Getting around Ljubljana

Public transport

Ljubljana city buses are operated by the Ljubljanski Potniški Promet (LPP) (tel: +386 1582 2460; www.lpp.si).

Drivers do not accept cash, so you need to purchase an Urbana card from LPP ticket offices, tourist information centres, newspaper kiosks and post offices to ride any of the buses. Pre-load cash onto the card at the green Urbanomat ticket machines next to any bus stop or top up your Urbana card online. The Urbana Card lets you make as many journeys as you like without additional charge; after 90 minutes it will reset.

Taxis

You can hail taxis on the street or at taxi ranks at the railway and bus stations. Ordering a taxi by phone gets you a lower rate for longer distance trips.

Reputable companies include Taxi Društvo Ljubljana (tel: +386 1234 9000; taxi-ljubljana.si/). They also pickup at the airport, accept cash in all EU currencies and most credit cards.

Driving

Ljubljana is a compact city, so driving isn’t all that necessary. However, if you do choose to get behind the wheel, it’s a pretty straightforward city to navigate, though there are several one-way systems to heed. Parking is available by roadside meter or in one of the city’s numerous car parks.

Car hire

Car hire companies have offices at the airport and in the city centre. Reliable companies include Avis (tel: +386 4236 5005; www.avis.si) and Sixt (tel: +386 1234 4650; www.sixt.com).

Bicycle hire

Cycling is very popular in Ljubljana. During the warmer months, the tourist office (tel: +386 1306 1215; www.visitljubljana.si) organises bike tours of varying lengths and rents out bikes for extended time periods for city exploration.

There is a self-service bicycle hire scheme, Bicike (LJ) (www.bicikelj.si), consisting of more than 40 docking stations located within the greater Ljubljana area. There are many bikes available and the first hour is free. After five minutes of returning a rented bike, you can hire a new one. Weekly rental is also available.