Just about all Americans would be hard-pressed to pinpoint Slovenia on a map. But we (well, Chuck does) spend hours staring at and studying maps (Google Earth is our most-used iPad app) and can easily show you where it is. If you’re interested, it’s just east of Italy on the Adriatic sea, and just south of Austria. From just that tidbit of geography, you’d expect Slovenia to be a well-known tourist destination, but the reaction we universally get when we bring up Slovenia is, “Really?”
Granted, this might only be the reaction from the typical American, but Frommer’s calls Slovenia “Europe’s first boutique destination”, which we translate to mean, “Slovenia is where people who’ve been all over Europe go when they are looking to see something new”. But from what we can tell, Slovenia deserves a spot in the top 5 of all European tourist destinations. In fact, in the same article, Frommer’s describes Slovenia as “cram-packed with jaw-dropping scenery”.
We’ve pretty much heard enough at this point.
But, wait, there’s more! Spend some time tapping the Panoramio pictures in Ljubljana, Slovenia’s capital, and you’ll likely conclude, like us, that the awesomely-fun-to-pronounce city is as beautiful and clean as Paris. Read up on the college scene and you’ll assume, like us, that the people are well educated, progressive, and eager to make an impact on the world. There are beaches and world-class ski resorts. And being “less developed” than the rest of Europe, all aspects of the country can be sampled for much less than just about anywhere else in Europe. All while being on the European rail system and being just a stone’s-throw away from Venice, Salzburg, Vienna, and Dubrovnik (Croatia).
Oh, and one more thing: Slovenia is a wine-producing country, with 75% of their production being classified as “premium” wines.
We’ll be in Slovenia sometime in 2014, you can count on it.
