Day trips from Ljubljana

Each of the four trips from Ljubljana answers a different question. With Bled you ask how long to give it, with Postojna which ticket to buy, with Škofja Loka whether it is worth the train, and with Piran whether it fits into a single day. Answer them in that order and the third day of a Ljubljana stay stops being a guess.

Bled sits about 50 km north-west of the capital, and the lake is the whole reason to go. It runs 2.12 km from end to end and is between half a kilometre and a kilometre wide, which is small enough to walk around and big enough that the walk fills a morning. In the middle lies an island with a pilgrimage church, and visitors ring its bell for luck, which turns the quietest corner of the lake into the noisiest.

Half a day is enough if the lake is all you want: a lap of the shore, a look at the island, a coffee with the water in front of you. Give it a full day if you plan to cross to the island or climb to a viewpoint above the lake. The town has its own page here, so this is only the decision. Choose Bled over Postojna when the weather is clear, since a lake in fog is a car park with scenery, and keep the cave for the day the forecast turns grey, because it does not care about rain.

Postojna Cave and Predjama

Postojna is the trip that rewards a wet day. A train carries you into the cave towards the Great Mountain, and then you walk a lit path to the stalagmite called Brilliant. The system runs 24.34 km, the second longest in Slovenia, and almost all of it stays closed to you, which is probably a good thing.

The tickets split three ways. The cave alone costs €34.90, Predjama Castle alone costs €24, and the package that adds the EXPO costs €55. The package also takes in an aquarium where the olm, the pale salamander known as the human fish, lives in the dark. Students aged 16 to 25 and children aged 6 to 15 pay reduced prices, and children up to five pay almost nothing, so a family should read the price list before choosing.

Predjama is the part you will photograph. The castle stands in a cliff face 123 m high, built into the rock as if someone had tucked a house into a pocket. Take the package unless you have seen big caves before, because the castle and the cave together are what the trip is for. If the day is short, drop the EXPO and keep the other two. Set aside the whole afternoon, and do not try to add Bled to the same day: a trip that crams two big sights into one day usually delivers one good memory and one tired one.

Škofja Loka is the trip for a free afternoon, not for a day. It lies 22 km from Ljubljana on the line to Jesenice, where direct local trains run, so there is no connection to miss. The old town stands about 2 km from the station and a local bus covers it in around 15 minutes. Go in the morning, wander the old centre, eat lunch, and be back in Ljubljana before the evening on the river starts.

Piran is on the coast, and that makes it the only trip here you might stretch into a night. Venice ruled it from 1283 to 1797, and the town still looks like a Venetian pocket edition, crowded on a tiny peninsula around Tartini Square. Giuseppe Tartini, the violinist and composer, was born here in 1692. The square dates only from 1894, when the town filled in its inner harbour, and the Gothic Venetian House from the fifteenth century is the one building around it that kept its original front. One day gives you the square and the waterfront, while a night gives you the town after the day trippers leave, which is the better version. It has its own page.

GuideBled has its own guide, with the lake, the island and the castle on the rock:Bled →

GuidePiran has its own guide, with the square, the walls and the beaches towards Portorož:Piran →

3 daysThe three-day plan puts Bled or Postojna on the last day, after the city is done.Ljubljana in 3 days →

Getting aroundAirport bus, city buses and bikes for the days you stay in town.Getting around Ljubljana →

BudgetWhat each ticket adds to the bill, from the castle to the cave.What Ljubljana costs →

When to goWhich months suit a lake, a cave or a coast.The best time to visit Ljubljana →

Where to stayWhere to sleep when the trip becomes an overnight.Where to stay in Ljubljana →

FoodSausage, jota and štruklji, for the evening you are back.What to eat in Ljubljana →

Hidden gemsA skyscraper café, a hill with a church and a Friday kitchen.Ljubljana Off the Usual Route: Nebotičnik, Šmarna Gora and Open Kitchen →

MistakesThe mistakes visitors make before they ever leave town.Mistakes everyone makes in Ljubljana →