Guide to Slovenia with kids

The coldest water of the whole holiday ran right next to our tent. At Camping Šobec near Bled we built a stone dam in the Sava Dolinka river, and nobody minded that the water was ice-cold. The day before, a yellow train took us deep into Postojna Cave, and the kids spent the whole tour looking for the "baby dragon". This was our Slovenia with kids.

We went in summer 2021: 13 days and about 2,200 km by car from Poland, with our first night at a thermal campsite in Sárvár, Hungary. It was a calm holiday because we were expecting our fifth child, so we chose pools, short drives and easy trips. Our day-by-day plan is in the post Hungary and Slovenia with kids 2021, and you can watch all the videos on our playlist Hungary / Slovenia 2021.

Slovenia is a great choice for families who want to mix pool days with nature: caves, gorges, rivers and lakes are all close to each other. Below you will find practical info and links to our posts.

Slovenia with kids at a glance

  • Our trip: August 2021, from 2 to 14 August, 13 days: Sárvár in Hungary, Terme Čatež, Postojna Cave, Camping Šobec, Vintgar Gorge and Bled.
  • Getting there: by car from Poland through the Czech Republic and Austria, about 700 km to Sárvár on day one and 953 km home in one day.
  • Places to stay: our tent in Sárvár and at Camping Šobec, and a week in a mobile home at Terme Čatež with pool entry included.
  • Kids: we travelled with our four kids, and the fifth was on the way. Our youngest came along on the Vintgar walk and the climb to St Catherine's church too.
  • How much time: we saw the Bled area (Vintgar, Straža, the lake) in two days, combined Postojna Cave with the drive from Čatež to Šobec, and spent a whole week at the thermal pools.

Practical info

Checked in November 2026.

Getting there and borders

On day one we drove about 700 km to the thermal campsite in Sárvár in Hungary, and the next day about 240 km to Terme Čatež. On the way home we drove through Austria and the Czech Republic, 953 km in one day. What happened when we were low on fuel just before the Polish border is in our post Hungary and Slovenia with kids 2021.

  • Slovenia ended checks at its borders with Croatia and Hungary in June 2026.
  • Austria checks traffic at its borders with the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovenia until 15 March 2027, so keep the whole family's ID documents at hand.

Road tolls

The Czech Republic, Austria, Hungary and Slovenia all use digital vignettes today. You buy them online and they are linked to your number plate. In Slovenia a weekly e-vignette costs 16 € in class 2A. Taller vans, more than 1.3 m high above the front axle, are in the more expensive class 2B. In Austria a 10-day digital vignette costs 12.80 €.

Places to stay with pools included

At Terme Čatež, entry to the Summer Thermal Riviera is included for guests in the mobile homes and apartments, and in Sárvár the campsite gives you unlimited entry to the thermal spa. For us it was the easiest way to have a holiday without daily planning.

Best places in Slovenia for kids

Thermal pools

Terme Čatež

A week in a mobile home with a terrace near the Croatian border, with a simple routine: breakfast, pools, lunch, pools. We spent most of the time at the colourful tube slides and at a wide slide with several lanes, where you can race each other. Read more in Terme Čatež with kids.

The Karst

Postojna Cave

You go underground on an open yellow train and then continue on foot with an audio guide. Good to know:

  • the visit takes about 1.5 hours, and the cave is about 10 °C all year, so you need jackets even in August,
  • the kids loved the olm, the "baby dragon", which you watch in a tank with no flash,
  • tours start at set times, and a cave-only ticket for an adult costs 34.90 €.

Our whole day is in the post Postojna Cave with kids.

Around Bled

Camping Šobec

Our favourite place to stay on the whole trip: a tent right by the shallow, very clear and very cold Sava Dolinka river. We went into the water every day and built a stone dam, and Vintgar and Bled were only 9 and 15 km away. Read more in Camping Šobec with kids and watch our short video from the campsite.

Vintgar Gorge

The path is 1,600 m long and follows wooden walkways over the turquoise Radovna river to the Šum waterfall. The kids looked for trout in the current, and after the gorge we walked uphill to St Catherine's church and a meadow with a view of the valley. Today you can only buy tickets online for a specific day. Read more in Vintgar Gorge with kids.

Bled: Straža and the lake

You go up Straža hill above the lake by chairlift and come down on a 520-metre summer toboggan run. Then we walked down to the lake and swam in the turquoise water with a view of the island church. Read more in Bled with kids.

All posts: Slovenia

Last updated: November 2026