Slovenia is easily my favorite country, especially in the autumn. However, I could easily live in Ljubjana. It is their most prominent city, but it is small and community-driven. It is the most developed country in Yugoslavia and similar to other countries nearby (Italy, Austria, Germany). Ljubjana is also the most environmentally friendly city in the European Union.
I spent one week in the capital of Ljubjana, I came up from Split, Croatia, and when I left Slovenia, I flew to Rome. Typically when people travel to Europe (Americans), we tend to visit more than one country. Because of this, I will share a helpful hint to getting to Ljubjana. I found flying in and out of Ljubjana was highly costly, and the flights had strange layovers that were long also.
Split to Ljubjana: Take a flight from Split to Zagreb; typically about $100, then take a car from Zagreb to Ljubjana, which was about $45, for a total of $145, whereas my flight from Zagreb to Ljubjana was $300 and a five-hour layover in Munich.
Ljubjana to Rome: Take a car from Ljubjana to either Venice or Trieste, both in Italy; I went to Trieste, and my car was $20. Then I took a flight from Trieste to Rome, which was $50. So for a total of $70, whereas a flight from Ljubjana to Rome was $800 and a 10-hour layover in Munich.
Where I booked my cars: Go Opti
I would highly recommend going to Ljubjana in the fall; I went in October, the air was crisp and cool. It was sunny most of the time, and the trees were perfectly warm tones. I stayed in the city the majority of the days as I worked remotely at night. However, on the weekend, I rented a car and traveled around the country.
What I did:
Lake Bled: I drove to Lake Bled, which was a 40min drive. I have always wanted to go to this lake as the pictures made it look stunning. It was great but was not as great as I thought it would be. Hallstatt in Austria was a lot nicer.
Lake Bohinj: I drove to Lake Bohinj on the same day as when I went to Lake Bled; it was about another 30mins. This lake is a lot larger and has more places to hike, picnic, outdoors spots, and a bigger city.
Predjama Castle: is a Renaissance castle built within a cave mouth in south-central Slovenia, a 13th-century castle built in a cliff face cave, with restored living areas, dungeons & secret tunnels. There are also caves near by that I highly recommend.
Walking Tour: I love taking a walking tour in cities I have never been to before. It was a fabulous tour that included a boat tour, and it was exceptionally well priced. I found the experience on Airbnb. I highly recommend this tour.
Overall the city had a magical feel of fall. It felt like I was in a Hallmark movie; it was a week I would never forget. The prices in the city were similar to the prices in Germany, lower than average in Europe but higher than other parts of former Yugoslavia.
The Life of Sarah 