Slovenia: Villages, Castles, Vineyards, Scenic Valleys and the Julian Alps 2026

Day 1: Thursday 3 September, Arrive Ljubljana

• Tour commences at 4.00pm in the foyer of the uHotel
• Welcome Meeting
• Orientation Walk
• Welcome Dinner at Georgie Bistro

Meeting Point: The tour commences at 4.00pm in the foyer of the Eurostars uHotel located in the heart of Slovenia’s capital, Ljubljana.

We commence the tour with a short Welcome Meeting which will be followed by an orientation stroll through the city, along the Ljubljanica river, passing the triple bridge. Over the next four days, we return to other places in and around these districts, some introducing us to two millennia of art and history in this charming city, and others to the Jugendstil (Art Nouveau) world of Joze Plecnik, Ljubljana’s famous architect, who lived near our hotel.

In the evening we enjoy a Welcome Dinner at Georgie Bistro located not far from the hotel. Georgie Bistro is a premier culinary hotspot that offers a delightful and inventive dining experience, all within a warm and inviting ambiance. Under the leadership of esteemed chef Gregor Jelnikar, the talented team is dedicated to crafting exceptional and diverse dishes that draw inspiration from various global cuisines. (Overnight Ljubljana) 

Day 2: Friday 4 September, Ljubljana

• Ljubljana Castle
• Museum of Modern Art (Moderna galerija) (Optional visit) or Afternoon at leisure
• Dinner at Landerik

We shall explore the history and culture, old and new, of this beautiful, lively small city district by district. We begin today with an exploration of the Central Market in Vodnik Square, adjacent to the Dragon bridge. We then take the cable car up to Ljubljana Castle, the heart of historic Slovenia. The panoramic views of the city also introduce us to the distinct culture of Slovene borderland where ancient Roman, and old and current Slav, Italian (Veneto) and German (Habsburg) cultures blend. You will have lunchtime at leisure when you may wish to visit the market square below, or the castle courtyard above.

This afternoon is at leisure. You may decide to visit the Museum of Modern Art (Moderna Galerija) or explore Ljubljana by yourself. The Modern Art Museum charts the growing interaction of Western and Slovene art in the 19th and 20th centuries. We reconvene tonight for a delicious meal at Landerik, a new concept restaurant in the heart of Ljubljana, offering avant-garde and locally sourced cuisine. (Overnight Ljubljana) BD

Day 3: Saturday 5 September, Ljubljana

• Prehistoric and Roman Ljubljana: guided tour of the City Museum (Mestni Muzej) with a Curator
• Walking tour of Roman sites in the city centre, with an expert guide from the Museum
• Lunch in the Balkan café courtyard in the Križanke neighbourhood: Gostilna Plecnikov Hram na Krizanke
• Joze Plecnik’s Ljubljana: Architectural tour of the city centre, including a visit to Plecnik’s house
• National and University Library, designed by Joze Plecnik, including the renowned Reading Room

Today we remain close to our base, but journey back in time. With the older Aquileian castle looming high above, our tour centres around the neighbourhood of the Križanke, an ancient church (1268) and hall (1228) complex once associated with the Dukes of Carinthia (1144-1269). The Habsburgs eventually took over Ljubljana in 1335. Each section of the Križanke we see today, was later rebuilt, however, either in 1561 or 1715. Modified by the great Jozef Plecnik, the Križanke now acts as an Arts and Museums hub, and as a key summer venue of the Ljubljana Festival.

At the City Museum of Ljubljana (Mestni Muzej), we explore Slovenia’s prehistory. One of its most fascinating exhibits is a decorated wooden wheel which is about 5200 years old; it is thought to be the oldest wooden wheel ever found. We also discover Ljubljana’s Roman past: the town of Emona (Colonia Iulia Emona) was built on the site of the prehistoric settlement in the early 1st century AD, by Augustus’ troops. The location of the city was of strategic importance, being at a crossroads of important trade routes; at the time the Romans were conquering new lands in the Balkan south and the Pannonian east.

This afternoon we turn our focus to the extraordinary architectural heritage of the 20th-century Art Nouveau architect Joze Plecnik (1872-1957). Plecnik’s influence on the architectural landscape of Ljubljana has been compared to that of Gaudí upon Barcelona. With a local expert, we tour his key city buildings and visit his charming house, which has been preserved as it was in his lifetime. It holds sketches, plans, models, and photographs relating to Plecnik’s famous creations such as the National and University Library, the Ljubljana Central Market and the Church of St Michael in the Marshes.

We finish the afternoon with a visit to the National and University Library, including Plecnik’s grand Reading Room. (Overnight Ljubljana) BL

Day 4: Sunday 6 September, Ljubljana

• National Museum of Slovenia
• National Gallery of Slovenia

Today we explore the fascinating prehistory, migration history and flora and fauna of this beautiful, varied and fertile country at the National Museum of Slovenia. The highlights include a 1995 find in the submerged Divje Babe cave near Cerkno. We also encounter a Neanderthal bone flute (60,000 to 50,000 BC) fashioned from the femur of a cave bear, an oak dug-out canoe (9th century BC) discovered in 1927, and Iron Age armour from Slovene sites at Sticna, Vir and Gradisce. We glimpse Slovenia’s migration history in displays of sites resembling King Arthur’s Tintagel at Ajdovski Gradec (5th to 6th century AD) and in displays revealing the Slav migrations.

In the afternoon, we visit the National Gallery of Slovenia, to contrast the liveliness of the master painters and wood carvers active in 15th-century Slovenia with the Byzantine-like austere piety of their medieval predecessors. In other halls, traversing the 16th and 17th centuries, the Habsburg Baroque emerges with all its emotion and exuberance. We also encounter the influence of Habsburg Flemish genre painting, for example, in the work of the Dutch artist Almanach, who worked in Slovenia in the 17th century. Other halls explore bourgeois life in prosperous 19th century Slovenia, culminating in a delightful series of works by local impressionists. We encounter the work of artists such as realist Ivana Kobilca, the most prominent Slovenian painter and a key figure in Slovenian cultural identity. Allow her Kofetarica (Coffee Drinker) of 1888 to prompt you to repose in the gallery café! (Overnight Ljubljana) BL

Day 5: Monday 7 September, Ljubljana – Pustal – Skofja Loka – Crngrob – Bled

• Devil’s Bridge, Pustal
• Skofja Loka Castle & Museum
• Church of Annunciation, Crngrob
• Bled Castle

We begin our journey through what is arguably Eastern Europe’s loveliest country. Leaving Ljubljana, we drive northwest by private coach towards the grand Julian Alps, meandering along the basin of the River Sava. We’ll meet the Sava again at our tour’s end in Zagreb in Croatia; it continues to join the Danube at Belgrade.

Today, we stop in the picturesque little village of Puštal, on the Sora River, a tributary of the Sava. Our local guide will meet the coach and take us across the famed ‘Devil’s Bridge’, which spans the river. This wooden footbridge is named after supposed ancient appearances of the devil. Across the river is the enchanting medieval town of Skofja Loka. The town’s first written records date to 1248. In the 13th century it was a bustling market town of craftspeople and traders, who were organised into various guilds. From 973, it remained in the possession of the Bavarian Bishops of Freising for more than 900 years. The original city plan survives: an upper square, the Plac, is separated from a lower square, the Lontrg; narrow streets cross the town centre, and a bold castle (rebuilt in the 16th century) stands atop a nearby hill. With our guide, we walk through the town up to the Loski Musej (Loski Museum), housed in the castle. One of the best-arranged museums in Slovenia, it houses archaeological, historical, cultural, artistic, natural science and ethnological collections. We also have the opportunity to view a very well-preserved 16th century farmhouse, Škopar’s House (Škoparjeva hiša), in the castle garden.

After a simple lunch in the town centre, we shall take a short walk to Skofja Loka’s Capuchin Bridge (Stone Bridge). Built in the mid-14th century from carved stone in a semi-circular shape, it is the only one of its kind in central Europe. At its centre is a statue of the Bohemian saint, St. John of Nepomuk (1345-1393), with the Škofja Loka coat-of-arms on its plinth; in its medieval days the Selca Gate, with a guard tower, stood beside it. It was renovated and equipped with railings in the late 19th century. From here, our guide accompanies us on our coach to the Church of the Annunciation to the Holy Virgin (Marijino Oznanenje) at Crngrob. Founded in the 13th century, this lovely church holds some of the finest frescoes in Slovenia. These detail the Life of the Virgin (late-13th to early-14th centuries) whilst Giotto-like (Slovene Goriška style) paintings portray the Passion of Christ (late 14th to mid-15th centuries).

We continue by coach to Bled, where we visit Bled castle (Blejski Grad), and thence opt to walk or to bus downhill to check into the Rikli Balance Hotel. Bled is a splendid resort town on a stunningly picturesque lake. Lake Bled comes complete with a medieval church on an island, overlooked by the castle high on an outcrop. While Bled Castle was an 11th-century fief of the Bishops of Blixen, the town of Bled only came into its own in the 19th-century as a bourgeois retreat. Naturopaths, like Dr Arnold Rikli (1823-1906), encouraged genteel promenading or venturesome hiking and climbing in fresh-air alpine destinations. (Overnight Bled) BL

Day 6: Tuesday 8 September, Lake Bohinj and Lake Bled

• Pletna cruise to Blejski Otok island and visit to the Church of the Mother of God on the Lake, Lake Bled
• Cable Car to Mount Vogel, Lake Bohinj
• Panoramic Boat along Lake Bohinj from Ukanc to Ribcev Laz, Lake Bohinj
• Dinner at Hiša Linhart

Today we immerse ourselves in some of Slovenia’s most breathtaking landscapes. What could be better than to be rowed in a covered pletna boat to the island (Blejski Otok) in the middle of Lake Bled? Once a pagan site, it was re-invented in a national epic poem about the ancient loss of Slovene independence (Krst pri Savici or Baptism on the Savica, 1836) written by Slovenia’s first national poet, France Prešeren (1800-49). In the Middle Ages Blejski Otok attracted Christian pilgrims to its little Assumption Church.

After returning to shore, we drive further into the sublime limestone range of the Julian Alps. We take a cable car from Lake Bohinj to high Mt Vogel (1846m), where a breathtaking panoramic vista of the entire Triglav National Park beckons, capped by Mt Triglav (2864m) across the lake and to the north. After free time for lunch, we descend by cable car and cruise along Lake Bohinj from Ukanc to Ribcev Laz. Here, we cross a bridge to visit the Romanesque/Gothic Church of St John the Baptist (Cerkev sv. Janeza Krstnika).

In the evening, we drive to Radovlijca and dine well in another country restaurant: chef Uroš Štefelin’s Hiša Linhart, then return to Bled. (Overnight Bled) BD

Day 7: Wednesday 9 September, Bled – Trzic – Kropa – Radovljica – Bled

• Trzic Museum: Cobblery exhibition in the former dye house and tannery
• Light lunch in Trzic
• Iron Forging Museum in Kropa
• Medieval town of Radovljica
• Fijaker (horse drawn carriage) around Lake Bled
• Dinner at Julijana Restaurant on Lake Bled

Today we have a unique opportunity to explore the hardy, thrifty life of small Slovenian communities. The villages in the foothills of mountains and in the knots of their valleys in Upper Carniola (Gorenjska) near the border with Austria offer rare chances to savour the small places so often overlooked. We’ll venture by coach into different valleys, each with its raging river, visiting Trzic to consider shoemaking and leatherwork, and Kropa to encounter iron forging.

After our visit to Kropa, we drive to the nearby market town of Radovlijca to look at the art of beekeeping and to explore its medieval heritage.

Returning to Lake Bled, we opt to succumb at day’s end to gentility, not agility: a half-hour carriage ride (fijaker) takes us around the lake in time for sunset. The carriages leave us at our dinner venue, the elegant Julijana restaurant. After dinner, we walk the short distance back to our hotel. (Overnight Bled) BLD

Day 8: Thursday 10 September, Bled – Vrsic Pass – Kobarid

• Scenic journey across the Julian Alps through Triglav National Park via the Vrsic Pass (1611m)
• Kozjak Waterfall
• Dinner at local restaurant

Departing Bled, we drive 4 hours on a mountain journey, regularly getting on and off the bus, exploring northwest Slovenia’s Triglav National Park. We are now in the part of Slovenia closer to Italy, heading for Kobarid (Caporetto in Italian), once a battle front of the First World War, now a charming Slovene town with an Italian ‘feel’ where we’ll stay one night.

When Italy entered the war belatedly on the side of Britain and France in May 1915, the Italians found the going surprisingly tough attacking the Habsburg Empire all along the Isonzo River (Soca in Slovene; Sortig in German, Aesontius in Latin) from its Adriatic estuary to the tips of the Julian Alps. The Vrsic Pass (1611m) and the Trenta Valley offer the most superlative views of the tour. We will walk to the waterfall at Kozjak and explore its WWI heritage. After some time to freshen up at our hotel, we enjoy dinner at a local restaurant. Note: no porterage is available at the Hotel Hvala in Kobarid. The hotel has a lift. (Overnight Kobarid) BLD

Day 9: Friday 11 September, Kobarid – Tolmin Gorges – Sempas – Skocjan – Piran

• Guided walking tour of the Tolmin Gorge (1.5-2hrs, gravel trail and boardwalk)
• Lunch at Arkade Cigoj in the Vipava Valley
• UNESCO World Heritage-Listed Skocjan Caves

We now head away from Kobarid and from the mountains down through the Tolmin Gorge. Also called Tolminska Korita, this is one of Slovenia’s most magnificent natural attractions. Our local guide will take us along the 1-kilometre-long moss-covered gorge, which has been carved out by the crystal-clear Tolminka and Zadlascica Rivers.

Back on the coach, the mountains will eventually give way to rich agricultural land, where we will have a simple lunch in the Vipava valley, the most “foodie” destination of Slovenia. Then the same mountains will also cleave into limestone caves, where we will explore the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Skocjan Cave. We then turn west over other cave (karst) landscapes towards the sea.

This evening we reach the delightful Adriatic port town of Piran, the birthplace of the Baroque composer Giuseppe Tartini (1692-1770). You will enjoy the sea air here for two nights. Lovely little Piran dominates Slovenia’s tiny 20-kilometre stretch of Adriatic coast; it is just 60 kilometres south of the Italian city of Trieste. Piran, sitting at the tip of a narrow peninsula, is one of the best-preserved historical towns anywhere in the Mediterranean. With an abundance of Venetian Gothic architecture, atmospheric winding alleyways, a bustling main square and harbour and plenty of seafood restaurants, Piran is a unique stop on this tour of mostly-landlocked Slovenia. Here is your chance to watch the sun set over the Adriatic! (Overnight Piran) BL

Day 10: Saturday 12 September, Piran – Lipica – Piran

• Lipica Stud Farm: View the training of Lipizzan Horses & tour the stud farm
• Afternoon at leisure in Piran

We shall have ample time to relax in this beautiful coastal town with only one firm engagement today. In the morning we shall view the training of famous Lipizzaner Horses on a stud farm about an hour northwest of Piran. Lunchtime and the afternoon will be at leisure. (Overnight Piran) B

Day 11: Sunday 13 September, Piran – Hrastovlje – Vipava – Postojna – Predjama – Postojna

• Church of the Holy Trinity with the famous Dance Macabre fresco, Hrastovlje
• Lunch at Gostilna Podfarovž in the village of Vipava
• Postojna Cave
• Castle of Predjama

We depart Piran, and meander back towards the ‘real’ Slovenia of stones and castles, inland foothills with fertile farms, vineyards and caves with amazing stalactites. We first drive 40 kilometres to the tiny fortified Church of the Holy Trinity (cerkev sv. Trojice) in Hrastovlje, a village not far from the border with Rijeka province in north-west Croatia. The church’s fortified character reflects the depth of fear of Ottoman invasion in the 15th and 16th centuries. Within is a rare version of a subversive religious fresco known as The Dance of Death (La danse macabre in French, Mrtvaški ples in Slovene).

We then lunch at Gostilna Podfarovž, in the heart of the Vipava wine country, lands dear to Slovenia’s greatest Habsburg diplomat, Freiherr Sigismund von Herbestein (1486-1566); he was one of the few diplomats to meet both an Ottoman Sultan and a Russian Grand Prince.

After lunch we take the cave train at Postojna, then walk through mighty caverns; they have some of the grandest stalagmites and stalactites in Europe. We then visit the impregnable castle at Predjama (Predjamski Grad). Predjama nestles inside a cliff. The castle only ever succumbed to one siege, in 1484. Once a frontier between Aquileian (Alto Veneto) clerical-feudal and Habsburg spheres, Predjama was constructed in the 13th century, but what you see now dates from 16th century. (Overnight Postojna) BLD

Day 12: Monday 14 September, Postojna – Kamnik – Laze v Tuhinju – Celje

• Arboretum Volcji Potok, Kamnik
• Lunch at Orient restaurant, Kamnik
• Walking tour of medieval Kamnik including the Franciscan church and its library
• Beer and Schnapps tasting at Domaca pivovarna pod Menino

From Postojna, we’ll skirt north of Ljubljana to reach the town of Kamnik. Our first stop is the Volcji Potok Arboretum. Established in 1885 as part of the Souvan family estate, it was made accessible to the public in 1952 when the University of Ljubljana took over. It has since been officially recognized as a site of significant cultural and natural heritage.

Following lunch at a local restaurant, we will explore the medieval town of Kamnik. Its origins can be traced back to the 11th century, and it was first mentioned as a town in 1229. Situated as an important trading post along the route connecting Ljubljana and Celje, Kamnik is one of Slovenia’s oldest towns. During the Middle Ages, it held significant influence as a power centre for the Bavarian counts of Andechs in the Carniola region. The remnants of this noble lineage can still be seen in the form of two ruined castles strategically positioned on elevated ground near the town centre. Additionally, the Franciscan monastery, constructed within the town, serves as a testament to Kamnik’s historical importance. We will have the opportunity to visit the church and its library, which houses a collection of incunabula – books printed prior to 1500.

The Tuhinj valley, known as “Tuhinjska Dolina” in Slovenian, serves as a connection between Ljubljana and Celje. As we journey through this route, we will be treated to breathtaking landscapes, expansive farmlands, traditional Slovenian hay racks called “kozolci,” fortified churches, and picturesque villages. Along the way, we will make a stop at a local farm craft brewery where our hosts will treat us to a beer and schnapps tasting experience.

We continue east to Celje for a three-night stay. Celje is a beautiful Renaissance town in the Savinja (east-central Slovenia). This afternoon’s drive takes us from the alpine sublime to Celje’s fertile Balkan borderlands of pigs and grain, hops and grapes, beer and wine. (Overnight Celje) BL

Day 13: Tuesday 15 September, Celje

• Regional Museum of Celje: ‘Princely Palace’. Guided tour with Curator, Dr Jure Krajsek: in situ remains of antique Celeia; Guided tour with Curator, Mr Damir Zeric: Counts of Celje exhibition
• Celje Castle: Guided tour with Mr Damir Zeric
• Lunch at a local restaurant Gostilna Francl
• Regional Museum of Celje: ‘Old Counts’ Mansion’. Guided tour with Curator, Dr Jure Krajsek: in situ remains of antique Celeia; Guided tour with Curator, Ms Gabrijela Kovacic: Cultural History Collection and the Celje Ceiling

We spend all day in this charming town, the third largest in Slovenia, still with only 40,000 people. After the long era of barbarian migrations and invasions, the old Roman colonia of Celeia, in Noricum province, with its fertile hinterland, became medieval Celje guarded now by the incomparable castle (Stari Grad, late 14th century) of Counts of Žovnek-Celje (12th-15th centuries). This castle, across the Savinj River from the town, enabled Counts of Celje to stem Habsburg ambitions until 1456, projecting their power over Croatia and making a major contribution to the failed Crusade at Nikopolis against the Ottomans (1396). Highlights of the city include visits, led by local museum experts, to the two parts of the regional museum (Pokrajinski Muzei), one being the Townhouse of the later Princes (Knežji Dvorec) with the rare survival of a Renaissance trompe d’oeil ceiling (Celjski Strop, 1600), and the other being the earlier 15th-century porticoed barracks and townhouse of the Counts (Stara Grofija) housing the archaeological and medieval-historical museum. We will first visit the Princes’ Townhouse, then drive to the Castle. We lunch in a restaurant in the hills, dating from 1895: Peter Zaveršek’s Gostilna Francl. In the afternoon we visit the Old Counts’ Townhouse as well as the town centre. (Overnight Celje) BL

Day 14: Wednesday 16 September, Celje – Ptuj – Maribor – Celje

• Ptuj Castle & Old Town
• Walking tour of Maribor including wine-tasting and visit to the oldest vine house

We venture today by coach through the Štajerska wine region to the beautiful medieval city of Ptuj (Roman Poetovio), touring its castle, then lingering over a coffee and wandering the old town. Then we venture a half-hour further to Maribor (pop. 100,000), the second largest city in Slovenia. We encounter a vine in Maribor city itself reputed, on good visual evidence, to be the oldest living vine in Europe: at least 450 years old! This is the vine outside ‘The Old Vine House’, where we quaff, lunch and learn heaps more about local wines. Maribor is also important because it is a minor place in the history of the Second World War that nonetheless can tell us a great deal about the nature of that war. As we enjoy the wine and the mix of cultures in this wonderful heritage region, we can still contemplate barbarous follies it had to endure, and indeed overcome, to achieve this convivial hospitality. (Overnight Celje) BL

Day 15: Thursday 17 September, Celje – Kostanjevica na Krki – Otocec – Zagreb

• Kostanjevica na Krki, a small settlement on an island in the Krka river
• Bozidar Jakac Art Museum, Cistercian Monastery Samostan Kostanjevica na Krki
• Lunch at the 16th-century castle of Otocec

We depart Celje today by coach for our final destination, Zagreb, capital of Croatia. We travel via southern Slovenia (lower Carniola; Dolenj). On the way, we explore a little heritage town on an island in the Krka River: Kostanjevica na Krki, dating from the mid-13th century. On arrival in Kostanjevica na Krki we take a morning coffee break, then encounter a Cistercian monastery (Samostan), dating from the early 13th century, which encouraged the growth of the adjacent market town. Cistercians were a reformed Benedictine Order of muscular monks and colonisers who valued agricultural labour, and fine, spare architecture. As in Transylvania, further east, they were invited here by Kings of Hungary to stabilise and colonise a wild region. Their extensive monastery complex was abandoned in 1785 at the order of the Habsburg Emperor, Joseph II, who began to dissolve the great monastic estates (der Klostersturm) in 1782, seizing their revenues. The charming shell of the church and the imposing monastery complex now houses one of the best art collections in Slovenia: the Božidar Jakac Art Museum, which we shall tour. Highlights include the work of Anton (Tone) Kralj (1900-75).

Next we stop for lunch at the beautiful 16th-century castle of Otocec, the retirement home of one the great leaders of the Habsburg resistance against Ottoman incursion: Ivan Lenkovic. He was the leader of a Cossack-like corps of raiders, wild free-booters who were known as the Uskoks of Senj. Otocec Castle and its elegant restaurant sit in a lovely forest surrounding another island in the Krka River.

After lunch we head to Zagreb, 50 kilometres east of the border with Slovenia. This evening is at leisure at our hotel in the heart of Zagreb, the Esplanade Hotel. (Overnight Zagreb) BL

Day 16: Friday 18 September, Zagreb

• Introductory walking tour of Zagreb
• Croatian Museum of Naïve Art: Guided visit with Curator
• Guided Tour of sculptor Ivan Mestrovic’s atelier
• Archaeological Museum

Day 17: Saturday 19 September, Zagreb

• Strossmayer Gallery of Old Masters, Croatian Academy of Arts & Sciences
• Gallery of Modern Art
• Afternoon at leisure
• Farewell Dinner at Dubravkin Put restaurant

Day 18: Sunday 20 September, Depart Zagreb

• Tour concludes in the morning
• At leisure/Check out

Our tour ends in Zagreb after breakfast. In the morning you will be required to check out of the hotel.  Please contact ASA if you require assistance with a transfer to Zagreb Airport. B