Even if you already had high expectations, we are confident when you finally get to see Green Slovenia with your own eyes, it will still be a massive surprise!

It will certainly be far greener than you imagined and you probably thought it could be quite green here, but even our guests from the Irish Emerald Isle tell us how green it all is and that is saying something! 

It will also be much smaller here than you ever imagined.. most next holiday destinations can look the same size on a map or computer, but Green Slovenia is really so diddly tiddly small that this might be one of the few holidays you will ever have, where you can easily explore the whole country in a set of simple, but epic daytrips.. AND pop into Venetian Italy or Istrijan Croatia too, if you like, for a little getaway from your Slovenian holiday!

The Italian Adriatic coast is a little over 30 mins from the Lodge..

But just cos Slovenia is so small, it doesn't mean for one swish of a dragon's tale that the only things here worth visiting are a lake, a capital city, a big cave and a pretty seaside town..

Cos Green Slovenia has a ridiculously disproportionate number of World and European Class unique Green Treasures for such a dinky place.. So many, that it doesn't even seem fair to the other European countries.

Devil's Bridge above Tolmin Gorge..

There are castles, caves, mountains, rivers, gorges, springs, vineyards, Mediterranean seaside, waterfalls, disappearing lakes, Alpine lakes, secret WW2 Partisan hospitals hidden in the forests, fortress churches, Medieval towers and frankly, EVERYTHING that is best about Europe in one small package, with Mediterannean, Continental and Alpine climates all accessible in the same amazing day out.. if you want!

ALL of this European jigsaw puzzle fits into a such a small space, slap bang in the centre of Europe, where every 20 minutes you drive in any direction, the architecture, climate or geology will change to give you a new deja vue and make you feel as if you are visiting a different European country, but it really is ALL in little old Slovenia!

Pop down to our fave seaside town of Izola for a coffee, a meal, a swim, an ice cream or ALL of these..

The only other country in Europe where you might get anywhere near to this amazing feeling of huge variety in a small space is maybe Switzerland, but Slovenia has a Mediterranean coast too, is the 3rd most forested country in Europe, has 7 unique wine regions AND only Jamaica has more churches than Slovenia per sq KM!

So put that in your fondue set and melt it!!

OK, so maybe you knew or suspected some of these facts already, or you were hoping or dreaming it was true, but we are pretty sure there is another major factor you really didn't know about when planning your Slovenian adventures, something that could severely limit your holiday fun and this is the subject of this blog..

DO NOT TRY TO REGIONALISE YOUR HOLIDAY IN GREEN SLOVENIA!

It doesn't matter what "Region" this secret lake is in, cos it is ALL Green Slovenia..

Pretty much every other holiday you do will be to a particular "region" inside a bigger country, spending most of your time fully exploring that region, OR spending a few days inside a region in that bigger country and moving on to the next..

BUT Slovenia is just so small you really do not need to make the mistake of booking multiple mini stays in multiple so called "regions" or even worse.. doing a "Join the Dot" city hop!

We wrote a separate Blog to warn you Not to Join the Dots to visit Green Slovenia and now we will tackle the confusing mass of misinformation about Regionalistion!

But first have a browse or take a good look at a Map of Slovenia for yourself!

It seems almost every other publication, article or travel guide on the subject of visiting Slovenia tries to REGIONALISE it all, carving little old Slovenia into lots of different and confusingly named regions and suggesting unnecessary schedules!

Go wine tasting or have a very special meal in villages like this in the Vipava Wine Valley..

But this is totally bananas, cos you can drive across the WHOLE country in 3 hours!! (Even 2 hours in several directions)!!

You can get so easily bamboozled into compartmentalising Slovenia into something like 2/3 days in Bled, (the so called Lakes region) then 2/3 days in Ljubljana, (the so called central region), only 1 day in Postojna (the so called Karst region) and 2 by the sea, (the so called Mediterranean region), which immediately means you will completely miss out the stunning Soca River, (which in our humble opinion is the most beautiful river in Europe) and you will also miss out the entire East of the country too!! 

If you only knew how easy it is to get around to ANY of these places on ANY day you choose, if you select the best location in the middle of them all!

You will almost certainly not drive from Bled, Ljubljana or Piran in the same day to ride on this epic paddle steamer on the Soca Lake.. But this is a fave part of a special day trip out to the Soca for Lodge guests..

In Green Slovenia it is so MUCH better to choose WHICH day you visit WHICH attraction, WHEN you want, NOT depending on WHICH Corner or "Region" you have been corralled into staying in!

What Happens If?

So what happens if the 3 days you are stuck in Bled it is rainy or stormy and may be better spent on the coast or visiting a cave or biking next to the Soca river?

What happens when you realise the Friday you allocated to drive from Ljubljana to go up to Bled for the day or down to the Coast, ends up being the WORST possible day to use the motorway, ending up as congested as your own Friday motorways at home?

This disappearing lake at Planina, 15 mins from the Lodge, is bigger than lakes Bled & Bohinj put together.. when it decides to appear..

What happens if you scheduled 3 long days in Ljubljana and realise how crazy frog small it really is, when half a day will do, (max one day)?!

What happens when you hear about the incredibly beautiful Soca river with the most amazing colour & the best gorges & waterfalls and you realise you are stuck on the other side of the mountains in Bled or just too far away in Ljubljana or Piran..

In our humble opinion, Bled, Ljubljana and Piran are the best known places, but actually 3 of the worst locations to base yourself for getting easily around the rest of Green Slovenia!

If you love biking, make sure you cycle the Soca Bike Path from Nova Gorica to Kanal..

You see, Ljubljana might look like it is in the centre of the country on a map, but logistically, it is cut off by mountains from the Soca Valley and too far from the Coast to have a simple day out by the sea.. And vice versa, if you are staying on the Coast, then it is just a bit too far to sensibly get to the Lakes or the Soca Valley for a simple day trip adventure!

And last but not least, what happens when you scan your eyes down our list of Secret Places to Visit and see just how many amazing secret Green places to visit you could combine into your Slovenian hollibubbles if you only knew and you were not stuck in a far off "region" of the country, cos some hot guide or publication had told you to go Regionalise it all!!

All roads in this part of Europe lead to Mt Nanos, the Gateway to the rest of Europe and the Mediterranean..

So pretty please, take another look at the road map of this little country that has the outline of a big Green Chicken and you will see that the true Logistical Centre of Green Slovenia is just 10 mins west of Lipizzaner Lodge at Nanos mountain, the last mountain in Green Slovenia and gateway to the Mediterranean .. Always has been, Always will be!

You will notice this when you do get here and start travelling around and that is why we parked our Lodge with a stunning view in front of Nanos mountain.. 

There are many more caves to visit in Green Slovenia that the one or two you may have read about..

Several ancient hiking paths and modern major motorway network junctions centre on Nanos mountain, with roads whizzing off to all the very best places to visit in Green Slovenia, but despite being so close, you do not hear them or see them from the Lodge!

Flexibilty is the key to getting the very best holiday experience in Green Slovenia, so here in the little green village of Landol, we are between the mountains and the sea, in the shadow of Nanos, right in the middle of it ALL, providing a comfy base to explore EVERYTHING in simple day trips.

You can see Venice, the Vipava Valley, the Coast, the Red Karst and the other 3 Slovenian Alps from the top of Nanos on a good day.. The Lodge is snuggled down there on the Green Karst side of the mountain, 10 mins from the main motorway to the Coast..

If you are so close to EVERYTHING, you get to choose which day is best for you to go see the Coast or the Lakes or a Wine Valley or the Alps or the Soca River or a Fab place in the East or the Capital City and we can help you decide the best strategy & logistics to fit all of these into the sunniest or quietest or best travel day for that particular adventure..

Some days you might hike locally here in Green Paradise, with Predjama castle being an easy 40 min hike through the forest on a secret path.. Or you might bike to your choice of numerous other disappearing lakes, castles, caves and other delights of the Green Karst..

It kinda makes sense doesn't it!

This bridge crosses the River of 7 Names in a secret nature park just 20 mins from the Lodge..

In numbers, Lodge guests can reach lake Bled in one hour, Ljubljana in just over half an hour, the Soca river in 35 mins, the Coast in 35 mins and ALL the best places to go see in short or longer daytrips!

With the greatest of respect, the names of the regions here in Green Slovenia can be very confusing.. You can actually end up being unknowingly in several different regions during the same day, on really simple daytrips, day after day and not realising which regions you were actually in, but certainly remembering which castle or vineyard or mountain you visited that day!

This is Strunjan, a fantastic stretch of Adriatic sea to swim in, with a view across the bay to Piran..

Of course, it is wonderful and interesting to know you visited the Vipava Wine Valley or the Red Karst or the Brkini or the Green Karst all in one day, but it is far more important to retain great memories of doing epic stuff like having an amazing bike ride, visiting an amazing hill top village overlooking vineyards and having a fantastic local Slovenian meal!

On other days you might see where Lipizzaner horses come from, swim in a lake or a river or go in a cable car up a mountain.. It really can be all up to you!

Kanal on the Soca River..

ALL of this is Green Slovenia, so it doesn't really matter if you were in Primorska or Notranjska or Upper Carniola or Pregmurje, cos with respect, these are names that even if you pronounce them correctly, you will probubbly forget inside 5 mins, but you will NEVER forget the beauty of the River or Gorge or Waterfall you saw that special day!!

You really can have a completely different day out today and then the next day and every day for week after week without having a scooby doo which region or regions you are in, but most certainly knowing you are in Green Slovenia!

The biggest disappearing lake of them all is 25 mins from the Lodge at Cerknica and this is one of the secret caves that helps to fill up to 40KM Sq of lake with crystal clear water..

And even if you do fall into the regionalisation trap and do end up "hotel hopping" around the big Green Chicken shape that is Slovenia, you will still have an amazing holiday..

But there is really no need to complicate your logistics like that, just make sure you are aware in advance how much Green stuff there is to see and do around here and how close it all is together and then when you finally get here, perfect your daily travel plan to have the best European Green holiday you might never have thought still possible in modern day Europe!