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How I cycled Slovenia’s lesser-known towns, soaking in thermal spas along the way.
There are different approaches to spa holidays, I realise as I arrive at the hot spring wellness complex of Terme Snovik. Most people are dressed in pretty summer clothes, looking clean and relaxed. I have arrived after several hours cycling: sweaty, grimy and looking like I need a hose down rather than a Jacuzzi.This is my first day on the Slovenia Green Wellness Route, a cycling itinerary launched in 2022 that connects 16 of the country’s natural hot springs. You can load the route onto a mapping app by downloading the GPX coordinates. Then, you follow it at your own pace. The recommended stages are around 40 kilometres, ending each day in a different spa town. Craft beer and crispy burek en route to Terme SnovikIn Ljubljana, where the route begins, pastel-coloured buildings cluster around a winding river in the shadow of a fairytale castle. In the distance, I see the silhouette of the country’s mountains. The cycle itinerary begins with a bike lane along a busy city road heading straight towards the hills. This gives way to a riverside trail that leads me to Kamnik, a small Alpine town that has become Slovenia’s craft beer capital. With five microbreweries for only 13,000 residents, Kamnik is the perfect place to take a breather. I enjoy a cold IPA and a crispy burek pastry in the main square before setting off again. A short ride later, and I reach my first destination: Terme Snovik, a sprawling wellness centre surrounded by rolling hills. Slovenia is a small country, and yet thanks to its mountainous terrain, it has 85 hot springs. Perhaps because there are so many of them, natural spas here aren’t the exclusive domain of wealthy luxury seekers. They are casual, familial places, with Jacuzzis sitting next to kids’ pools, surrounded by sun-loungers and stands selling hot dogs and beer. At Terme Snovik, visitors can stay the night and have the choice between high-end apartments, or budget camping spots.Slovenia’s green cycle routes open up lesser known localesIt’s a good thing I had the chance to soak my muscles in a hot bath because the next day’s route has many hills. Everything is on a slope in this part of Slovenia. I stop at a supermarket and watch as a woman lets go of her trolley to open her car door. “How unfortunate,” she says as she watches her shopping roll into a fence. It’s a warm day, so I decide to skip the hot springs and set up camp next to a lake in the coal mining town of Velenje. It is an industrial place – as you swim in the lake, you can see a nearby nuclear power station and slag heaps from the coal mines. Slovenia’s green cycle routes are amongst various initiatives designed to bring tourists to this lesser-known part of the country, along with the opening of the beach, which has several water inflatables and a lakeside event space. And of course, the Pippi Longstocking festival, held in Velenje every September. Barns on stilts and musical cities along Slovenia’s Green Wellness RouteOver the following days, I visit several beautiful spas, but they are far from the only highlight of the route. On day three, I cycle through a beautiful gorge next to a very clear stream, dropping from one rockpool to the next. It is a steep climb, and I try not to be salty about the Slovenian sextagenarians speeding past me (they probably have e-bikes, I tell myself). At the top, I am rewarded with a series of pretty villages, many of which have intricately carved hay barns on stilts, known as Toplar. As the days go on, the mountains shrink into rolling hills and become covered in vineyards. I visit Maribor, a pastel-coloured city where music was playing from all sides. DJs spin soft electro beats by the riverside restaurants, the strums of acoustic guitars bounce off the cobble streets, and a graffiti-covered squat inhabited by artists and musicians is still playing metal music while I have my coffee the following morning. I cycle along the border between Slovenia and Austria, where I notice several cyclists in Lederhosen-style cycle shorts and feel intensely jealous. My final evening is spent at the biggest hot springs yet – Terme 3000, so called because it has over 3,000 metres squared of swimming areas. Terme 3000: Waterslides and black watersOutside, children scream their way down half a dozen waterslides while their parents relax indoors in pools of varying temperatures. In one corner, I join a dozen other bathers, watching the Olympic kayaking events on a large screen hung on a pillar next to the pool. Terme 3000 is also home to a rare black thermal mineral pool with a temperature of around 37°C. It smells faintly of petrol and was, in fact, discovered over 60 years ago during a search for oil. The black water has been classed as a natural healing agent and is believed to help relieve rheumatism, stress and some skin conditions – although you’d probably have to stay longer than I did. I could only handle the heat for a few minutes.The final morning of my cycling takes me through low, vineyard-covered hills topped with houses with terracotta roofs, all the way to Ptuj, pronounced P’twee. I eat gelato as I stroll around the pretty town, where elegant villas from the Austro-Hungarian times are grouped at the base of a large stone castle. Reluctantly, I take the panniers off my bike and hop on the train back to Ljubljana. I don’t have time to complete the entire loop, which takes 16 days. Maybe I’ll come back next year to do the rest – or to try out one of Slovenia’s other Green Routes. The Gourmet route takes you to restaurants, markets and homestays to taste the country’s delicacies. The panoramic route combines hiking and biking and promises some of the country’s most amazing vistas. Both sound delightful, although cycle touring would undoubtedly be more challenging without the chance to soak in a spa each night.
