An Alpine dream at Velika Planina, Slovenia

Velika Planina (Big Plateau) is a fairytale like pasture in Slovenia’s Kamnik-Savinja Alps and it looks a lot like a scene out of The Sound of Music, just better and prettier!

Velika Planina is a 1,000 hectare low-mountain karst plateau in the Kamnik-Savinja Alps. It is one of the oldest and largest pasture areas in Slovenia’s Alpine region comprised of seven herdsmen’s settlements still active today.

 

Visiting Velika Planina

The flat rolling meadows of Velika Planina have a beautiful backdrop of mountain peaks, courtesy of the Alps. The plateau is dotted with traditional wooden shepherd’s houses scattered among the pastures where cows graze every summer without even realizing, how picture-perfect their surroundings are.

A visit to Velika Planina is like traveling back in time to simpler, stress free days. Spending some time among the cows, breathing in the fresh air, and enjoying the breathtaking views really is good for the soul! This is a place to slow down and reconnect with nature and discover the long forgotten culture of Alpine shepherds.

Herdsmen’s settlement

As spring draws to an end, the sound of bells echoes on Velika Planina as the herds of cows and their shepherds return to the pastures. The Herdsmen’s settlement is the heart of Velika Planina with the distinct design of low wooden walls, steep shingled roofs, and a small fenced yard all around.

Sadly, most of the original huts were burned down during World War II. They were later rebuilt in the traditional manner but with a few modern touches on the inside, like toilets and running water. There are 64 huts here but only a fraction remains active to this day and the others were turned into guest houses.

Preskar Museum

In the middle of the Herdsmen’s settlement you’ll find the Preskar Museum, only preserved hut in its original form that showcases the history of the herders who lived for centuries.

Unfortunately the museum was closed during our visit and we couldn’t enter.

Opening times: during pasture season only
Entrance fee: Adults 3 €, children 1.5€

 

Chapel of Snow Mary

This cute little chapel, just above the Herdsmen’s settlement, adds a little something to the picturesque surroundings.

The chapel original chapel was designed by Joze Plecnik (he’s the architect who designed big parts of Ljubljana as well) in a similar style as the shepherds houses. It was burnt down during WW2 and then rebuilt again on the original location in a similar manner. The interior is wooden and modest.

The chapel is still active and best known for its mass on August 5th. On this day the whole Velika Planina celebrates Snow Mary and dozens of believers come to join the celebrations.

A purple blanked of wildflowers

As the snow starts to melt away, little purple bulbs start poking out of the ground, sometimes so eager, that they make their way even through snow. With the arrival of spring the whole plateau turns purple as the spring crocus (crocus vernus) starts to blossom, a beautiful sight not to be missed!

We made sure to time our visit in order to see this fairytale like destination turn even more magical with thousands of little purple flowers.

The crocus is not to be confused with the rare Kamnik wildflower which is often found on Velika Planina in June. The Kamnik wildflower (murka) is often associated with Velika Planina but it does not coulour the landscape purple. We’ve seen some confusion about this in other online resources so wanted to clear this up. If you want purple fields, you must visit in early spring.

The crocus only blossoms for a couple of weeks at some stage in late April or early May. The exact time really depends on the weather conditions. We visited on the last weekend in April after an unusually late and strong winter. The high parts were still covered in snow but there were plenty of flowers on the southern and lower parts.

Vetrnica caves

Velika (big) and Mala (small) Vetrnica are two interconnected sinkholes leading into a snow cave where you’ll be able to find patches of snow even in the hottest summer months.

Trnič cheese

The Trnic cheese is a specialty of Velika Planina made from curd, cream and salt. It is shaped into little muffin shapes and decorated with embossed ornaments. These embossed decorations were made with little wooden tools with patterns carved on them.

Traditionally, the shepherds would make Trnic in pairs (two with the same decorations) and in autumn, when they returned into the valley, they would gift one to their beloved one while keeping the other for themselves, as a sign of love, courtship and fidelity.

Trnic cheese can be enjoyed fresh or aged. When fresh it has a mild flavour which becomes more pronounce as the cheese dries out. Fresh Trnic is perfect for cheese platters and pairs well with honey or olive oil. Dried Trnic is used to add flavour to dishes in a similar manner as Parmigian cheese.

Footsteps of the shepherds educational path

A loop learning trail takes you through Velika planina and showcases the history, culture and nature of the plateau. Along the route you will find eleven info tables and learn about about customs, architecture, how pastors once lived, old legends and about the natural sights.

Trail length: 6.740 m
Walking time: 2 h 15 m
Altitude gain: 258 m
Price: Free

Velika Planina in winter

In winter Velika Planina turns into an idilic alpine ski resort. While the ski slopes aren’t big they make up for it in scenery. You can rent a hut on the top and enjoy this alpine wonderland covered in snow.

Where to stay

Velika Planina is the perfect place to disconnect and enjoy some time in the nature. Many of the Shepherds huts as well as the huts in the tourist village at the top of the gondola are now available for rent and are the perfect spot to spend a night or two in this alpine wonderland.

The chalets are all gorgeous with wooden interiors and an alpine design. Some even feature saunas and external hot tubs. The chalets fill up quickly, especially during crocus and the ski season so make sure to book in advance!

We recommend you stay in the huts at the top of the chairlift as opposite to the top of the gondola as it’s much closer to the Herdsmen’s settlement and the views are fantastic.

We stayed in the lower huts next to the upper gondola station keep and while the hut was really nice, we would have preferred to stay closer to the settlement. It was a good 30min walk up a steep hill or 20min chairlift ride to get to Zeleni Rob (the main restaurant) and a further 10-15 min to the Herdsmen’s settlement, so not ideal for a short stay.

 

Getting To Velika Planina

Velika Planina is closed off to vehicles with the exception of permit holders. The only way up is either with the gondola or you can walk or bike the last stretch.

Gondola

The easiest and fastest way to get to Velika Planina is with the gondola, followed by chairlift (included in the ticket price). There are two stations you can get off the chairlift. The first one is next to the restaurant Zeleni Zob and the top one is next to the rental huts at the edge of the Herdsmen’s settlement.

Between June and September the gondola runs every 30 minutes, or every hour in the shoulder season. The base of the gondola is along the road to Kamniska Bistrica and can be reached either by car or by bus.

Ticket: 13 EUR one way, 17 EUR return
Working times: Vary by season, check timetable here
8:30 am – 6 pm in summer, or till 8pm on weekends in July & August

By car

The closest carpark to Velika Planina is Mackin Kot (Cat’s corner), 1h 15min drive from Ljubljana. From here it is a 30 – 45 min walk on a gravel road to Velika Planina. This is a pleasant walk but we would not recommend it if you’re staying in the huts and have luggage with you.

Keep in mind that as soon as you cross the livestock fence and pipes you enter the grazing area. Cows roam freely here and damage to cars is not uncommon. Parking here is on your own risk and you are responsible for the damage yourself. To minimise risk of damage to your vehicle retract the side mirrors when you park and make sure there is no salt residue on your car.

By Bus

If travelling by public transport the easiest way is to take the Kamnik – Žičnica V.planina bus and then take the gondola to the top. Alternatively you can also hike from the base of the gondola.

Hike

There are several hiking trails leading to the top of Velika Planina (Gradisce) which can all be extended or shortened to reach the Herdsmen settlement. The more popular hikes are:

• Kranjski rak – Gradisce: 2h 10min, altitude difference 660 m
• Kraljev hrib (Kamniška Bistrica) – Gradisce: 3h, altitude difference 1,126 m
• Stahovica – Gradisce: 3h 40min, altitude difference 1,275 m

Bike

There are several biking routes that lead to the top and around Velika Planina and you can combine shorter trails into longer biking adventures. You can even take your bike up with the gondola.

Trail map
You can find a map of available hikes (blue) and biking tracks (red) on this map.
Unfortunately we’ve only found it in Slovene. If you came across the English version please let us know int he comments so we can update it.

 

Other attractions nearby:

Velika Planina is within reach (1h – 1.5h drive) from Ljubljana, Bled, Kranjska Gora and other popular tourist destinations in Slovenia. Keep in mind that this part of the country is hilly, the roads are windy and sometimes you need to drive all around to reach a destination that’s only a few kilometres away in a straight line.

The below attractions are all less than 1h drive from Velika Planina and absolutely worth checking out!

• Kamniska Bistrica Springs
• Predaselj Gorge
• Kamnik
• Logar Valley
• Repov Waterfall (Repov Slap)
• Raduha Snow Cave

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Have you been to the Velika Planina? Would you like to visit?
Let us know in the comments below!

 

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