Visiting The Amazing Postojna Caves, Slovenia

With an average of one million visitors per year, Postojna Caves are by far Slovenia’s most popular tourist attraction. And I must say, it’s easy to see why. I first heard of this cave complex a long time ago, but only recently did I have the chance to see it for myself.

It took Mother Nature millions of years to create such a wonder. And as beautiful as it is, the most fascinating thing is that the caves will be completely changed in, say a few thousand years.

Postojna caves were discovered in the 17th century. But it only started to receive visitors about two hundred years later. One of the first visitors was the Austrian-Hungarian emperor himself. Today, regular citizens, like you and I, can visit the cave as part of a tour.

VISITING THE POSTOJNA CAVES

I arrived in the town of Postojna on a warm summer day and went straight to the park. Judging by the number of people and buses, I thought the caves were going to be awfully packed – more on that in a minute.

With my ticket in hand, I went to the entrance and I could see River Pivka, responsible for the cave formation, running into the hollow. I was wearing shorts and they told me the temperature inside is around 10 degrees Celsius. Lucky me, they have cloaks for hire (€4 each), so I couldn’t freeze in there.

Postojna Caves are 24km (15 miles) long, but we can only visit 5km (3.1 miles). To go into the caves you have to take an open train, which takes you in for just over one 1km. Already on the train, you can see a lot of interesting rock formations, many stalactites and stalagmites. On this route, there are some very narrow corridors and low ceilings. One of the most remarkable parts of the train journey is the moment we enter a large room with a very high ceiling, adorned with a giant crystal chandelier.

Once we got off the train, our guide took us around and explained about the formation of the caves. After the explanation, you have some time to take pictures, then catch up with the group. Be careful to not join a different group, as each guide has control of the number of people they have.

As you walk around the caves, it’s hard not to be impressed by the rock formations. Some resemble deep sea corals, others seem to have been sculpted by an artist.

Each of these rock formations has different names. Stalactites are rock formations created by water dripping from the ceiling. They are attached to the cave ceiling, pointing down. These stalactites tend to keep dripping and the water is rich in calcite. Over the years – thousands of years – these accumulate, creating other formations pointing up – the stalagmites.

Over time, these two can meet and form a column. When the water doesn’t drip, but runs slowly in a stream, calcite is deposited and this forms the draperies, one of the most interesting rock cave formations.

Postojna Caves are rich in all sorts of formations and some areas are creatively lit. But despite that, photographing the cave is very difficult, since you’re not allowed to use flash or a tripod.

During any given time, there can be a maximum of 500 visitors. Even though it seems a high number, you don’t really notice it. The place is calm and you’re more likely to hear the water running or dripping, than people talking.

If you prefer, you can buy your tickets to Postojna Caves directly from their website.

HOW TO GO FROM LJUBLJANA TO POSTOJNA CAVES

Postonja Caves, located in the town of Postojna, is 53km from the capital Ljubljana and 58km from the Slovenian coast. Unlike most parts of Slovenia, there are good public transport options to visit the country’s most popular tourist destination. Here’s how to go from Ljubljana to Postojna Caves:

Bus: There are buses from Ljubljana to Postojna every hour, roughly. In the evening they are more sparse. At the moment, the first bus leaves Ljubljana at 5:30am and the last one leaves Postojna at 9pm. The journey takes anything from 45 minutes to one hour. The exact bus schedule can be found here.

Train: Trains to Postojna also run on an hourly basis from Ljubljana. They are slightly more frequent in early hours and the first train departs the Slovenian capital at 4:30am and the trip also takes around one hour. An adult ticket costs €5.80 one way. Click here for the actual train schedule.

What about you, what did you think about Postojna Caves? Have you ever visited similar caves? Tell us in the comments!