A Little Trip to Ljubljana

This summer, my new country had to be Slovenia! I had already been to all of the countries it borders, and a friend had very strongly suggested I visit Lake Bled. We started this trip in Paris, so we flew from Paris Orly to Ljubljana on Transavia Airlines. This was my first time flying (or even hearing of) Transavia, and we had a good experience!

I wanted to spend the majority of my time in Slovenia on the coast and in the mountains, so we only spent one full day in Ljubljana. Ljubljana is a charming, small city with a river running through it and a castle overlooking it. While I’m sure there are many more things to do, I feel we saw a lot of the city even with such a limited amount of time!

Ljubljana was quite dog-friendly! All of the tourist attractions I wanted to do allows dogs. We were there in July, so we mostly sat outside at restaurants. Alice was offered water and pets wherever we stopped for food or drinks!

What to Do/See

The Castle

Dogs are not allowed inside the castle, but they are allowed on the grounds and in the courtyard. There are trails on the hill around the castle, as well as multiple options for eating or drinking. I had a glass of wine at Grajska Vinoteka. Dogs are allowed on the funicular if they are wearing a muzzle. You can also get to/from the castle via the Urban Electric Train.

Urban Electric Train

We’ve done miniature trains in several places, and I think they’re a great way to see a lot of a city quickly and learn some history. Dogs are allowed! The first stop is the castle, which is only a ten-minute stop. I wanted to stay longer, so we hopped on a different train later by showing my receipt. I wouldn’t say this is a must-do activity, but I did learn some things about Ljubljana and Slovenia! If you have time, it’s fun.

Boat Tour

There are so many boat tours down the Ljubljanica River! If you walk along the river, you’ll see many advertisements for them. The few that we saw all said dog-friendly, and were around the same price. Some of the boats have drinks, or even a Dj and dancing! We did a basic boat with no additional offerings, Barka Lea. I highly recommend doing one of these, the views from the river are great and it was a really peaceful ride (with a nice breeze on a warm day).

Football!

We happened to be in Ljubljana during the quarterfinals of the Euros! This large square had a movie-theater-sized screen set up for the games! There were food and drink stands set up, and people from many different countries were there to watch. I imagine there are other events here throughout the summer.

Pika Pet Store

This adorable, tiny pet store has dog popsicles and ice cream! It was quite hot when we were in Ljubljana, so of course Alice got a lollipop!

Where to Eat/Drink

There are so many restaurants along the river that are shaded and have nice views! The one restaurant I really loved was Vander. Their traditional Slovenian truffle pasta was incredible. Makalonca was nice for a drink (and decadent pancakes) because they have tables below the street/bridge, closer to the water. The food at Promenada was average, but the people working there were so nice! There’s also a pretty extensive farmer’s market in the city center.

Where to Stay

Ljubljana is very small and very walkable! The exact location doesn’t matter much, if you’re walking distance from the Triple Bridge in the middle of the city. We stayed at the Antiq Palace Hotel, which was fine. The location was great, the room was all right except that the AC unit didn’t actually seem to work. Overall, the room felt over-priced for what I got (especially since there was an additional charge for Alice), but I couldn’t find any cheaper options that allowed dogs and weren’t hostels.