Need help with itinerary and logistics

I personally would find it very difficult to experience Slovenia without a car. For example, in Logarska Dolina you can get a bus, but it’s not that frequent and you’d be very limited in what you could actually see in the area. Ljubljana is very easily done without a car, but the Julian Alps are a different story. If I had 8 days I’d probably do 1-2 nights in Ljubljana, 3 nights Logarska Dolina & 3 nights somewhere around the Triglav National Park/Lake Bled/Lake Bohinj area. We love the Lenar Tourist Farm in the Logar Valley (it’s run by a special family) and we enjoyed staying in Tolmin to explore Bohinj & the National Park.

Thanks for your reply Wanderweg. I wonder your opinion on a few other things. Assuming we have a car..

I was looking at the Lenar farm. Was thinking two nights but could do three. In your opinion is 2 not enough?

Also I was looking at staying in Stara Fuzina (SF) near Lake Bohinj. My international flight will depart LJU at 11 AM. I was wrestling with whether I need to say near the airport the night before or could just depart SF very early AM to get to the airport. Your thoughts on this?

Also, in Tolmin, do you recommend any specific place(s) to stay?

You will love Slovenia! We were there last September and had a car except when in Ljubljana.

There are easy transportation options from the airport to Ljubljana that should be simple at 6 PM. We used the other idea and spent the first night in Kranj, renting the car at the airport the next day.

Logar Valley is incredible but I think it would be difficult to appreciate without a car. And a second vote for Farmhouse Lenar -we had a wonderful experience there.

If you are totally against driving, it is possible to see other destinations, like Bled, Bohinj, Triglav, Velinka Planina, Škocjan Cave, and Idrija with tour guides from Ljubljana. Take a look at ToursByLocals or Private Guide Slovenia.

Slovenia Trip Report

Slovenia is gorgeous, but you do not have a lot of time. It sounds like you have 9 nights.

If you want to avoid driving, I would limit the trip to Ljubljana and Bled/Bohinj while perhaps doing some day tours to see things outside of those areas. For example, if you want to see the Soča Valley, consider hiring a guide like Elizabeta to drive you over Vršic Pass, and then to Bovec and Kobarid. Then complete the circle by catching the Motorail back to the Bled area. The Motorail is a train onto which drivers can park their cars, and then travel on the train in their cars through tunnels in the mountains from Most na Šoci to the Bled area instead of driving over the mountains.

Check out Elizabeta's version of this trip on Tours by Locals. Google "Tours by Locals Elizabeta Slovenia" and then look at her "Excusion over the Julian Alps." I can't link the tour directly because TBL links historically have expired after some short time. If you like that tour, do NOT schedule on TBL. Go to Elizabeta's personal website for what I would expect would be a lower price (TBL takes a significant finder's fee): https://www.topagencija.si/en/guided-tours. I did several tours with Elizabeta and her daughters while in Slovenia. All were great.

The Logar Valley is hard to do without driving. It's gorgeous. I personally wouldn't want to miss it. If you are willing to drive, I would suggest 3 nights each at Bled, Llubljana, and Logarska dolina, ending in Bled. I would do Ljulbljana -- Logar Valley -- Bled. For going from the Logar Valley to Bled, I would generally recommend a route that includes narrow, very curvy roads that goes briefly into Austria, then comes down to Kranj, and then on to Bled. It's breathtakingly gorgeous. But if you don't want those types of roads, you can backtrack through Ljubljana. To pick up the Soča Valley, you could still do a day with Elizabeta.

I was looking at the Lenar farm. Was thinking two nights but could do
three. In your opinion is 2 not enough?

It all depends on what you want to do. I did 4 nights there, but I hiked for a day, did the Solčava Panoramic Road for a day, did a day trip to Velika Planina. The latter could be done on the way to the Logar Valley from Ljubljana, if it is something that interests you. The Solčava Panoramic Road has a lot of curves and is narrow in places, so may not meet your driving preferences. The Lenar folks have a family member who does driving/guiding on the road, but I understand she is delivering a baby in December and may not be available for a year or two due to this. They may, however, know others who are willing/able to do this.

I was wrestling with whether I need to say near the airport the night
before or could just depart SF very early AM to get to the airport.
Your thoughts on this?

The airport is north of Ljubljana, so it is not much further from Bohinj than it is from Ljubjana. I stayed at Bohinj my last night in Slovenia, prior to a 9:05 am flight departure at LJU airport. I left my Ukanc (most distant side of Bohinj Lake) hotel at around 6 am, but I didn't have to worry about traffic since I was leaving so early.

Also, in Tolmin, do you recommend any specific place(s) to stay?

I have no recommendation for this area. Perhaps someone else will!

My 25 Days in Slovenia trip report with stops, hotels, activities, etc.

Thanks to all those who have responded. The road to Lenar Farm/Logar Valley (the less curvy one which does not go through Austria) - how would you say the driving on this road is? I'm strongly considering the car rental - seems like the flexibility that will offer would be ideal.

What car rental companies do people like? I've had some foreign country not so positive car rental experiences so this makes me a little hesitant, but I think I'd just plan to take out some of the extras for reassurance (such as needing roadside assistance for a breakdown).

The road between Farmhouse Lenar and LJU is not too bad. Paved roads in Slovenia are in good condition and well-marked. I drove as slowly as I was comfortable and it was fine. And there are frequent bus stops that are perfect for pulling over! We did have a guide take us on the Solčava Panoramic road so the driver could appreciate the scenery.

We rented an automatic VW T-Roc from ATET, and I recommend them. The T-Roc had plenty of room for the 4 of us and gave you good visibility without having a big SUV. We thought having an automatic and full coverage was worth the extra cost.

Using a guide from Ljubljana for the Vršic Pass, Kobarid, and the Soča Valley as Dave did is a great option if you decide not to have a car to see those areas. We loved staying in Drežnica for that area, but that requires crossing the narrow Napoleons Bridge! I probably would choose Kobarid over Tolmin for the Soča Valley. If you took a bus from Ljubljana to Kobarid, a guide could then drive you to all the sites in the Soča Valley.

The road from Ljubljana to Kamnik to Logarska dolina is very drivable. There are some curves comparable to what you might find on a well-marked, comfortably-wide, two-lane country road in the US as you get closer to Logarska dolina, but there is nothing that is anywhere close to "white knuckle" driving; there is white knuckle driving going on the route through Austria.

My trip to the Soča Valley was from Piran, and I rented a car in Piran. I also stayed at Drezniča... at Tourist Farm Kranjc. Drezniča offers amazing views, but the road to It from Kobarid is narrow and has quite a few curves. You may find something in Kobarid more comfortable for driving.

I agree that Kobarid (or even Bovec) would be a better place to stay than Tolmin.

I also think that your experience in Slovenia will be better if you drive than if your rely on public transportation. If you are willing to drive, do it!

I did 8 days in Slovenia last June and I loved it! I was solo and I rented a car in Ljubljana and then returned it to the same spot. I just wanted to have control over my schedule and stop if I saw something interesting. The country is small enough that you can take in city, mountains, farms, countryside and the sea! I don't handle mountain roads real well but managed just fine in all of the traffic but I skipped driving through portions of the Julian Alps and went southwest from Ljubljana and worked my way up the western coast and then back to Ljubljana. So much more to see too so I'll have to go back. Slovenia is one of my favorite countries! @Dave was wonderful with his trip reports and his notes & comments helped me finalize my itinerary. LMK if you need any hotel recommendations.

I started in Ljubljana and did a food tour and a few historical tours there. The Free tour was absolutely great and I took two of them there. The food tour came highly recommended and the owner is a local and she took so much time with us and told us history on the way to and from the restaurants we toured. She was so informative! The company was LjubljanaYUM tours and their website is https://ljubljananjam.si/

I rented a car in Ljubljana and drove towards Vipava and Slap and the scenery was beautiful. Stopped for an incredible meal at a restaurant/farm/winery near Vipava called Majerija.

Piran for 2 days - there is a local who gives great historical tours but he was gone the days I was there. I just wondered around town and took it all in. Church of St. George is beautiful but was not open when I visited. But, I loved hiking up there for the view! I highly recommend Fritolin pri Cantini (casual outdoor cafe with incredible seafood - snag a seat and one of you order). Then, I really loved the staff, their stories and the meal at Pirat Piran restaurant.

After Piran, I drove to Skocjan Caves and hiked there. It was also beautiful and the tour was so interesting and included lots of history!

When I went to Kobarid, I did visit the WWI museum which was fascinating and I didn't have the $$ or time to eat at Hisa Franko but did eat at her husband's restaurant, Hisa Polenka, which was amazing (and less $$). I also drove up to Church of St. Anthony and it had a beautiful view. I hiked to Slap Kozjak before sunset which was less crowded and stunning!

I caught the car train in Most na Soci and rode it to Bohinj Bistrica which was a great way to see the scenery but not have to drive hairpin turns (they only take Euros cash)! https://potniski.sz.si/vozni-redi/avtovlak/ and then drove to Bohinj which I loved so much more than Bled. I took the Vogel Cable Car in Bohinj and had intended to hike down but it was raining a lot that day so I opted to take in the view, hike a little at the top and ride it back down. Then, after it stopped raining, I hiked to Slap Savica which was a great climb (all stairs though but worth the view at the top with the falls!).

Next day parked the car at Star Fuzina and hiked to the mountain huts through Voje Valley to Slap Mostnica (water falls). The hike was beautiful and about 7 miles and the falls were beautiful but I honestly liked Slap Kozjak better. Maybe because it was less crowded and the hike to Mostnica was longer. I missed the Gorge on the way down b/c I was running out of daylight and energy! :( I did have to stop and rest at the 1/2 way point and had some soup and drink at Okrepčevalnica - Snacks Slap Voje (cash only).

From there I went to Bled and just stayed a night and next morning biked around the lake with the free bikes from my hotel and toured the castle. Then, drove to Radovljica and toured the fascinating beekeeping museum. Back to Ljubljana and left the next day to Budapest, Poland and Czech Republic.

I rented through Hertz and walked there from my hotel, Hotel Slamic. I will say on the way back when I went to return, they had a closed sign and for some reason, my phone wouldn't work (there was an outage that day!) so I had to stop next door and have them call the number on the front door and the Hertz employee came right away. Driving back in to Ljubljana from north of the city was a bit harried as there were so many closed streets, one way streets, etc. so allow ample time if the construction is still going on.