Ljubljana’s Old-Style Euro Appeal

It’s already been heralded as the new Prague, the place where American expatriates can go to leave behind the trappings of the modern world and find a place resembling Paris in the 20s and Prague in the 80s, where artists and writers congregate at coffee houses and the spirit of old Europe still permeates the air. Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia, the newish little East European country at the foothills of the Alps that is becoming the must-see city of Europe. In other words, get there before the tourist hordes ruin it.

According to this New York Times piece, Ljubljana’s exposure exploded in 2004 when Slovenia was admitted to the European Union and several budget airlines began flying here, making it an easy weekend trip for travelers weary of Paris or London or Prague, and looking for places their Euros would go a little farther. It is, I am told by a friend who was there recently, and who lived in Prague in the early 90s, a truly wonderful little place. The NYT piece is definitely bullish on it, saying the city “has enough genuine charm to withstand” all the exposure its getting.