25th May (Sunday) London – Ljubljana
As our flight was in the evening, we had decided to eat at my parents house, we were meant to get there for 12pm, as I had said to leave for the airport at 1pm, but were a little late. So it was straight to food before socialising.
Soon enough – just after 1, we left to go to Gatwick, pretty uneventful drive getting to the long stay north parking just after 14.30. It took a bit to find parking, but it was close to a bus stop.
We took our 1 suitcase and our backpacks and were soon on the bus to the terminal where the first thing was to check in, then go through security.
As we are big shoppers we decided to just head to a cafe area – ordering waffle fries and tea. Then it was a panic buy of water for Bhavni, before the 10min walk to the gate – which should have been boarding, but was late (Easyjet).
By the time we boarded and took off – we were about 25 mins late, which was a worry for me as the car rental place was meant to close at 10pm. Anyway we touched down near 9pm local time (we could not see that much out of the plane at night). Luckily Ljubljana airport is not big and i was soon out (leaving Bhavni to get the bag). We picked up the car from Avantcar, loaded the bags and then drove to Four Points by Sheraton, about a 25 min drive. Checking in was easy – i just had to move my car after. We got room 160. We were all quite tired, so it was the bedtime routine, after some food that we had brought from the uk. I went down for a bit so we were not getting underfoot – pity the bar closed at 11pm as i fancied a decaf coffee.
26th May (Monday) Ljubljana
Due to the time difference we all woke a little late, Airyen and I ended up down for the breakfast at 9am, with Bhavni joining us a little later. It was a decent continental breakfast – Airyen as usual enjoyed pancakes.
We left the hotel just after 10am and drove to the car park just near Park Zvezda, which is right near the center of the city – it only took around 15 minutes. Parking was fine and we came up the stairs near the pedestrianised side.
From here it was a really short walk to the Prešernov square where Bhavni had the night before booked us on a walking tour at 11. We had a bit of time to explore and before we registered for the quite busy walking tour.
The tour I thought was quite decent (a few minor political views). It did a circuit of the center, going over the triple bridge, the dragon bridge and the butchers bridge, then the cobblers bridge, explaining the main lowland sights around the river.
The tour finished around 1pm. We got some ice cream at the many parlours and some lovely cherries from the market, before walking up to the castle (the tour guide had said her grandmother – 90 does it every day – so taking the funicular seemed excessive).
It was not a hard climb, and we found ourselves at the castle. Entry is free to walk around the grounds and a lot of the castle. Its quite a nice place to walk around and we saw a few rooms and enjoyed the views over the city. A short while there we could see some major clouds coming in and soon we could here thunder. So we had a little food there – the cherries and the last of the food from London.
We thought we should then get down before the rain hits, however we were lucky and the rain skirted the center of the city, so that by the time we were down the sun was back out and around 3pm. We decided to go to the market and pick up some more cherries and one large tomato for later, then we did our own walk around the city, looking at some of the other sites (such as the poem in gold on the road). We decided not to get the famous desert here as it looked to much for us. Bhavni also led us into a big department store, where we bought a top for Airyen.
Because of the time difference we were going to get hungry earlier and Airyen wanted pasta, so I found a restaurant called “raw pasta” to walk to, visiting some stores on the way as they wanted to get key chains.
As we got near the restaurant, Bhavni got worried as this was the first street which had graffiti and looked not touristy. However I was undeterred and we got to the place – more of a local restaurant. We ordered 2 plates of pasta and one salad, it was really quite good.
While we were eating the rain finally caught up to us, so we had to walk in the rain. To get a respite we ducked into Cocao and ordered a kids chocolate for Airyen and a very luxurious hot chocolate with peanuts for Bhavni and I. We then braved the last leg to the car. It was around €15 for the parking all day.
We then drove to the hotel, where we quickly got to the room, changed and headed to the pool. We had it to our selves. Bhavni and I also got to use the Sauna in turn.
After getting back to our rooms we headed back down to the games room where we played a bit of pool and table tennis before Airyens bed time, though that its self tool a bit longer then necessary.
27th May (Tuesday) Ljubljana – Bled
Bhavni woke up ahead of all of us and went for a swim at 7.30. Airyen and I got up and went for breakfast around 8pm and she joined us soon after. After breakfast Airyen and I went for a swim whilst Bhavni finished packing. We then got our stuff together and checked out, loaded the car and then started our drive towards Lake Bled.
It did not take long to get to Lake Bled – I pointed our the Airfield that I had flown at near Lesce. Bhavni took some photos as we went past. We then carried along the road towards Vogel, which was another 30mins away as the road was more rural.
Getting to Vogel, the weather was getting more overcast, so it looked as if it may rain when we got there. Just after we pulled up in the parking lot, a large coach load arrived and as they rushed we had to wait for them before we could get our tickets for the lift and then we had to rush as the lift was just leaving.
It was a good view going up the steep lift there (what we could see in the crowded lift). At the top we got out into a cloudy drizzly atmosphere – we had a little walk up there, before going to the restaurant – it was busy with the groups, so we cut our losses and decided to get the lift down again – Airyen got a good view this time (as people let him near the front).
At the bottom we got into the car and drove to the end of lake Bohinj, to Ribčev Laz, where we parked and went to Karakter Bar. It was raining in earnest by now, so most of the seating was wet. We sat and ordered fries and drinks (eventually as the service was a little sub par). It was just after 1 when we left, took some photos and headed towards like Bled area again.
We decided to go to Soteska Vintgar, a gorge, so making our way there, we had to park at a hub car park, buy tickets and catch a shuttle bus to take us there. The sun had come out now and it was lovely. The bus took a good 15 minutes to come then we were on the way. At the entrance we were given hard hats and had our tickets scanned. The walk along the gorge was really lovely with lots of interconnecting bridges and wooden paths over the river. Lots of lovely photos and views.
At the end of the gorge after putting our hard hats away, we got Airyen an Ice cream, took a photo of the waterfall and then took the short way back – which was still listed as an hour – Bhavni was worried that it was the wrong way initially, but I assured her it was correct. It was a steep ascent initially and through woods, we were pretty much on our own for most of it. The last half was level and took us to the parking lot. Airyen was complaining initially about the walk – but in the end we only took half an hour. At the other end we had to wait 30 minutes for the next bus.
Bhavni had informed the next accommodation (Vila Rajska ptica, Jamova ulica) that we were running a little late, luckily the place was right near by. So we checked in and had a bit of time to get refreshed. Bhavni had also booked dinner, at ARROI in Bled for 6.30pm. We drove towards there, having to find parking nearby as its pedestrianised. We were seated outside which was nice with the good weather. We ended up ordering a lot of food – Sushi to Green Curry, but nearly all got eaten.
After dinner we ventured to the cafe across the road – as that’s where they originally made the famous Bled cake. Nice place to have food with the view over the lake, though they were closing now. We got a take away cake and then had a walk around part of the lake, lovely conditions for photos.
We then had a brief walk to a supermarket so that we could buy some cereal and milk for breakfast the next day. Then it was back to the car and the apartment.
28th May (Wednesday) Bled – Piran
After waking at a decent time, we finished our packing and had the cereal and some fruit for breakfast. I had been wondering about the route today, rather than just a motorway drive, so after loading up the car, I went and asked the manager of the place about the route. He however suggested a different route – much more scenic. He checked the roads – there were works but they should be only overnight.
After checking out we headed out and stopped a Bled to have a look at the lake in the morning. Then we joined the motorway, but headed north instead, getting off before Austria and driving to Kranjska Gora. We stopped just after at a town called Kozorg, getting out for a break. It was a nice place to stop with a cool view of mountains over a small lake, as well as a stream through a rocky valley. We stopped here at a cafe to get a drink – Airyen felt he needed to sit in a bubble even in the heat.
It was then off as there was a mountain road that went through the Triglav park emerging nearer the Italian border. It was really scenic, lots of hairpins and with so many opportunities to stop and take photos of the mountains and scenery. However as we just got to the Jesenice/Tolman border we got to construction works – the road was closed – there was no way past, even for bikers.
It was around mid day and there was nothing to do but head back to Kranjska Gora – there were choices if you wanted to cross the border but we had not opted for that in our car hire. Getting back down was very quick compared to the way up and we were in the town before 1. We went to Figo Gourmet, a pizza restaurant on the outskirts of town, where we ordered 2 pizzas and had lunch outside. They were pretty good and also pretty cheap with the drinks.
It was just after 1.40 when we made our way getting the motorway towards Ljubljana. We experienced a bit of traffic for the first time around the capital, then it was the next motorway towards the Adriatic coast.
After a while we got towards the coastal areas and had views of the sea. There was some traffic around here so we drove a few scenic roads. Eventually we made it to Piran area and to the Garage Fornače (as our hotel recommended) around 4pm. We found the parking and took all our luggage with us. The lift took us down 6 floors, then it was a little walk to where the bus pickup was, a short wait and €1 each, this took us directly to Tartini Plaza. Our Art Hotel Tartini Tartinijev was directly on the plaza.
We checked in and headed up, freshened up and headed down. We asked reception about places to eat – it turns out a Wednesday is not great lots of places are closed. We got Airyen an Ice cream at the nearby Pirano Pasticceria, then we had a walk around Piran, following the outer path. Airyen did some climbing on the rocks while we tried to keep a look out for restaurants – not that much appealed. We then ended up at a rocky beach area which then was not really possible to carry on, so then back towards the lighthouse, but we then took some inner streets – quite nice to see as its narrow cobbled streets and picturesque.
We found Srebrna vilica, a restaurant, they seemed to do some decent pasta on the menu and had good reviews, so I booked it for 6.15 – 45 minutes from then. We went back to the hotel sightseeing on the way and freshened up again before returning to the restaurant. We had a nice table reserved and we ordered a pasta dish each with a salad – agli oli for us and a creamy one for Aiyren. The waiter asked us about spice level, we said medium but it was very mild and a different take with croutons – though nice enough. By the time we had finished the restaurant had become busy and the waiter could not cope, so we gave up on dessert.
We walked up to the cathedral which had some lovely views with the clock tower just there. There was quite a bit of cloud today over the sea, so there was no point waiting for the sunset. Instead we walked towards the old walls – a bit uphill – some proper giant villas on the way. We walked a bit along some of the walls then down towards the harbour, before making our way back to the plaza.
We went back to the ice cream restaurant and Airyen had Crepes with chocolate ice cream and fruit (though he could not finish). Then it was back to the hotel.
29th May (Thursday) Piren – Ljubljana
This morning we got up and headed out for a little early walk around 8.30, then we headed to breakfast around 9am – it was in an adjoining cafe – it was ok, had to wait for fruit to come out. We then went and had a walk towards the lighthouse then to the to the room to pick up our stuff and checkout at 11am and getting the bus to the parking garage.
We loaded up the car (after finding the correct way to the car), then headed out. As we had most of the day we drove towards Izola taking the scenic route. We actually parked near the Large Spar a but before 12 and walked into the town – a good 20 min walk. There we got some ice cream for Airyen chilled a bit around the center and had a walk through the town. It seemed to be a nice place to stay. We then headed to the car – quicker on the way back.
The next drive was to Koper – after a bit of fun going around round-about’s finding a place to stop. We parked near the Mercator Center Koper, then walked it to the walled town through the Muda gate. This was really just a lunch stop, so we found a restaurant called noon koper that did rice bowls, and ordered one for us. After the quick meal we then made our way back to the car. I had just gone to the supermarket to get a coffee, when Bhavni phoned and asked if I had Airyens bag with me….. So it was off and a drive to near the gate – drop Bhavni off and go round the one way systems. Luckily the bag was at the restaurant – in the shadows.
Now we were on the move to the Caves – Bhavni put in the directions, but I noticed as we were driving that the caves seemed to be going past – ahh the other caves… so it was a bit of a cross country to the Škocjan Caves, where we parked and checked in. It was only a little while before we were called (along with the many others) to go to the caves. It was a bit of a decent to the entrance area, where we were split into a few groups and given a briefing – no photos – no touching anything was part of it. We went in with the second group, near the front. It was then a long tunnel to the start. Airyen made friends with our guide and asked him a lot of questions.
The caves a world heritage, and its clear why as they are quite amazing caves – fist was an area with lots of stalactites and stalagmites and generally a low ceiling, then there was a much more larger cave, then the unique area – the underground river. This was a bit like scenes from Indiana Jones with the lit switchbacks in the cave system and the roaring river. Its a pity that you could not use you camera here as this was so amazing. Airyen kept on asking out guide things and it was great as we got a lot of info everything, including history of this where old paths were and also how much the river floods.
After the cave we finished the guided path where we parted ways with the guides and then we took the longest path for the rest, which ventured through more caves and collapsed systems. We could take photos here, and there were some brilliant opportunities. At the end we had a little walk around some fields to get back to the car park.
Back at the car, we started towards Ljubljana, but decided to take a detour when we saw signs to the other caves; Bhavni suggested to go to Predjama to see the famous castle there. It was a bit of a distance away but when we got there (after 6pm), it was worth it just to see from outside – the castle set partially into a caves.
It was then time to carry on, our sat nav would not connect but we had a rough idea where to go luckily. It started working when we got near the motorway.
We got nearer Ljubljana and got to a supermarket where we bought some items for a simple dinner. Then it was off the Ljubljana’s secret place (passing the 4 seasons) where we offloaded our car and got in with the key instructions.
While the rest freshened up I made dinner – pasta. A nice dinner though more spicier then i expected from the sauce.
It was then off to bed for Airyen, and then packing and off to bed for us.
30th May (Friday) Ljubljana – London
Today was a earlier start, we had out breakfast and loaded the car, then checked out before driving to the airport. We returned the car – no issues – then checked in for our flight. Its a really small airport – I was tempted to get a hot drink, but the queue put me off.
Soon enough we were boarding the plane then on our way.
Back in the UK, we got off the plane and quickly through the security, then it was a short wait for our bags then the bus to our car.
Now back home was slow with lots of traffic.