Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
inexpensive option for somewhat flexible travelers. First, go to
www.goopti.com
and select
yourdestination,date,andpreferredtimeofarrivalordeparture(foreachroute,theyletyou
know the maximum amount of time you'd have to wait). Then, 24 hours before departure,
you'll get an update of the specific pickup time, based on the needs of other passengers.
Prices can flex dramatically, but it's quite affordable (for example, an advance nonrefund-
able purchase from Ljubljana could be €13 to Piran, or €23 to Venice; for the best price,
book two months ahead). For a few euros extra, they can pick you up at your hotel rather
than the train or bus station. To lock in a specific time, you can pay extra for a “VIP” trans-
fer (“VIP flex” is similar, but refundable).
GoOpti reaches destinations in Slovenia (at least 15 places, including Ljubljana, the air-
port, Lake Bled, Lake Bohinj, Bovec in the Julian Alps, towns in the Karst such as Posto-
jna and Sežana, and Piran and other Slovenian coastal destinations), but it's also handy for
farther-flung international destinations—such as Venice or its airport, Trieste, various Aus-
triancities(Vienna,Salzburg,Klagenfurt,etc.),andCroatiancitiessuchasZagrebandPula.
Slovenia's only
airport
(airport code: LJU) is 14 miles north of Ljubljana, about halfway
to Bled. Confusingly, the airport goes by three names: Ljubljana Airport (the international
version); Brnik (for the town that it's near); and Jože Pu
č
nik Airport (a politician for
whom it was controversially renamed in 2007). Most flights are operated by Slovenia's na-
tional airline, Adria Airways (
www.adria-airways.com
)
, but additional flights are run by
easyJet(
www.easyjet.com
)
,WizzAir(
www.wizzair.com
)
,andvariousnationalcarriers(Air
France,TurkishAirlines,Finnair,andsoon).Theairportissmallandmanageable. Morning
flights tend to cluster around the same time frame (between 6:45 and 7:30); as the airport
doesn't open until 5:00, there's no need to show up before then. If you need to kill time
here, follow signs (around to the left as you exit the terminal) to
Razgledna Terasa
and
Ter-
asa Avion
č
ek
and ride the elevator up to the rooftop terrace with a café (daily 9:00-19:00).
Here you can sip a coffee while you watch planes land and take off. Airport info: tel. 04/
206-1000,
www.lju-airport
.si.
Getting Between Downtown Ljubljana and the Airport:
Two kinds of buses connect
the airport with Ljubljana's bus station:
public bus
#28 (to the right as you exit the airport;
Mon-Fri hourly until 20:00, only 7/day Sat-Sun, 45 minutes, €4.10), and a
minibus
(to the
leftasyouexittheairport,scheduledtodepartaftervariousarrivingflights—lookforsched-
ule posted near bus stop). Two different companies run the minibus transfers, which take
about 30 minutes and cost €9 to downtown: Markun (mobile 041-792-865,
www.prevozi-
markun.com
) and Marko Nowotny (mobile 040-771-771,
www.mnj.si
)
. I'd take whichever
one is departing first. For a transfer
to
the airport, your hotel or any TI can make arrange-
ments with one of these companies a day or so in advance (same price). Unfortunately, cer-
