozo, we organized a picnic there. We took the grill and everything needed on the bus and then realized it wasn’t the best idea because the area is preserved nature reserve. We placed the barbecue next to the parking lot, and with some super careful scouting skills, we managed to eat that day. (Btw, it is a restaurant by the lake, you won’t go hungry!)
Uršlja gora is a nostalgic mountain from my childhood. I was born and had lived in Koroška region until I went to college. After 12 years of living in Ljubljana (well, one of it was in Gozo) my accent is still recognizable. No matter if I was in my hometown Slovenj Gradec or in Ravne na Koroškem, where I spent my high school years, the Mountain was always there, looking at us. Locals predict the weather according to the clouds above the mountaintop. It is a pleasant walk up, especially from the cottage on Naravske Ledine. On the top is the highest-lying church in Slovenia built in the 16th century. Leo likes to read stories to kids about Ursula and Waterman, who had their stuff going on there. Caution: if you decide to put your leg in Ursula's footprint, it might be difficult to get it out.
You don’t have to pay a ticket to see Škocjan caves if you want to observe some natural beauties. Still do though, if you are in Slovenia - I have to promote Slovenian tourism. Škocjan caves are beautiful they say, I haven’t been there yet. But we spontaneously found Rakov Škocjan. We had family train tickets for Rakek because we supposed to have a family gathering there, but it was canceled. We still went to Rakek and walked toward the forest area. There it was a sign for the path we followed. After an hour of walking through the woods, we arrived at the natural bridge as they named it. The natural attraction was formed because the karst caves have collapsed and demolished the ceiling. I suggest you go there in the middle of the summer when is suffocatingly hot. You’ll get chills when you walk down from the bridge to the entrance of the cave. Temperatures drop so suddenly it’s like you are getting cold air shower. A small stream flows through caves and making the relaxational sound. It’s an astonishing place.
Promotion of Velika Planina is running successfully, and hordes of people are visiting it. I understand why. It is breathtaking with its views and romantic herdsmen's settlement. Wooden cottages are spreading across meadows and from the back are rising majestic mountains. Cows graze everywhere and are not so innocent as they may seem. One of them attacked Lejla because she was taking her personal space. She hit her with a horn in cheek and daddy the rescuer had to show his manly superiority over the cow. The cow didn’t bother with silly humans; she just continued to chew her grass. It must have been pleasing when cows were able to live there in peace. Nowadays people don’t even need to walk up the hill - they can access the top with the cable car.
Nevertheless, most of the Slovenian paths in nature are still distant from city noise, where you can enjoy the buzz of the bees, warm breeze, and flowery smell.
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You know that feeling when you get an idea you want to pursue, and then you realize it’s not so authentic as you thought. Already soooo many people's done it and present it as well. God damn it!
We have arrived on Gozo at the beginning of November. Personally, I fell into a bit of depressive state. Maybe depression isn’t the right description. It was more like melancholy. I wasn’t sad; I was without energy. I wished to snuggle between warm covers and not move out of it.
One of the most difficult thing, residing in emotional exhaustion, is facing pain within family members when you tell them you are leaving and you are not sure when you are coming back.
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