When we organized our New Year’s Eve trip in Slovenia, Postojna Caves were the first place I wanted to include among the things to see: they are one of the natural fascinating beauties of Carso and one of the most visited caves in the world.
For me was also the first time I entered in a real cave, so dark and deep.
12 miles of beauty made of salt and limestone.
Visiting the Postojna Caves
The ticket cost for visiting Postojna Caves is about 23€. Through-ticketing is also available to combine different visits: we were interested in the Predjama Castle, so we bought a unique ticket for both, saving 5€ apiece.
An advice for you: you can buy the tickets in a shop located away from the entrance to the caves. You need to buy the tickets first and then reach the line to the entrance. Don’t do like us: half an hour in the line just to be eventually sent back to the shop to buy the tickets.
The entrance to the caves is by a little train – they are the only caves in the world to have a double track railway – that accompany the visitors for 2 miles.
Since the little train, you can admire how amazing the caves are: natural arches, stalactites and stalagmites that create patterns of magnificent beauty and even a cave used as a concert hall with a splendid huge chandelier that seems made of ice… a fabulous place worthy of a Disney fairy tale!
The other part of the itinerary is on foot. The duration of the visit is almost one hour and a half, but the place is so amazing that is inevitable to stop at every angle, every detail, to admire it or to take pictures.
Actually, taking pictures would be forbidden, but is a rule that no one respects and the guides themselves joke about this. The only real prohibition is using the flash.
One of the things I appreciated is that there is a guide for every main European language. When you get off the train, you are divided into groups, each with its mother-tongue guide: Italian, English, French, Spanish and Russian.
Most of the places in Europe are limited to guides in English in addition to the official state language, but here everyone is satisfied.
Two caves, in particular, amazed me: the Concert Hall, a place that for years has been used as a theatre for concerts, given its exceptional acoustics; and the Congress Hall, where the first post office once stood. Inside a cave! Isn’t it extraordinary?
Imagine the excitement of attending a concert in a cave or sending a letter from a place like this!
Between Christmas and the New Year’s Eve in addition to the immense Christmas tree that is installed in the caves, a living representation of the nativity scene is made every day.
The show starts at 3 pm, but with the visit of the 12 pm every now and again we already saw children or young people dressed as little shepherds or ancient Romans… It’s suggestive as can be!
