Piran & Portoroz

Hello my friends. Are you ready for some new attractions? I have more exciting places that I want to share with you. Today I will introduce you two Slovenian coastal towns.

Piran, the most beautiful coastal town in Slovenia, is perched on a tiny piece of land extending into the sea. The town was part of the Venetian empire from the late 13th century to the end of the 18th century. It has preserved the medieval layout with narrow streets, houses that are huddled close together, rising in cascades, the contact with the sea, numerous squares, and churches. It is the best preserved cultural monument of Slovenian Istria and the closest neighbor of Portoroz, the luxurious city of flowers. When you visit Piran, you should take a closer look at its architecture, influenced by the Venetian Republic, which left its mark on most Istrian towns. Tartini Square is the pearl of the town located in the very center. It was named after the famous violinist and composer Giuseppe Tartini. The town of Piran is a national historical monument. The Church of St. George, the patron saint of Piran, rises above the town. It is worth of visit since the lookout tower gives you an amazing view of Piran, its surroundings, and the sea all the way to the Croatian and Italian Coast.

Second town is Portoroz which is in a walking distance from Piran. It is worth of walking because along the way you will have a wonderful view at the seaside. Once in Portoroz, you can revitalize your body and soul through refreshing jog on the beach, swimming in pools and the sea, beauty and health care programs at thermal spas, sports, and recreation. Portoroz has it all. The Terme & Wellness LifeClass features the most comprehensive thermal, medical and wellness offer in Europe. The spa is unique thanks to use of five local natural factors: salt pan mud - fango, brine - Aqua Madre, climate, sea and thermomineral water. You can enjoy yourself in 7 different wellness centers. Portoroz offers a large number of comfortable hotels with modern pools, a wide range of restaurants with different varieties of cuisine, and popular events. The town is also a well-known convention center. Numerous seminar and convention halls are host to prominent local and international meetings and events.

These two places are a wonderful summer destination for you to combine the sightseeing with relaxation.

Directions:

Being close to Italy and Croatia, Piran and Portoroz are very easily accessible by car. Slovenian capital Ljubljana is about 1-1.5 hours away, while the distance to Trieste in Italy is about 30 minutes. The international Ljubljana airport is 145km/90miles from Piran, if you are arriving by plane.

Bled

With immense natural beauty, Bled, together with its surroundings, ranks among the most beautiful alpine resorts in Slovenia. The place is renowned for its mild, healing climate and thermal lake water. Part of it is Lake Bled; probably the most popular tourist spot in Slovenia. It is sheltered by picturesque mountains. In the middle of the lake reigns an island on which is a castle- called Bled. The beauty of the mountains reflected on the lake, the sun, the serenity and the fresh air arouse pleasant feelings in visitors throughout the year, guaranteeing an ideal base or a relaxing break or an active holiday. While visiting you can rent your own boat to row around the island or just board a tourist boat called "Pletna" which will take you to the island. If you like to hike you can walk around the lake or climb up some hills above the lake. I would also recommend you to use a bike because there are many well marked biking routes that will take you around the lake. In summer you can also swim and enjoy on the beaches around the lake. Due to its variety, Bled attracts businessmen, artists, explorers, sport enthusiasts, the old and young; people from all over the world, enchanting them to return again and again.

Would you like to know how to get there?

Bled lies in the extreme northwestern part of Slovenia, at the foot of the Julian Alps and between the Sava Bohinjka and Sava Dolinka rivers. It is accessible in all seasons. The nearest international airport is Brnik which is 36 km/22.5 miles away. Basically you are almost there when you first land in Slovenia. It is about a 30 minutes drive from the airport. You can also use the train. The Bled railway station lies on the Villach - Jesenice - Ljubljana - Belgrade - Istanbul - Athens railway line. Another way to get to the Bled is by bus since there is a good connection with all larger cities in Slovenia.

I have enjoyed my time in Bled and I really recommend you to experience this part of Slovenia on your own.

General information about Slovenia

Slovenija (Slovenia) is a country in Central Europe that lies in the eastern Alps at the northeastern end of the Adriatic Sea. The country borders Austria on the north, Italy on the northwest, Hungary on the northeast and Croatia on the south. Despite its small size, it is the only country in Europe that combines the Alps, the Mediterranean, the Pannonian Plain and the Karst. This diverse terrain offers you a chance to see different attractions without traveling long distances. It does not matter in which time of the year you arrive. It is perfect for a summer holiday, a winter break or a weekend holidays. You can have one eye on the sea, then look in the other direction and be surrounded by high mountains. You can ski in the morning and surrender yourself to the sun at the beaches of the Adriatic Sea in the afternoon. There are also many woods and forests in Slovenia. They are covering more than half of the country. The majority of the population speaks Slovene, which is also the country's official language. Slovenia is a member of the European Union.
As a small picturesque country; Slovenia is a great destination for your next vacations.


Here are some general characteristics of Slovenia:

• Population: 2.040.934
• Geographical Position: a Central European country
• Area: 20,273 km2/7,819 square miles
• Capital: Ljubljana (263.149 inhabitants)
• Climate: Alpine, Continental, and Mediterranean
• Time zone: Central European Time, GMT + 1, summer GMT +2
• Average temperatures: July 21°C, January 0°C
• Border length: 330 km of border with Austria, 280 km with Italy, 102 km with Hungary and 670 km with Croatia; a total of 1,382 km.
• Coastal area: 46.6 km/29 miles
• The highest mountain: Triglav, 2,864 m/9396 feet
• Population density: 99.1 inhabitants per km²
• Nationalities: Slovenian 1,631,363; Hungarian 6,243; Italian 2,258; other 324,172
• Religion: Roman Catholic 57.8%, Muslim 2.4%, Orthodox 2.3%, other Christian 0.9%, unaffiliated 3.5%, other or unspecified 23%, none 10.1%

Welcome - Dobrodosli

Hello!

Do you enjoy traveling around the world? Do you like visiting and seeing new places that you have not seen before or maybe not even heard about them? If your answer is yes to at least one of these questions, this blog will give you some new ideas for places that you could see during your next trip to Europe. To be more precise, I will reveal you the best places that you can see in Slovenia. This is my home country and as you will see it has some of the most amazing attractions and landmarks that you can visit on your next journey. Here is how this blog will work. Each week I will give you one attraction. You will learn everything that is important about this specific attraction and why you should put this destination on your list. In addition I will also post exciting photos for all of you who want to see how it looks like. It will make you want to see and visit my country, I promise you that.

Today I am posting a map of Europe so you can see where Slovenia actually is. Included in the photo are also the distances to other mayor cities in Europe.

This would be all for today. You are welcome to leave any comments, suggestions or your personal experiences.