A small country that packs a big punch, Slovenia regularly tops destination popularity polls. This is not a beach holiday destination, having only a short stretch of crowded coast. Instead, there is excellent walking, lots of small, high-quality hotels, interesting cuisine, fast-improving spas, and a range of organic hill farms that take guests. It also has cheap flights, with easyJet into Ljubljana and Ryanair into Klagenfurt and Trieste, both close to Slovenia’s borders.
There’s a lot of variety in its 20,000 square kilometres. The northern part is dominated by the southern slopes of the Alps, cradling lakes Bled and Bohinj. Pastoral valleys filled with vines and hops spread east, while the west is rough country of karstic limestone, filled with caves. Ljubljana is a delightful, cultural little city, a southerly Prague.
If you’re single...
...and holidaying with mates
The small town of Bovec in the Soca Valley, close to the Italian border, is popular with adrenalin junkies. A mountainous, riverine setting means that canyoning, paragliding and hydrospeeding are at your fingertips, but the town also has a range of welcoming cafés and bars, where you can enjoy winding down after a hard day of adventure.
The English-run Hotel Alp (00 386 5388 4000, www.alp-chandler.si) offers B&B from £19 a day, but you can also book via Crystal Active (0870 8880266, www.crystal-active.co.uk), which offers a week in early June from £489pp or two weeks in August at £998pp, including flights, transfers, bike hire and half-board.
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...and want lots to do
Myriad alpine plants, birds and butterflies will keep you busy on Naturetrek’s “Alpine Flowers of the Julian Alps” trips. This is a single-centre walking holiday that explores a variety of habitats, stopping for picnics and returning to a comfortable hotel serving organic food and wines in Ukanc, on the shores of Lake Bohinj.
The eight-day trip starts on July 1 and costs £895pp including flights, transfers, accommodation, meals and guides. Naturetrek (01962 733051, www.naturetrek.co.uk).
...and want to indulge
A stylish escorted tour of Slovenia’s highlights is available from Headwater. Starting in Ljubljana, you’ll stay in the Grand Union Hotel, an Art Nouveau property with a rooftop pool, and then head down to the coast at Piran, with wine-tasting en route. You end up at Lake Bled in the opulent, five-star Grand Hotel Toplice.
Price: £919pp includes flights, B&B plus four dinners and guided programme. Headwater (01606 720199, www.headwater.com).
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If you’re a couple who...
...like to do very little
Sample one of Slovenia’s spas. The four-star Vitarium is the newest addition to the Smarjeske Toplice Health Resort — one of the largest in Slovenia. Set on the site of three thermal pools in a botanical park, this hotel offers a range of treatments and facilities, plus anti-stress and anti-ageing programmes. For the reinvigorated there are tennis courts and riverbank walks.
Seven nights in June is from £565pp, 14 nights in August is from £895pp, including return flights to Ljubljana, transfers and half board. Holiday Options (0870 4208372, www.holidayoptions.co.uk).
...love to do a lot
Inntravel offers walking in the Julian Alps. The seven-day trip takes in lakes Bled and Bohinj, with delightful routes linking villages. Guests stay in comfortable hotels and at the four-star Hotel Vila Bled, once the summer residence of President Tito.
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The price is £830pp in June (£870pp in August), including flights, B&B accommodation, two dinners and one picnic. Inntravel (01653 617906, www.inntravel.co.uk).
...want romance
The island in the middle of Lake Bled is a fairytale setting for proposals and marriages, with transport out to the church of St Mary by pletna, the Slovenian gondola. Vows over, retreat to the Grand Hotel Toplice, where swans swim up to the hotel lawn.
The price for a week in June is £569pp; two weeks in August is £805pp, including flights, transfers and half-board. Thomson Lakes and Mountains (0870 4030544, www.thomsonlakesandmountains.co.uk).
...want to treat themselves
A car, a map and a healthy appetite are required for Just Slovenia’s food-and-wine trail. The seven-night trip begins in the Vipava Valley at a farm within easy driving distance of the Postojna Caves and the medieval town of Snjel. Then you move on to Penzione Raduha, in the Savinja Alps, for wild garlic soup and venison in pine sauce. Last stop is at Urska Farm in the Pohorje Hills, where wines, ham and salami are home-made.
The price is from £447pp in June, including flights, car hire and half board. Just Slovenia (01373 814230, www.justslovenia.co.uk).
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Page 2: Families and top tips ()
If you’re a family with...
...under-fives
Little ones will love helping to feed the animals at a Slovenian tourist farm, such as Mulej, close to Lake Bled. There are walking trails, bikes and fishing in the pond at the farm. Little princesses can visit the fairytale Bled Castle. The accommodation choices are self-catering apartments or double and twin rooms.
A week’s B&B during May half-term is £391 per adult including flights; add £28 for half-board. Children have a 25 per cent reduction. August prices rise to £556pp for 14 nights. Croatian Affair (020-7385 7111, www.croatianaffair.com).
...energy to burn
Mavrica Apartments are in the pretty hamlet of Stara Fuzina near Lake Bohinj, with its kayaking, canyoning, rafting, swimming and sailing. The apartment’s owners are sports lovers and will hire out equipment and organise activities. Mavrica also has a club room for socialising.
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Prices start at £350pp for a week in June and £516pp for a fortnight in August, and include flights, car hire and self-catering accommodation, based on a family of four. Just Slovenia (01373 814230, www.justslovenia.co.uk).
...kids, grandpas, kitchen sink
Camping is a reliable catch-all for the extended family. Camping Adria, by the sea on the Slovenia/Italy border, is ideally located for boat trips to the country’s oldest coastal towns — Koper, Izola and Piran — and even across to Venice. On-site facilities include pools, waterslide, tennis courts, plus water skiing, sailing and snorkelling on the beach.
Seven nights in a fully equipped tent cost £278 per party for arrivals on site between May 7 and June 2. A 14-night stay costs £872 for arrivals between August 12-18. Prices include Dover-Calais crossing. Vacansoleil (0870 0778779, www.vacansoleil.co.uk).
Top tips