Green Ljubljana: the back story

About Green Ljubljana: the back story

By the ULTIMATE Ljubljana Editorial Team

Editor-in-Chief: Jai Michael

Ljubljana has made a point of being green. Its centre has been largely closed to cars since 2007, bikes and electric carts carry people around, and the forest begins a short walk from Prešeren Square.

A car-free centre

The old town and the river embankments became pedestrian zones from 2007, and Slovenska cesta was later closed to most cars. Electric Kavalir carts give lifts in the centre, and BicikeLJ bikes wait at stations all over the city.

A forest in the city

Tivoli Park leads straight into the wooded hills of Rožnik and Šišenski hrib, part of a landscape park covering several hundred hectares.

In Ljubljana, the forest starts ten minutes from the main square.

The ring path

The Path of Remembrance and Comradeship (Pot spominov in tovarištva) is a tree-lined trail of about 33 km that follows the line of the wire fence that encircled the city during the Second World War. Today walkers, runners and cyclists use it to circle the city.

The marshes

To the south lie the Ljubljana Marshes, where prehistoric pile dwellings stood; they are part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site shared by the countries around the Alps.

Our advice: rent a BicikeLJ bike, ride through Tivoli to Rožnik, and on a fine weekend do what locals do: climb Šmarna gora for the view of the Alps.

Opening hours, prices and seasonal openings change, so please check with Green Ljubljana: the back story before you go.