Our group was made up of 10 men and 15 ladies with a very broad age range with the eldest being a sprightly 90 putting some of the rest of us to shame with their energy. Everybody mixed well

The holiday director was the often heard about, but never previously met, superbly efficient Caroline Gogfrey. She was at LHR check in and provided everyone with a printed itinerary with timings etc for the coming week. Once in Slovenia we had 2 WhatsApp groups. One was a general photo sharing etc group and the other was for Caroline to remind us about daily timings and activities and to provide any updates. This worked very well.

The itinerary is as advertised so I will not dwell on the detail save to say that the scenery is spectacular and the excursions are well worth doing. There are 2 free days and there was a school of thought that perhaps the Lake Bled day could be split into two days giving the opportunity to spend a bit longer in each location. Thoughts may (have been) fed back to JY so it is a case of wait and see.

Our local guide was Karin who gave extensive and very knowledgeable commentary throughout.

With 2 free days Caroline arranged an impromptu trip to another village using local buses and helped others who wanted to go and do their own thing. Everyone got back safely from their adventures.

A word about the weather which probably won’t apply to other trips. This visit co-incided with the July 2025 heatwave that affected most of Europe. It was hot! The weather broke towards the end with heavy rain but this did not affect excursions. This was exceptional and should not be used as a guide for other trips.

How much money do I need is a perennial question. On half board with one included lunch there is potentially not much outlay on lunches. There is a supermarket and (separate) bakery where pre-prepared rolls etc can be bought for a few Euros or on free days, and in Ljubliana, there are many bars etc where a light lunch can be bought. So after souvenirs and gifts it is really a question of how much do you want to drink!

On the subject of food then in the hotel it is a buffet breakfast with a good choice of cereals, fruits, pastries and cooked items. Dinner is also a buffet with soups, salads, mains and desserts. I have no food allergies/preferences etc but all needs seemed to be catered for in some way. Drinks with dinner can be charged to your room and bottles of wine can be kept over if desired.

The hotel is comfortable and only a couple of minutes from the main village. There is no tea/coffee in the room but a kettle can be borrowed from reception and supplies as needed bought in the supermarket.

All in all a superb trip in a wonderful country.