Slovenia: Where the stories were already written before I arrived
Six days of gravel in Slovenia: From a mountain pass my parents drove through in the 1970s to green-blue lakes, wine villages and the Vršič climb.
Some places you come across twice in your life.
First through the stories of people who were there for you, and only then when you go there yourself. I grew up with stories about ‘former Yugoslavia’, from my parents and grandparents. Summer holidays in the 1970s, a small car, no air conditioning, all the way from the Netherlands to Slovenia and neighbouring countries. Fruit stalls along the road. Singing at the top of your voice to make the hours fly by. Paper maps, routes you heard about from fellow travellers and locals, no screen in sight. The adventure began the moment you stepped out the door.
So the moment Kees and I drive through the Wurzen Pass in the evening and cross from Austria to Slovenia, it feels different than I had expected. This is precisely the mountain pass my parents took on one of their very first trips together. The same road, a different generation. I quickly send a message home. They remember the pass straight away. A good start.
The weather has other plans (initially)
What begins as a long drive from Austria to Kranjska Gora, right in the corner where Austria, Italy and Slovenia meet, quickly turned into a typically Slovenian welcome.
Day onetorrential rain all morning. In the early afternoon, a light snow shower. The kind of weather that tests your perseverance before you've even begun.
But we had heard: from two o'clock the sun shines. And so it was. Right on time. That afternoon the golden light shines on the gravel, and reminds me of something I learn again and again on trips like this: flexibility is not a weakness. It is the skill that gets you through. This also meant that some gravel sections had to be skipped, because they lay under a white blanket of 50 centimetres. That's the weather, that's life in the mountains. The good news: the alternative route has also been tested right away. This part of the gravel is for the snow-free days, while the asphalt is a very nice alternative.
What Slovenia really looks like
Ljubljana has a large park right next to the city centre, on a gravel bike you can cycle straight through the city park and where you at first still regularly see a walker, you slowly feel the silence increase. Within a few kilometres you feel completely at one with nature. It is not without reason that the European Road Cycling Championships are being organised in Ljubljana in 2026. We certainly understand why.
Slovenia has mythical-looking forest paths, singletracks among the pines, and white gravel roads that lead along and across green-blue rivers such as the Soca river. The rivers invite you to swim in them or gaze into them for a very long time. Slovenia offers a fantastic contrast between, on the one hand, the Julian Alps and, on the other hand, the lower-lying wine regions where the wines are gaining increasing international allure. The gravel is a mix of champagne gravel with sometimes a section that seems designed more for hikers than for cyclists.
The Vršič Pass with views of Slovenia's highest mountain: Triglav. This climb starts directly from Kranjska Gora and is one that will be etched into your memory. The climb can be done entirely on the road, but it is even more scenic to climb the first 5km through the forest and along the river, including a river crossing. As an alternative to the tarmac, the end of the climb can be tackled via a narrow mountain path offering bizarre views along the entire route. Once at the top, you look out over a stunning valley on the other side, with a healthy dose of self-confidence as a bonus.
The people you least expect
The routes are there. The roads are magnificent. But the memories you really take home with you? Those come from somewhere else.
There is a certain type of local you come across when you are riding a bicycle with bikepacking bags. Not the typical tourist, not the people passing through in a car. They are the people who do not work in the tourism sector or are tourists. Daniel was such a person.
He saw us riding, asked where we were going and was genuinely enthusiastic. He knew paths we didn't know, and offered to show them to us. He told local stories with the kind of enthusiasm that only someone has who truly loves a place and rarely gets the chance to show it to someone who really appreciates it too. Thus, he took us to a tree of nearly 700 years old in the valley, which we have now added to our route. A place to sit for a moment and daydream. Not only about what happened in that valley, but also about where your own future is heading.
Perhaps you will find your own Daniel in Slovenia. Someone who gives you something you couldn't have planned.
Lovely sleep
And then there is the accommodation after a long day. Late arrival, tired legs, everything nearby already closed for dinner. We called twice. First to say we would be a bit later. Afterwards, slightly panicked, to find out about food. On the other end of the line comes a short, friendly laugh. “Would you like some pasta?”
It ends up being a three-course meal. Crafted with care, with creativity, purely because we were the ones who turned up late and hungry. One of the best meals of the trip. Impossible to bring about, impossible to plan. These are the kinds of things that stick with you, even more than the pretty views.
Getting better at this
At Andalusia I raided hotel breakfast buffets for jam jars. Bikepacker survival instinct, activated on day five.
At Slovenia I hardly need to think about it anymore. The rhythm is there. The nutrition, the pace, knowing when you need to push through and when to ease off a bit. Progress isn't always spectacular. Sometimes you just notice it because something that used to take effort now comes naturally.
More hours in the saddle. More kilometres that felt like a reward rather than survival. But this is not about going harder, further and faster. It is about getting to know your body, your own rhythm and what brings you joy on the bike. About understanding yourself better during your trip. Something that helps you not only further on the bike, but also in your daily life.
Why Slovenia
A self-guided cycling holiday through Slovenia gives you wonderful days outdoors in a country that feels like it was made to be seen by bike. Pristine gravel roads. Coloured mountain lakes. One hour riding through the forest, the next hour alpine vistas. Villages that are not optimised for tourists. Wine regions where you stay right among the vineyards.
It is the kind of place where the roads are quiet enough to hear your tyres on the gravel, and varied enough that no two hours look the same. The route offers a lighter or fuller version on days 3 and 4: you choose the challenge that suits where you are at that week. And you can choose between 6, 7 or 8 days of riding.
Whether you're going solo, with a partner or with friends: Slovenia challenges you just enough, shows you more than you expect and sends you home with stories people will actually want to listen to. This adventure is worth your time.
About the author
Yannick is co-founder of Legendary Rides. He rides, tests and writes the routes you will find on these trips, from the Dutch Big Five to Andalusia and Slovenia.
