Are you thinking about where to go for a one-day trip? Even a short stop in one of the Slovenian historical towns will throw a multitude of interesting stories in front of you. Take some of the most beautiful walks, get to know the most important town sights and enjoy a selected culinary offering, which is an especially attractive proposition this year, when Slovenia is a European Region of Gastronomy. For the icing on the cake, go for a green hike nearby. You can experience all this in only one day!
Explore the rich history of ancient Poetoviona and the medieval noble families that used to live in the oldest Slovenian town. Above the town stands the mighty Ptuj Castle with its exceptional museum collections and a beautiful view of the town's rooftops, the Drava River and Lake Ptuj. A stroll through the town’s streets reveals many millennia-old monuments, and concealed beneath them are the top wines of the Ptujska Klet wine cellar. These go so well with the flavours of Ptuj cuisine. During the carnival, you will surely come across the Kurent figure, and throughout the year you can also see its garments at the Kurent House, where you can learn all about the famous Kurents, whose door-to-door rounds are entered in the UNESCO Register of Intangible Cultural Heritage.
Make a toast with wine or treat yourself to a delicious cake.
In Jesenice, in the Stara Sava area, you will learn about the history of an ironworking settlement that is unique even on the European scale! Take a look at well-preserved 17th-century buildings such as a blast furnace and its accessory facilities, canals, an example of a worker’s apartment and Bucelleni-Ruard Manor, where the owners of the ironworks lived and which today houses the Slovenian Ironmaking Museum. You will learn much more about how people from Jesenice lived in the past if you take a hike along the Memories of Old Jesenice theme path, which begins above Kos Manor, the oldest preserved building in the town.
Gastronomic pampering in the company of former world-class athletes and a coffee among theatre costumes.
Metlika, the ancient town of three squares between the Gorjanci Hills and the Kolpa River, tells many interesting legends and stories that you will learn about while strolling around the town – from legends about the Metlika coat of arms and interesting personalities to the history of the traditional white costume from Metlika. One of the collections in the Bela Krajina Museum in Metlika Castle also spotlights it.
Discover the treasury of Bela Krajina flavours and local wines.
With every step you take, you’ll notice that Koper was closely connected with the Republic of Venice in the past. Among the many pearls of the town’s architecture, do not miss the Pretorian Palace, the Loggia Palace and the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary with the bell tower which, together with the remaining historical buildings, round off one of the most beautiful town squares in the former territory of the Republic of Venice. Other sights are Da Ponte Fountain from the Baroque period and the Muda Gate, through which visitors used to enter the town when it was an island. You will learn many things about the history of Koper if you take a look at the permanent collection of the Koper Regional Museum, which is housed in the Belgramoni-Tacco Palace.
Treat yourself to a stop in a coffee shop that is over a hundred years old, taste the sweet wines of the Koper countryside and surrender yourself to gastronomic experiences that made it into the Michelin Guide.
If you visit the mediaeval town of Slovenske Konjice, you will be rewarded with unforgettable stories from the past that are inseparably intertwined with horses, the nearby Žiče Charterhouse, the wine-growing hills of Škalce and, of course, the bard of Slovenske Konjice - Ivan Minatti, whom you will encounter several times as you stroll around the town.
A well-rounded gastronomic experience among the hills of Škalce and an excellent poetic coffee make a lovely conclusion to a stroll around Slovenske Konjice.
Kostanjevica na Krki is the only Slovenian town on an island, but this is far from being its only interesting aspect! Combine a stroll around the town of Cistercians, artists and nobles with a visit to the Božidar Jakac Gallery, a former monastery where works by major Slovenian artists are presented, and the nearby Forma Viva open-air collection, followed by a visit to the magical Kostanjevica Cave.
From cake to Cviček – the perfect conclusion to a day in the "Venice of Dolenjska".
Radovljica brings together the two great sweet treats – honey and chocolate. The best place to learn about honey bees and beekeeping in Slovenia is the Museum of Apiculture, but while you’re in the vicinity you should also take the opportunity to check out the Čebelica building, one of several interesting secession villas in Radovljica and well worth a visit. A great mark on the local architecture was left by the Radovljica architect and pioneer of Slovenian urban planning, Ivan Vurnik, whose work you will see in several locations as you stroll around the town. It’s impossible to visit Radovljica without meeting the first Slovenian dramatist and historian Anton Tomaž Linhart, to whom a permanent exhibition in the Radovljica Town Museum is dedicated. Like the Museum of Apiculture, it is also housed in the luxurious Radovljica Manor.
A journey into the world of unique flavours and gourmet experiences of Radovljica.
If one had to find a common denominator to the major sights of Brežice, it would be water. You will be immediately reminded of it by the most prominent building in the town, the Water Tower, and no less imposing is the recently renovated iron bridge that takes you across two rivers - Sava and Krka, and not far ahead is Brežice Lake, or Brežice Sea, as locals call it. In front of Brežice Castle you will see a defensive moat, and in its interior, which today houses the Posavje Museum Brežice, your breath will be taken away by the Baroque fresco-clad Knight's Hall.
From a coffee in the town centre to gastronomic delicacies for gourmets.
Slovenj Gradec is a cultural centre that reveals its character as a herald of peace in many ways. In the former Town Hall, take a look at the collections of the Koroška Regional Museum and the Koroška Gallery of Fine Arts, which many times hosted international exhibitions under the auspices of the UN. While strolling around the town, don't miss the Church of St. Elisabeth and the Church of the Holy Spirit and stories about the creative people of Slovenj Gradec, such as the 19th century composer Hugo Wolf, whose life and work you will learn about if you visit the house where he was born.
Finish off a stroll around Slovenj Gradec with a unique coffee and sweet honey delicacies.
Slovenia is a country that, despite its small size, is home to countless natural and cultural treasures. Wherever you decide to visit, you will encounter stunning scenery and vibrant cities that will amaze you with their more or less hidden attributes. Each place also harbours its own stories and secrets, which can be difficult to discover on your own. Therefore, it is worth experiencing guided tours, during which local tour guides will entertain you with stories that will shed a new and interesting light on the town’s special features.
It is in Kranj where the greatest Slovenian poet, France Prešeren, left his deepest impression. You can learn much about him in the Prešeren House, where he spent the last years of his life. The Gorenjska Museum, housed in Khiselstein Castle, features interesting collections, and the Layer House takes care of cultural life throughout the entire year. Nearby, you can find the studio of Janez Puhar, the inventor of photography on glass. Other sights that you should not miss include tunnels under the old town of Kranj, formerly a shelter and today a venue for various shows, and the Kokra River canyon in the very centre of the town.
Sweet, traditional, innovative – choose your gastronomic icing on the cake while strolling around Kranj.
As you stroll around the town, you will soon notice how strong an impact the accidental discovery of mercury half a millennium ago had on Idrija. The heritage of the second largest mercury mine in the world will open up to you if you descend Antonij's Shaft, the oldest part of the mine, take a look at the characteristic workers' buildings and miners' houses, drop by the Topilnica Hg mercury heritage management centre, or climb to the magnificent Gewerkenegg Castle and take a look at the collections of the Idrija Town Museum that tell of the rich history that has placed Idrija among the UNESCO world cultural heritage sites. What will attract your attention among the exhibits is the story of Idrija bobbin lace and the local school that has been maintaining the tradition for more than 140 years. Bobbin lace making in Slovenia has been entered in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
Try this traditional delicacy from Idrija and surrender yourself to gastronomic surprises with a touch of Michelin.
Kamnik reflects its lively past as a major trade hub and has diverse architecture with characteristic details in which you will immediately recognise the mastery of Jože Plečnik – from Main Square, the bridge across the Nevljica, the chapel of the Holy Sepulchre, and the railway station to Lectar House, whose memorial room was designed by Slovenia's greatest architect. While in the town, don’t forget to visit the birth house of General Rudolf Maister, have a stroll along Šutna, the most beautiful street in the town, and climb to the Old Castle to be rewarded with a beautiful view of Kamnik.
Surrender yourself to the Flavours of Kamnik and mix them up with modern desserts made from local ingredients.
The stories behind the windows of Tržič houses will reveal a history strongly intertwined with various crafts, including shoemaking, which was also famed outside Tržič. Also telling of the diligent people of Tržič are the collections in the Tržič Museum, the 18th century Kurnik House and the famous Tekec Nativity Scene. Start and end your stroll around the town by the sculpture of the dragon that, as the legend says, is to "blame" for Tržič coming to be. Get to know how!
Get to know what "Radetzky" tastes like and how the tržiška flika flatbread is made.
What speaks volumes about Škofja Loka being one of the most authentic medieval towns in Slovenia is the famous Škofja Loka Passion Play, the oldest play in the Slovenian language, which is staged every few years in a magnificent fashion. If you would like to take a tour of its stations, choose the Romuald's Path interactive guide. Also offering information about the passion play that has made the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity list is one of the exhibitions in the Loka Museum, which is housed in Loka Castle on the Castle Hill. After visiting the gallery of the Slovenian fantasy master France Mihelič, drop by Town Square, the former hub of craftsmen of Škofja Loka, where you can see handicraft items made by local masters in the DUO Arts and Crafts Centre.
A lunch between mediaeval walls or a gourmet experience on a Michelin plate.
You will discover many a sight while you stroll around Piran, one of the most romantic medieval towns. You will find some of them in Tartini Square, named after the famous Piran-based violinist and composer, where the Venice-style buildings stand out, such as the Loggia, which houses the Coastal Galleries, Tartini House with the main monument, Court Palace and Benečanka, which tells an interesting story about love. Piran features seven preserved town gates and as many as 11 churches, the most famous of which is St. George's Parish Church on the hill above the town. A climb up the hill will reward you with a view of three countries.
Everybody will find something to their liking in Piran, be it sweet tooths or those who prefer gourmet and traditional dishes.
When you take a stroll around Novo Mesto, you will quickly realise that it is "new" in name only, because it will actually reveal several millennia of history to you. You will step back in time when you immerse yourself in the collections of the Dolenjska Museum, which houses situlae and other precious finds dating from the Iron Age, and many archaeological finds from Marof Hill. Take a walk in the old town centre, to Main Square, the largest medieval square in Slovenia, and further down the colourful medieval street of Breg. Climb the Kapitelj Hill, which is dominated by St. Nicholas's Cathedral, and where a magnificent view of the town and the beautiful Krka River can be enjoyed.
From gourmet surprises to traditional Dolenjska dishes, rounded off with the best Dolenjska wines, starting with cviček.
Take a stroll around Žužemberk and learn about the people who have left a mark in the area by visiting the Park of Famous People of Suha Krajina. Two of them lived in Žužemberk Castle - Andrej Turjaški and Janez Vajkard Turjaški from the Auersperg dynasty, the owners of the very important Auersperg foundry in nearby Dvor. The cast iron well in the town, today a fountain, speaks of its legacy. You will also meet the first Slovenian Hollywood actress Zalla Zarana and the world-renowned trombonist Vinko Globokar.
Experience the best flavours of Suha Krajina in pleasant local inns and homesteads in Žužemberk and its surroundings.
In the Southern Railway Museum you will learn how the railway influenced the development of Šentjur, and in the memorial Ipavec House you can find out about the rich heritage of the Ipavec dynasty of composers and doctors. In the museum collection called Rifnik and Its Treasures, you can take a look at archaeological finds from the nearby Rifnik Hill, and in Upper Square you will find the Upper Square Gallery, where a plague column from 1641 is kept.
Treat yourself to a traditional lunch and follow it up with an "outlaw" coffee.
According to legend, Črnomelj (Dark flour mill) was named after a miller who milled dark flour instead of white for a good fairy disguised as an old woman. The city, however, is not special only for its name, but also for its design in the shape of a star connecting the roads from Ljubljana, Novo Mesto, Zagreb and Rijeka. The natural pier between the Lahinja and Dobličica rivers has 3,000 years of history. A river island was formed by means of excavations during the era of invasions by the Turks, who could never conquer Črnomelj despite attempting a number of sieges. Traces of history can be discovered while walking through the town. At creative workshops you can learn about the art of decorating Bela Krajina Eastern eggs and flax weaving. If you are in the town at the end of June, you will be able to visit the oldest Slovenian folklore festival – Jurjevanje.
You might want to treat yourself to lunch infused with traditional Bela Krajina flavours and enjoy a good coffee or delicious ice cream.
Tune in to the centuries of history, and fall in love with charming Slovenian cities by watching Instagram Stories of city life experiences @FeelSlovenia.
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