Having seen countless photos of the magical Lake Bled, Slovenia had been on my bucket list for a long time. This summer I finally got the chance to road trip around Slovenia and admire the beautiful landscapes this country has to offer. We spent 10 days driving around, but you could easily do the same itinerary in one week. Read below for my Slovenia Road Trip Itinerary (7 – 10 days).
We hired a car through rentalcars.com, a car hire search engine that allows you to easily search for the best deal for you. We picked the car up directly from the airport
Start your Slovenia trip by exploring the countries capital, Ljubljana. If you visit between mid-March and the end of October, try to plan your trip around visiting Ljubljana on a Friday so you can enjoy the weekly food market in Poga?arjev trg square.
Ljubljana is quite small making it the perfect city to walk around. Make sure you check out:
If you are into photography, then I would also recommend driving 45 minutes out of Ljubljana to Sveti Tomaz. A beautiful church situated on a hill with dramatic mountains in the background.
We stayed in a private room at Hostel DIC. It included breakfast and free parking and was within walking distance to the centre.
Start your road trip heading south of Ljubljana to the beautiful coastal town of Piran. The whole journey will take around 1 hour 30 and you can make a pitstop at Predjama Castle.
Predjama Castle is a Renaissance castle built within a cave mouth in south-central Slovenia, the castle was first mentioned in 1274 and was rebuilt in the renaissance style in 1570. It is a fairytale castle and definitely worth the stop. Arrive for opening at 10am to make sure you get a parking spot.
Spend the rest of the day walking around the narrow streets of Piran, a resort city on Slovenia’s Adriatic coast, known for its long pier and Venetian architecture.
TOP TIP – Head to the Walls of Piran for sunset (at least 30 minutes before) to enjoy watching the sun go down over Piran, entrance fee is only €2.
We stayed in a studio apartment with sea views at Apartments VIP Residence. They have beautiful views over the sea and free parking too.
The drive from Piran to the So?a Valley takes just over 2 hours. Make sure to keep your swimming stuff at the ready for when you stop in Kanal. It’s a beautiful town to stop for a picnic and swim.
The So?a Valley was my favourite place in Slovenia, the water is an incredible emerald-green and with the mountainous landscape there really isn’t a site quite like it!
If you visit the Soca Valley I would recommend going kayaking, white water rafting or canyoning.
We went kayaking with Altitude Activities, it was a really fun way to explore the river, and admire the beautiful nature of the region. We had around 2-3 hours kayaking down the river, even navigating some rapids!
If you’re in the Soca Valley make sure you also check out:
If you’re visiting the Soca Valley, the best place to stay is either Kobarid or Bovec. We stayed at the Chalet Zonir just outside Kobarid.
Slightly in the shadows next to it’s famous neighbour Lake Bled, Lake Bohinj is the largest permanent lake in Slovenia. It is located within the Bohinj Valley of the Julian Alps. The main things to do here are to check out Savica waterfall and go hiking and swimming. Unlike Lake Bled you are able to swim mostly everywhere, and it isn’t as crowded.
Lake Bohinj is a good place to base yourself to visit the Julian Alps. There are a number of popular hikes to do here. We decided to hike to Seven Lakes Valley, to admire the incredible reflective lake there. This is quite an advanced hike as you are hiking into the mountains (over 1500m high), and the first hour and a half is fairly steep. The hike to the lakes takes about 3 hours, so it’s around 5-6 hours return.
The main place to stay is just to the east of the lake. We stayed at TD Bohinj Apartments which was within walking distance of the lake.
Finish your road trip at the most iconic spot in Slovenia, Lake Bled. I really felt like I had entered into a Harry Potter movie, it was such a magical place!
I would spend at least a full day at Lake Bled so that you can hire a rowing boat, and relax next to the water. You can also visit Bled Castle and hike up to the Ojstrica viewpoint. Read more about the Top Things to do in Lake Bled.
The main town is to the east of the lake, but there are a few hotels and restaurants scattered along the south of the lake, including the iconic Vila Bled. We stayed at the Gaja Holiday Apartments which was the perfect location.
I hope you enjoy your road trip around Slovenia. It’s such an easy country to drive in, the roads are smooth and everywhere is so beautiful and green!
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Such a great Itinerary! I've seen so many great photos from Ljubljana and Lake Bled so visiting has been on my list for a while too... I just need to actually do it! PS your photos are stunning :)
I'm in love with all your pictures! I've been to Slovenia before but didn't get to visit all of these places (mostly cause I didn't know about them). Looks like I'll have to plan a trip :-)
I definitely need to consider visiting Slovenia. I've never been. It looks beautiful!
I never knew how stunning Slovenia is! You gave me all the wanderlust vibes!
Love this itinerary! We need to go back to Slovenia as it rained almost the whole time during our visit. Next time we go to the Soca Valley and Sveti Tomaz!