The visitor’s first impression of Ljubljana is that it is an exceptionally young city because its more than 50,000 students lend it a special youthful feeling. Many scientists come to Ljubljana because of its university and institutes with solid international reputations.
Why Ljubljana?
Why choose Ljubljana for your next destionation? In short, because it’s fresh, green and funky. In more elaborate terms: well, we suggest you to check out the top 10 reasons below.
1. Its compact size
Once delegates are in the city no transfers are really needed, as most of the meeting venues, hotels and points of interest are central and at a walking distance. The traffic-free downtown area blends with the picturesque Old Town, which functions as a cozy urban lounge along the riverbanks. That’s a first step to greening events in Ljubljana – European Green Capital 2016!
2. Quality meeting venues
In the wider region, no city of our size (286,000 residents out of 2,062,000 in Slovenia), or even a tad larger, can offer two larger, flexible and efficient convention centres at ten to maximum twenty minutes walking from the historic Old Town and a good share of the city hotels. Maximum plenary capacity: 2,200 seats. A good number among the hotels are well geared to welcome medium-sized and smaller meetings. The largest plenary capacity in the hotel sector is 800 seats theatre-style.
3. State of the art equipment and great service
Over the last decade, a number of venues have invested into the upgrade of their meeting and other facilities, to be aligned with modern functionality. Attention has been paid to the service aspect, too. At the general destination level, a visible development of tourist products has been running alongside.
4. An array of special event venues
Leaving aside some attractive options in convention centres/hotels, there are more than a dozen special event venues of a very different type in the radius of max. 15 minutes walking from the Triple Bridge the most central downtown spot. One of the most sought-after is the Ljubljana Castle, which reigns above the city. And there’s no hassle to reach them, as they are either a short stroll (or a funicular ride) away from several hotels / conference venues. You are still on the green side of life!
5. Creative products
As nature invisibly blends with the urban tissue, Ljubljana offers a span of very diverse experiences and activities that can be incorporated into incentive or team building programmes adapted to a different number of attendees. A brunch while elegantly cruising along the Ljubljanica river or kayaking across town? Baking a traditional cake or learning to do pottery in a museum? Photo safaris and treasure hunts with an “intellectual twist”? CSR programmes or wine tasting? Check out the options!
6. The city with a green soul
Ljubljana received the prestigious title of European Green Capital 2016. Among the five finalists contending for the title, Ljubljana, with its sustainable development strategy document ‘Vision 2025’, was the one that the jury, chaired by the European Commission, found the most impressive. Ljubljana also won the Tourism for Tomorrow Destination Award for 2015. The jury pointed out that in recent years Ljubljana “has been completely redesigned with sustainability in mind.”
7. Numerous international accolades
Ljubljana is getting noticed a lot lately and it’s for the good things. Most of all, it gets praised for its holistic approach to sustainability and overall quality of life. Over the last fifteen years it has won two European Mobility Week Awards (2003 and 2013). It also won an Eurocity Award in 2013 for providing safety and equal opportunities in traffic for children and people with disabilities. This year it rocked into the top 20 Bicycle Friendly Cities Ranking by Copenhagenize.com. The list goes on and on.
8. Really amazing people
Slovenians in general are described as affable, open, fluent in languages, helpful and hospitable in a genuine way. Dedicated and connected professionals in all the segments of meeting industry providers are the backbone of a destination, which we are well aware of in Ljubljana. And many clients underline this is one of our assets.
9. A great culinary experience
Taste Ljubljana is a project presenting traditional dishes that people in Ljubljana enjoyed over the centuries of the city’s history and are still popular today. Typical Ljubljana dishes are all based on tradition, made with local ingredients without any artificial additives, and very popular with the locals. They can be served at your event and you can also taste them in several restaurants accross the city.
10. Beautiful scenery all around
Ljubljana, often referred to as the hidden gem of Europe, is a picturesque city. Its old city centre is full of outstanding architecture, a medley of styles from different periods in history bound together into one of the 20th century’s most amazing total works of art by the world famous architect and urban planner Jože Plečnik.
Read more about Ljubljana, the “most beautiful city in the world”, as labeled by its charismatic mayor Zoran Janković: Ljubljana’s official website and the City of Ljubljana website or take a look at this promotional video about the city.
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