Ljubljana Card, 11 museums, one heatwave, and a mom with two kids (7 and 9 years old). What was worthwhile and what we would skip next time.

Tourists at Home

Since we live an hour away from Ljubljana, we usually visit for a few hours. For errands, lunch, an event, or a stroll through the city center.

This time, however, we went on a proper city break. A more detailed and extensive exploration of our capital.

The plan was simple: three days in Ljubljana, as many museums as possible, some culture, history, science, art, and exploration. With children aged 7 and 9.

For this purpose, we purchased a 72-hour Ljubljana Card, which includes entry to over 30 attractions, including numerous museums and galleries, Ljubljana Castle, a guided city tour, a boat ride, and unlimited public bus transport. For one adult and two children, we paid €124.

Where did we sleep?

We chose Camping Ljubljana Resort on Dunajska Street as our base.

The campsite seemed very practical for such a city break. Primarily, it was affordable (if you have your own camping vehicle). It is close enough to the center that we could easily travel by city bus.

The campsite is quite large and also has swimming pools, which we did not use this time. Our intention was to explore Ljubljana, not to have a swimming holiday, and besides, we had a pretty full schedule every day. We left at 9 AM and returned at 9 PM.

They have new and well-maintained sanitary facilities, and some parts of the campsite are beautifully shaded. This was especially useful for us, as we were there during a heatwave. Despite the high temperatures, we slept well at night.

We have no complaints about the campsite. For us, it was primarily a good and practical base for exploring Ljubljana.

Our impression: 4.5/5.

And since we saw quite a few things, I can now honestly say what we liked the most, what was fun, and what we would easily skip.

Most Educational and Interesting

Slovenian Ethnographic Museum

If I had to choose only one museum to recommend, it would be the Slovenian Ethnographic Museum.

We stayed here much longer than we planned and could have stayed even longer.

We saw collections related to Slovenian material and intangible cultural heritage, many carnival masks, old objects, and various ways of life.

I especially liked that the exhibitions reminded us of some old Slovenian words. Avba, latvica, jerbas, čupa...

Words that we know, but rarely use today.

The children always had something to look at, touch, or listen to, so the museum was not one of those where after ten minutes you start hearing: "Mommy, can we go already?"

Our impression: 5/5.

We will definitely return here because we simply didn't have enough time.

National Museum of Slovenia

We visited the National Museum on the first day, and here too, many things stuck in our memory.

Most notably:

• the Neanderthal flute from Divje babe,
• the Egyptian mummy,
• the gilded bronze statue of an Emona citizen.

The children were most interested in things they could connect with concrete stories.

We also coincidentally caught the 6th International Ceramics Triennial UNICUM 2026, which was a pleasant addition to the visit.

Our impression: 4/5.

Natural History Museum of Slovenia

Mammoth. Whale. Moon. Stuffed animals. Skeletons.

The Natural History Museum was one of the more interesting ones for us, primarily because many things are very concrete and can be compared to what they already know.

We had about two hours to visit the National Museum and the Natural History Museum (they are in the same building!) and in the end, we regretted not having more time.

If you enjoy reading descriptions and are interested in natural science collections, definitely allow enough time.

Our impression: 5/5.

National Gallery

I admit, before the visit, I didn't know how well-behaved they would be, how feasible the gallery would even be with children.

But it was very pleasant. Just announce the rules of conduct in advance, and it goes smoothly.

The museum left a wonderful impression on us. Peace, serenity, mindfulness. Very pleasant. A beautiful building. Art, simply. And as we later realized, realism is much closer to us than later modern or contemporary art.

It was special to see Ivana Kobilca's paintings live, including Summer, The Coffee Drinker, and Poppy.

Our impression: 5/5.

Most Fun and Relaxing

Ljubljana Castle

We went to Ljubljana Castle primarily because we wanted to catch the sunset.

You can see many different things at the castle, but we didn't revisit everything, as we had already visited a large part of the castle last year.

This time, we also visited the Puppet Museum, where you learn about different types of puppets, can try them out, and even perform a short show. We spent about 45 minutes on the visit.

We also really liked the projection When Illustrations Come Alive, where works by Slovenian illustrators are projected onto the walls of the castle space.

We also caught the photographic exhibition by Arne Hodalič and climbed the panoramic tower.

And yes, the sunset from the castle was truly worth the visit.

Important: if you go to the tower just before closing, don't be late. They really close on time.

Our impression: 5/5.

Museum of Illusions

This was the most relaxed visit of the entire weekend.

You try out different illusions, test your sight and brain, walk through rooms and experiment, and of course, take quite a few photos. The kind for Instagram.

The visit took us about an hour.

Our impression: 4/5.

Somewhere in Between

Slovenian School Museum

A smaller museum, but very interactive.

The most interesting part is the historical classroom from a hundred years ago, where you can dress up (girls in dresses, boys in vests), put on an ink guard, sit at a desk, write with a quill and ink, or with chalk on a slate.

For groups, they also have lessons led by an actress in the role of a teacher. This is a truly special experience and I highly recommend it. Lessons are organized for groups or for special events.

And I think this museum is important primarily because it shows children something that today quickly seems self-evident: schooling was not always accessible to everyone and is not something to be taken for granted.

The children learned about and for a while, moved into a school from another era, thus getting a very concrete sense of how different school life once was. What the punishments and rules were like.

Our impression: 4.5/5.

What We Would Probably Skip Next Time

Ride on the Urban Tourist Train

Urban was included in our card, so of course we tried it.

Our impression is that it is much more intended for tourists visiting Ljubljana for the first time and who don't know much about the city.

We learned almost nothing new.

We would have liked more interesting stories, anecdotes, or lesser-known facts. Basic information about the city is provided, but for us, there wasn't enough content.

Our impression: 2/5.

Chocolarium

The visit took us about an hour.

There's a lot of free chocolate tasting, which is definitely a plus. 😄

But to be completely honest: nothing special.

If you love chocolate and have enough time, go. If you only have a few hours and are deciding between the Chocolarium and one of the other Ljubljana museums, I would choose something else.

Our impression: 2.5/5.

Ljubljana Zoo

We also visited the Ljubljana Zoo.

Who hasn't been there? We've been many times too. For kids, it's quite pleasant and interesting enough to include in your program if you have the Ljubljana Card and some free time.

Our impression: 2/5.

Museum of Contemporary Art Metelkova (+MSUM)

Here we will be very honest.

Perhaps we are simply not intellectual enough.

Contemporary art touched us the least of everything we experienced. Some works were interesting, but with others, we quickly got stuck on the question: "What exactly is this?"

Of course, this is also part of art, and that's precisely why it's good to see and experience. But our personal impression was much less enthusiastic than at the National Gallery.

Our impression: 1/5.

Tivoli

We also took part of a day for cycling around Ljubljana. First for brunch at Ek bistro and then to Tivoli.

We cycled through Tivoli, where we especially enjoyed the shade of the trees, the children's playground, and a slightly more relaxed pace.

After all the museums, this was actually a very welcome break.

Unfortunately, we didn't visit the National Museum of Contemporary History of Slovenia because I didn't plan the visit very well. We'll make it up with a day trip sometime.

We skipped the boat ride on the Ljubljanica this time, as we were on it last year.

If you are in Ljubljana for the first time or haven't been before, I would definitely include it.

Every evening, we also walked through the city center. Without any particular plan. A little along the Ljubljanica, a little through the streets, observing people, tourists, and the goings-on.

And by the way: at Prešeren's Monument, they apparently have their own weather zone. Even in the middle of a heatwave, it's always raining a little there. 😉

What did we eat?

Big cities also offer diversity. A variety of tastes. I wanted the children to try something different, and since we don't have such a varied selection at home, we mainly chose foreign cuisine during these days.

Since we spent most of our time in the center, we mostly ate only in that area. Although I had quite a few restaurants saved in other parts of Ljubljana as well. But there simply wasn't enough time.

Where did we eat and what do we recommend? Pad Thai Babu, Indian Rikša (by the Dragon Bridge) and Asian Da bu da.

The Ljubljana Card proved to be a very good decision for our way of exploring the city. If you plan to visit several museums and attractions in a few days, in my opinion, it quickly pays off.

And perhaps the biggest plus is precisely that with the card, you no longer ask yourself at each museum:

"Should we go in or is it a waste of money?"

You go in.

If it's great, you stay.

If you don't like it, you leave after half an hour.

Ljubljana is wonderful. Even in season and even if there are a lot of people. The food is good. Drinking fountains are everywhere. It's quite clean. Public transport works well. It's easy to navigate. A lot can be done on foot. It's beautiful! Interesting! We had a really great time!

And now we'd like to go somewhere else

These three days of exploring Ljubljana were actually a really good quality time with the kids. We talked a lot, asked questions, learned new things, and discovered things together that we probably wouldn't have otherwise.

And although after three days of museums we realized that we currently have enough history, art, and human skulls for a while 😄, this trip actually made me quite enthusiastic about the idea of doing something similar in another city. To capture their curiosity before puberty hits and everything becomes boring.

Maybe next time, another Slovenian town. Maybe across the border.

So tell me: which city would you recommend for our next family city break? What should we see, which museum will surprise us, and what should we definitely not miss with children?