The Glory of Carniola: A Ljubljana Castle Audio Guide

(3 reviews)

Ljubljana audio tour: The Glory of Carniola: A Ljubljana Castle Audio Guide

This is an indoor tour

Ljubljana

Slovenia

$8.99

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About the Tour

Welcome to Ljubljana Castle, the crown jewel of the Slovenian capital, where history, culture, and stunning views await. On this walking tour, you’ll discover the magnificent fortress’ rich heritage while listening to centuries of history and medieval tales.

Your journey begins at the castle’s grand entrance, where you’ll learn about its ancient origins and architectural evolution. You’ll promenade between mighty towers, impressive halls and exhibition spaces en route to the tranquil courtyard at the heart of the castle, where you can almost hear the echoes of medieval life, and a prisoner or two doing their chores.

A visit to the old medieval dungeons and the 19th-century penitentiary is always a must. And oh yes, the walls! Of course, you’ll climb the castle walls for magnificent views of old Carniola, part of present-day Slovenia, and the lands beyond. In St. George's Chapel, you’ll gaze at the unique frescoes on the walls and in Pentagonal Tower with its changing exhibitions, you’ll learn to decipher the secret of the castle well.

Along the way, you'll hear the answers to questions like:

Who sleeps inside the castle hill?
Why is St. George’s Chapel considered so unique?
Which famous knight escaped the castle dungeons and made it back to his own cliff-side castle?
Why are there two strange doorways halfway up the castle wall?
Whose room had the best views in town?

Conclude your tour with a visit to the castle’s contemporary attractions, including its excellent restaurants, wine bars and cafes. Enjoy a delicious meal or a refreshing drink while reflecting on the captivating stories you’ve heard.

This Ljubljana Castle tour is the perfect way to uncover the secrets of this historic fortress and experience the magic of Slovenia’s past and present.

Please note: Entry into the castle isn’t included in the price of this tour. You can purchase entry tickets at the Castle’s ticket office or online. So book your tour today and step into a world where history comes alive!

Tour Producer

City Insight Audio Tours

2 tours

Providers of top quality audio tours by local guides who love their city. Always interesting. Always fun.

Preview Location

Location 1

Introduction - Ljubljana Castle

Hello and welcome to our tour of the Ljubljana castle, the crown jewel of Medieval Ljubljana, the seed around which the city was built and which appears on the city coat of arms. We begin our tour right here, outside the castle walls, where we have a good view of the structure... Hello and welcome to our tour of the Ljubljana castle, the crown jewel of Medieval Ljubljana, the seed around which the city was built and which appears on the city coat of arms. We begin our tour right here, outside the castle walls, where we have a good view of the structure walls, entrances, and surroundings. It gives us a great opportunity to go over some history and see how the castle evolved over the years. You should be standing facing the castle walls, with the main entrance bridge about 20 meters to your right.

First, I'll explain briefly how VoiceMap works. At the end of each track, I’ll give you directions on where to go next and show you a picture on your phone to help you find it. Once there, just tap the red 'I am here' button to hear the next track. There are also thumbnail pictures of all the stops at the top of your screen. You can explore the castle at your own pace and the directions of where to go will also be displayed on your phone. To make things even easier, each station is numbered. In most cases, the station number is mounted on the castle walls, however, this tour includes additional stations that are not marked on the castle itself so just follow our instructions. We also made a graphical map with all the station names and numbers. To see this map, simply check the photos that accompany each station.

And now back to the castle. As you must have noticed coming up here, the castle lies on top of a steep hill that controls the valley and river below. It is believed the hill was first settled about 3000 years ago, with the first fortifications being built several hundred years before Christ. Later, these were expanded by the Romans, and then again by a certain noble family called the Spanheims who constructed a stone fort in the 1200s.

In subsequent decades, the fort changed hands several times, until 1335, when it was taken over by the Habsburgs family, otherwise known as the Austrian Empire. Construction of the castle you see today began in the mid-1400s by Austrian emperor Frederick III. This new fortification was needed for protection against Ottoman invasions which began in the early 1400s. Works began with the construction of 8m thick defensive walls and a moat of water, the remains of which you can still see in front of you. These fortifications proved very effective as any modern Ljubljaner could tell you, the castle was never successfully invaded, nor was it damaged by any of the major earthquakes of 1515 & 1895. It therefore became the center of anti-Ottoman defense in 1400s Carniola.

At the time, the main entrance was through those two little doorways you see about halfway up the tower wall, about 30 meters to your left, in what is today called the “Pentagonal Tower”. They are of different sizes because the smaller door was designed for humans while the larger one for horses. Looks a little high to climb up to, but in those days the parking lot behind you was a hill and had a drawbridge leading over the water to the doors.

Since it was never a royal palace, the complex is not as richly decorated as you might think. True, it was the property of the royal Habsburgs but it always served as temporary residence for the acting Carniola provincial governor, a term which at the time lasted for 2-5 years. A bit like the white house today. None of the governors could truly call it home. It is therefore poor in personal history and mostly served for administration and defense. In the mid-1600s, after the Ottoman invasions were finally over, the governor no longer wanted to live in the secluded castle and moved down to more comfortable palaces in the town below.
The castle, which was no longer needed for residential purposes, fell into despair and was mainly used as army barracks and storage of ammunition. It was in such bad state that the Austrians even considered pulling it down.

In 1797 Napoleon's troops took over the town and used the castle as military barracks, arsenal and hospital. Almost 20 years later, in 1815, the Austrians once again took control of Ljubljana, using the castle as a military base and state prison until 1895.

In 1905 the city municipality, lead by mayor Ivan Hribar, purchased the castle from the state, hoping to renovate the decaying structure and turn it into a museum. Regretfully, Mayor Hribar never got to see his dream materialize and the castle was left neglected, used as housing for the poor. This lasted until 1963 when extensive restoration works finally began, lasting over 35 years. Because of its previous decay, most medieval artifacts were lost.

As we walk through the castle, please don't make too much noise for you might disturb the dragon, protector of the city, who is said to be sleeping somewhere inside the hill. Please don't wake him up because whenever he does, the city experiences an earthquake.

When you're ready, you can proceed over to the footbridge and cross it to enter the castle. At the start of the bridge you will see a ticket office. Unless you wish to buy a Combined Castle Ticket which includes the viewing tower, the Slovenian History exhibition and the Museum of Puppetry – entrance to the castle is free so the sales office at the bridge can be ignored. The ticket would cost 12 EUR.

When you reach the far side of the bridge, right at the castle wall, stop and play the next track. Read More

View locations and route

How VoiceMap Works

Focus on your surroundings, not the screen

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Follow a route with turn-by-turn-directions

VoiceMap tours follow a route from a fixed starting point. That lets us give turn-by-turn directions and use context to tell a better story.

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If you'd like to stop for a drink or go into a museum, end your tour then use the Resume feature to pick up exactly where you left off.

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Major Landmarks

Pentagonal Tower
Castle Walls
Medieval Dungeon
Penitentiary
Armory
St. George's Chapel
Viewing Tower
Archer's Tower
Ljubljana Castle

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Getting There

Route Overview

VoiceMap tours follow a route from a set starting point. It’s how we give turn-by-turn directions and tell a story greater than the sum of its parts.

Start location
Grajska planota 1, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Total distance

429m
Final location
Krekov trg 4, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Distance back to start location

98.04m

Directions to Starting Point

The tour begins outside the castle walls, about 10 meters behind the castle's Ticket office which is located at the start of the entrance Bridge. From this point you have a beautiful vantage of the walls.
If you arrive at the castle by funicular, which arrives INSIDE the lower levels of the castle, you will first have to exit the castle by walking out the main entrance and Crossing the little Bridge. From there, Take a few steps to the spot behind the ticket office where our tour begins

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Tips

Places to stop along the way

Both restaurants in the castle Courtyard and the wine bar near the northern wall are an excellent place to taste and relax

Best time of day

Anytime From Dusk to Dawn, although can get quite hot in Summer midday. Most of the tour, though not all of it, is under ceilings protected by rain

Precautions

The castle is free to enter and visit !!! The Castle Ticket which is sold at the ticket office outside the entrance allows you to visit additional areas including the viewing Tower, the Puppetry Museum, and the Slovenian history exhibition. This tour does not cover these few areas. Whether you want to purchase this ticket to visit these three areas is up to you.

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“This app has become my go-to app for audio tours. I pretty much use it for every trip and it works wonderfully. I highly recommend VoiceMap for travelers to truly experience cities.”

App Store Review

“Great app. walk around at your own pace, stop where you want, move on or speed up when you want. Read the script before you go or during the commentary, speed it up or replay it. Repeat the tour whenever you like.”

Google Play Store

Questions and Reviews

4 / 5

3 Ratings

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The Glory of Carniola: A Ljubljana Castle Audio Guide

About the Tour

Tour Producer

City Insight Audio Tours

Preview Location

Location 1

Introduction - Ljubljana Castle

How VoiceMap Works

Major Landmarks

Pentagonal Tower

Castle Walls

Medieval Dungeon

Penitentiary

Armory

St. George's Chapel

Viewing Tower

Archer's Tower

Ljubljana Castle