Ljubljana Travel Guide: Castles, Markets & Dragons
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You pronounce it as Loo-Blah-Nah. Now that’s out of the the way, here are our top 7 favorite sights of Ljubljana after staying for 5 days in the summer of 2025. All these sights are very doable with (small) kids.
1. Why Ljubljana Castle the main attraction is of the city
and visible from every angle due to its location high on a hill. You can walk up, but don’t have to, as there is a short funicular ride available. You can see the castle grounds for free but with a ticket you unlock all the extras like the museum and the view from the watchtower across the whole city. If you’re not planning to visit the musea you can get a very descent view from the city walls as well, which are free to visit. In that case you can skip the ticket and just pay for the funicular ride.
Survival tip: as with most famous destinations; come early to avoid the major tour groups.
2. Visit the Central Market of Ljubljana
At the foot of the castle (near the lower funicular station), you’ll find the central market. Filled with an abundance of carts, this is where you buy fresh produce, souvenirs and raw cow milk from a vending machine (for some reason). The Plečnik's Covered Market is a colonnade along the river at the edge of the market, filled with amazing places to lunch or grab a coffee.
3. The famous icon of Ljubljana; the Franciscan Church
The pink Franciscan Church is probably the most photographed sight of Ljubljana, and rightfully so. As the center piece of Prešernov Trg (square) it’s pink facade and baroque architecture makes for a beautiful picture you want to drop in the family WhatsApp. Make sure to take a peek inside when there is no mass (which is quite often…).
4. Cross the Famous Bridges
If you come from the central market, you’ll need to cross the triple bridge to get to the Franciscan Church. This is a sight in itself due to the remarkable choreography of the two pedestrians side bridges, again produced by the famous architect Plečnik. Make sure to also catch the Cobblers bridge and the Butchers bridge with your loved one, not to get cut in two like the name suggests, but to lock your love for eternity.
5. Dragon Spotting
There is a legend that Ljubljana is founded on the spot were Jason and his bunch of hero’s of the Argo (the Argonauts) slayed a dragon. It’s therefore easy to spot dragons everywhere, as it’s the symbol of the city. One of the best places is the Dragon’s bridge with four beautifully sculpted dragons on each side.
6. Stroll Down the Old City of Ljubljana
After crossing all the bridges you’ll probably find yourself in the old city, the perfect place for a stroll along bars, restaurants, fancy bakeries and crackling plaster. At the beautiful Town hall you can catch the urban train, a hop-on-hop-off concept that can be fun and helpful. Check the food recommendations down below if you like to sample some IG hyped, but serious delicious, pastries.
7. Don’t go home before you try some štruklji
Traditional Slovenian dumplings made of pastry that can be eaten sweet or savory (the first might be better :). If you’re at the central market visit … to pick some great sweet flavors and match it with great coffee.
Start planning your Ljubljana trip!
Discover more sights and activities in Ljubljana
Ljubljana is a marvellous city that combines loads of different architectural styles with great eye for detail in a small pocket size city. The seven sights above give a sufficient understanding of the city, but can be extended by the following optional sights if your schedule allows it:
Nebotičnik
This means skyscraper and is an absolute high five! The problem with most fantastic sights, like the Ljubljana castle, is that their view does not include them… The view from this rooftop terrace includes the traditional Ljubljana view with the castle, against the Julian alps as a backdrop and the old city centre at its feed.
Faces of Locksmith Street
Find Ključavničarska ulica in the old city and you’ll stand face to face with 700 bronze faces, embodied in a drainage in the middle of the alleyway. After passing the key at the beginning of the street you can follow the artistic faces down to the river bank. A fun sight with a great view if you’re in strolling by.
Metelkova
Advertised as an autonomous social cultural centre, should be Ljubljana’s answer to Kopenhagen’s Christiania. Although the old Yugoslav army barracks and abundance of graffiti make a good promise, the scene turns out to be a crackhole filled with drunk hobos and disorientated tourists. Maybe your experience is better?
Saint Nicholas' Cathedral
A beautiful baroque exterior that you will probably spot multiple times when visiting the sights above. If you visited the Franciscan Church than you can skip the interior of this cathedral. It’s fairly similar and you need to pay an entrance fee as well. The big metal entrance door featuring holy figures is a great sight to catch on the outside though.
River Cruise
You can get on one of the many river cruises at Butchers Bridge and they typically last for 45 minutes. The view however is not very different then strolling along the Ljubljanica river. The old city center is quite small and you quickly exit it on boat, after which it’s an half hour of green tree river banks that isn’t very inspirational.
BTC City
Outside the city center, this is a shop till you drop haven with modern shops, super supermarkets, cinemas, go-karting and fast food joints. Although it lacks all forms of authenticity it’s a great place to recharge, regroup and reset. A lot of great hotels like the Radisson or AirBnBs in the modern apartment building blocks offer a perfect base to explore this great city.
Looking for more information? Don’t just trust this Things I Crossed (TIC) for it, make sure to check this TIC as well:
https://www.visitljubljana.com/en/poi/ljubljana-tourist-information-centre-tic/
