These two gigantic caves should be on your list of places to visit on your trip to Slovenia.
Two of Slovenia’s top tourist attractions. These two caves are a must-see, as Skocjan Cave and Postojna Cave are very different from each other.
A must-see! You have to do both because the Skocjan cave and the Postojna cave are so different.
The Skocjan caves are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. You enter a tunnel and after a very beautiful first section with fairly classic caves, a gigantic underground canyon awaits you in a huge room. You’ve never seen anything like it. You’ll be blown away!
The Postojna caves have been visited by 35 million people, including 150 kings and presidents, since a tourist train was installed inside the cave in 1872. These are the largest caves you will ever see. The tours by train and on foot are fabulous. The only problem is that the caves are a little too touristy!
The Skocjan caves and the Postojna caves are exceptional natural attractions.
Location: These immense natural underground caves are located on the motorway that links Ljubljana to the Adriatic Sea in an hour. Both caves are easy to reach. In this article, you’ll find all the details you need to organise your visit to these two amazing caves once you’re in Slovenia.
The gigantic Postojna caves, the most visited in Europe
The Postojna caves are gigantic. They’re bigger than any caves you’ve ever seen before. A visit to the Postojna caves begins with a ride on a small underground train. It was installed in the cave 150 years ago. For 3.2 km, you travel at high speed through dozens of majestic chambers before reaching an even larger chamber. “Final stop, everybody off!” You continue your visit to the Postojna cave on foot for 1.8 km. It’s an unforgettable experience.
In the Postojna caves, there are dozens of chambers and some very impressive stalactites and stalagmites.
The Postojna caves are gigantic, but look like nothing you’ve seen elsewhere. Above all, Postojna cave is much bigger than anything you’ve seen elsewhere. So it’s very beautiful but not very different.
At the end of the visit, in the vivarium, you can observe the famous Proteus, an amazing little animal that lives in the Postojna cave.
Postjanska jama” entrance tickets are expensive
Ticket prices for the Postojna caves: They’re expensive, and a big expense if you’re coming as a family.
- 29.90€ for adults
- 23.90€ for students
- 17.90 for children aged 6 to 15.
- Parking is €5
- french audio guide €3.50…
Worth knowing: This is the only place in Slovenia where all the marketing tricks worthy of an amusement park are deployed to capture tourists’ euros. At the entrance, you’d think you were standing at the bottom of the Eiffel Tower or at the entrance to a large PostojnaLand theme park.
Tip: In the height of summer, buy your ticket online rather than at the ticket office – depending on how busy it is on different days and at different times, this tip may be useless or could save you a long hour’s queuing.
Tip: Avoid the restaurants at the entrance to the caves. Sure, they’re convenient and quick, but there’s nothing authentic about them!
Warning: the tourist souvenir shops at the entrance to the caves are the opposite of the authentic Slovenia that I’m trying to help you discover with the secret tips on this site. In short, as far as possible, don’t buy anything around the caves so as not to support this bad trend towards mass tourism and prices that are a little too high.
In high season: a visit to the cave is scheduled every hour. It’s always very busy in summer, but most visitors arrive between 10.30am and 4pm. In low season, three or four visits are organised each day. To make sure you don’t waste time and avoid arriving unannounced, visit the Postojna caves website.
It should also be said that everything is very well organised
At Postojna, the tourist reception is very well managed, with large car parks and students hired to direct tourists. Ask them for advice.
Which ticket should I choose? I recommend that you take just the entrance to the caves and not a package (vivarium, museum, etc.) that costs ten euros more.
I’ve provided you with this old map of the Postojna caves and now I wish you good luck in finding your way out of the cave with it 🙂 The Postojna caves were then called the Adelsberg caves.
Discover the Postojna caves in a superb video
Skocjan Caves, my favourite caves in Slovenia
The Skocjan Caves are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It’s an astonishing cave, an immense cavity 146 metres high with a roaring waterfall.
The caves of Skocjan are like a scene from Lord of the Rings.
It’s a tourist cave that you won’t find anywhere else in Europe, and one that’s a little more adventurous than the very touristy Postojna. Skocjan remains perfectly signposted and equipped, so don’t worry, you can take the whole family.
Addition following a comment: In July and August, don’t think you’ll be alone in the cave – it’s still a very popular tourist spot in Slovenia…
Tickets, opening times, access, parking, practical information
- The Skocjan caves are visited by 90,000 visitors every year, compared with 600,000 for Postojna.
- Admission to the Skocjan caves costs between €16 and €24 for adults and €7.50/€12.50 for children, depending on the length of the visit.
- From June to September, there is a tour of the caves every hour between 10am and 5pm, at peak times.
- Out of season, there are only two departures a day, at 10am and 1pm.
- On Sundays and public holidays, another departure is added at 3pm or 3.30pm.
- Check the timetable on the official website.
My opinion of the caves in Slovenia, which one to choose?
Both caves are spectacular and well worth a visit, but if you don’t have the time to do both and have to choose between these two Slovenian caves, I would definitely choose a visit to the Skocjan caves in Slovenia for their more adventurous and unique side.
Adventure choice : And if you want to experience a real adventure, book a visit to Krizna Jama, an unforgettable adventure.
Accommodation near the caves
Staying in the area around these two caves is a really good idea. The area is very pretty and, with the motorway nearby, you’ll be within easy reach of the sea, the beautiful Vipava valley, the superb Smartno region, the splendid Nanos hike, Ljubljana… In short, you’ll be strategically well placed to get around.
Here are a few nice places to stay that I’ve spotted.
If they’re available, don’t hesitate to go to the pri andrejevih farm (swimming pool, great owner, delicious meals based on vegetables from the garden, quiet, charming village, spacious rooms…).
You won’t be disappointed at Smerkejava either (modern and traditional).
Tip: Stay close to the magnificent Skocjan Park
From Skocjan, you can also quickly reach the Slovenian coast (Piran, Koper, Izola…). So you can spend several nights there. In short, if the accommodation below is available on your dates, you’ll be fine there and you’ll see once you’re there that you’re geographically very well situated.
- Stay in a farmhouse in a small village at the very end of the park
- Or in this other farmhouse.
- There are also these well-decorated flats.
- A little further on, I really liked the very beautiful Apolonija guest house.
Train and bus journeys: Ljubljana – Skocjan or Ljubljana – Postojna
From Ljubljana, you can reach the Skocjan caves by train. Get off at Divaca station and then walk for an hour (there is a large map of the trail in front of Divaca station). The second half of the trail is well signposted. It’s not very pleasant at first, as it runs alongside the road, but then becomes pleasant in the undergrowth.
For the Ljubljana-Postojna train journey, you will also need to do some walking once you arrive or take a taxi (which is not very expensive). You can also take the bus from Ljubljana to Postojna. This bus journey is quite pretty.
By car, the journey from Ljubljana to Postojna is 50 km. You’ll find it very quick, as you’ll only be driving on a beautiful motorway that winds its way through Slovenia’s beautiful hills.
Information on the Postojna and Skocjan caves in Slovenia
Here are the websites for organising your visit : skocjan caves and Postojna caves. I recommend saving a visit to the Skocjan and Postojna caves for a rainy day, as it rains quite often in Slovenia and you’ll be sheltered in these caves. On the other hand, it’s likely to be busier on a rainy day, as you won’t be the only one to have the good idea of taking refuge here.
A report on Slovenian caves not to be missed
In this report broadcast in French on arte, we explore the most beautiful caves in the Slovenian Karst in the company of the country’s leading geologists and speleologists. They decipher the reasons for these very special landscapes, present the results of their research and explain the exceptional interest of these caves.