The destination
Slovenia is somewhere that has long held my interest as a potential destination. It’s home to arguably the most successful competition climber, Janja Garnbret, and is a staple of the IFSC world cup circuit. Neighbours Croatia and Hungary also remain on my to-do list, and there’s an accessible tripoint with Italy and Austria, so including it on a multi-country tour also appealed. Ultimately, however, my first visit proved simpler: adding on a couple of days in the capital to existing plans in Italy.
The accommodation
This stay was unusual in that the hotel – or, at least, the brand – determined the city, rather than the other way around. I needed to make use of an Intercontinental Ambassador voucher – good for a free weekend night, when paired with a paid one – before it expired. This is a balancing act: reducing a £900 bill in, say, Amsterdam to £450 isn’t really a saving if you would otherwise have stayed somewhere else perfectly comfortably for £400. On the other hand, I reckoned that from the benefits I’d received over the year I needed about £90 of value from the voucher to break even on the programme’s annual fee. The Intercontinental Ljubljana threaded the needle perfectly: I wouldn’t normally spend £265/night on a hotel room, but halved the rate was far more plausible, with the voucher conferring an upgrade in quality over the properties I could find at that price point.
I’ve made use of a few Intercontinental hotels now, in Chicago, Tokyo, and Istanbul. My impression had been that they are old-fashioned establishments: grand buildings, prominent locations, and huge rooms; but with generally dated décor. Their Ljubljana property, though, turned out to be refreshingly up-to-date, the building itself less than a decade old with correspondingly contemporary styling to the rooms. The spaciousness has been retained – there’s just 180 rooms across 20 floors – as have the impressive common areas, particularly the rooftop restaurant and its open-air terrace. It was just a thoroughly pleasant place to be – which was good, as the continued heat wave kept me from venturing out for long!
The ‘guaranteed’ room upgrade was not available, so by way of compensation I was offered 10,000 IHG Rewards points or $50 in food and beverage credit. Normally I would take the points, but with breakfast at €27/day I went for the credit instead. In yet another billing mix-up (see also the Radisson Tbilisi, and the Marriott Tirana), I was charged anyway… This took a couple of weeks after the trip to resolve, but on top of a refund I was comped 5000 points as further apology. Accounting issues aside, the breakfast was excellent – the buffet already impressive enough, but on the second morning I discovered there’s an à la carte menu too at no extra charge.
Location-wise, the hotel was very convenient for the station (where you can also find the airport buses); it’s about a fifteen minute stroll to the old town; and the city’s best burek can be found practically across the street. Honestly, if you can afford it – or can get enough value from the other perks of Ambassador status, as a a year’s membership would be cheaper than a night here – then I’d look no further for accommodation in Ljubljana.
The journey
As covered in an earlier post, I had found my way to Ljubljana by a series of trains from Lake Garda. You could attempt a similar two-country holiday using various north Italian cities – Milan, Verona, Venice – but wherever you start, I’d suggest swapping from rail to road at Trieste.
My route back to the UK was much simpler: at the start of the summer season KLM had added my local airport to their network for the first time. Although Exeter and Ljubljana are only served once a day, an EXT – AMS – LJU itinerary worked out nicely, with just under two hours to connect through Schiphol. Both flights were operated by KLM’s Cityhopper subsidiary, using Embraer E190 and E175 jets which I much prefer to the mainline Boeing 737s. Everything went smoothly, and arriving in my home city rather than London was much appreciated. However, convenience came at a price: booking only ten weeks in advance, a one-way ticket in economy was over £250!
The tourist attractions
The heat wave I’d been struggling with in Garda was less intense here, but daytime temperatures of around 30°C still limited my enthusiasm for wandering around. From the short survey I was able to make, Ljubljana has a good supply of notable architecture both old and new, something I always enjoy in a city. I started with the modern, highlights including the Nebotičnik skyscraper, the area around parliament, and Ferant’s garden. I followed these up with the old town, taking in Congress Square and proceeding along the river to the triple bridge and Prešernov square.
The only ticketed attraction I made it to was Ljubljana Castle, whose ancient walls house an eclectic assortment of exhibits such as a puppet museum, a display of projection-mapped impressionist art, and a 4D cinema. These are all included in the ticket price, but it’s extra to ride the funicular (ideal given the hot weather) or for an audio guide (useful, but skippable). Intriguingly, they also offer a couple of escape room experiences as an alternative way to explore the grounds.
I also paid a visit to Metelkova, a community of artists and activists who have been squatting a former army barracks since the early 90s, transforming it into an “Autonomous Cultural Centre”. I had come in search of street art – both murals and installations – and although there was plenty to see, I quickly got the impression that tourists weren’t welcome.
The meal
Although originating in the Balkans, Burek – a hearty slab of flaky pastry typically enriched with cheese, potato, meat or spinach – seems to have been firmly adopted into Ljubljana’s fast food scene. Burek Olimpija, which opened in 1979, is considered the best, partly because of their creation of such wonders as the pizza burek or, for a sweet option, an apple-filled variant. I stuck with tradition, opting for cottage cheese; later, in the interests of fairness, I also tried a potato version from their close rival, Nobel Burek. Both were exactly my kind of “tasty beige”, and make for a substantial lunch at a bargain price!