STA, 7 September 2020 - The Kobilarna Lipica stud farm expects this year to see only a third of last year's number of visitors due to the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a business report which also shows that in the first half of the year, its operator recorded only 34% of the revenue from the same period in 2019.

The pandemic has resulted in the cancellation of a large number of planned events, a decline in visits by foreign guests and large organised groups from Slovenia and abroad, and the renovation of Hotel Maestoso, Holding Kobilarna Lipica told the STA on Monday.

However, the drop in revenue does not stand out when compared to the results of other comparable tourist destinations, the company's supervisory board has assessed, while adding that additional measures to cut costs and maximise the income needed to be nevertheless introduced.

Lay-offs are not envisaged for the time being and, considering the tourism trends and the situation related to Covid-19, the current number of employees is appropriate, the management has assessed.

The management has been tasked with coming up with a new marketing campaign, which will include the promotion of Hotel Maestoso, which is expected to reopen at the beginning of 2021 with a doubled number of rooms.

Holding Kobilarna Lipica also said that the medium-term goals also included taking a EUR 5 million bank loan to renovate the swimming pool and wellness complex of the hotel.

The COVID crisis has changed much about daily life, often for the worse and less colourful, as events are cancelled and replacements often found wanting in terms of contact, excitement and human warmth. It’s thus reassuring to see familiar marks in the calendar come around without a cancellation or postponement, as is the case with the famed Red Bull Goni Pony (“peddle your Pony”), taking place this year on 5^th September.

On this day, a Saturday, one the strangest races in Slovenia is open to all those who register, have access to an appropriate bicycle – the small, foldable “Pony” that gives the race its name – and are ready for a retro festival of old bikes, old clothes, and an old-fashioned ride to the top of Vršič Pass, an journey most recommend making by car.

The race is open to the first 500 people who register and pay the €25 fee within 72 hours, but sadly for all interested readers without tickets these sold out weeks ago. That doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy the day, though, with a trip to the mountains and a chance to see other people huff, puff and sweat their way to the top.

The race will see the daring competitors cycle a 13.5 km course with an elevation of 801 metres. Not an easy task, even on a full-sized bike with gears, never mind a pocket model like the Pony, with 20” wheels. What’s more, many entrants will be dressed in vintage clothing from the 60s to 80s – the heyday of this beloved but often impractical bike– and there’s a competition for the best costume that takes place at 14:00 in Kranjska gora, where the race itself starts at 15:00.

Since this is a road race that means there will be road closures, and the Vršič Pass will be closed from 14:.30 to 18:00 on Saturday 5 September. More details at the official Red Bull Goni Pony site

STA, 25 August 2020 - The Slovenian tourism industry, which has been severely affected by the Covid-19 epidemic, saw an upbeat trend in Slovenian tourist arrivals and nights in July, partly offsetting the low numbers from the first half of the year, show the latest figures released by the Statistics Office on Tuesday.

Over 653,000 arrivals were recorded at accommodation facilities in July, down 27.5% compared to July 2019, with the number of nights down by 18.5% to 2.07 million.

However, the number of Slovenian tourists in the overall number increased by 176% to almost 404,000, and the number of nights they spent there by 155% to nearly 1.4 million.

The number of foreign arrivals meanwhile dropped by 67% to slightly over 249,300, and the number of nights they spent in Slovenia by 66% to over 670,300.

Germans spent the most nights in Slovenia in July, or 33%, followed by the Dutch and Austrians (9% each), Czechs (8%) and Hungarians (7%).

The most popular areas for tourists, domestic and foreign, were mountainous areas, which accounted for 35% of all tourist nights, followed by the coast (29%).

Thirty percent of all nights were made at hotels, 27% at private rooms, self-catering units and houses, and 22% at camping sites.

Although several areas in Slovenia have had a good summer season, Slovenian tourism has been considerably affected by the epidemic, with facilities in full lockdown for several weeks.

The January-to-July period saw almost 1.6 million tourist arrivals, a 54% drop compared to the same seven-month period in 2019. Tourist nights meanwhile dropped by 48% to around 4.6 million.

In the first half of the year, arrivals by Slovenian tourists dropped by 5% but a 2% rise was recorded in nights generated by domestic guests compared to January-July last year. The number of foreign tourists arriving in Slovenia plummeted by 71% and the nights they generated by 68%.

The figures are in line with the Slovenian Tourist Board's projections of a 70% drop in foreign arrivals for the year and of a 50% overall drop because of a rise in domestic tourists.

To help the industry survive, the government introduced a special voucher scheme, giving every permanent resident EUR 200 to spend in Slovenia until the end of the year on bed and breakfast, with minors receiving EUR 50.

Presenting the latest figures about the vouchers, Economy Minister Zdravko Počivalšek said Sunday was a new milestone as over 500,000 vouchers had been redeemed.

"In a good two months since this measure was introduced, a quarter of all vouchers have already been spent, while bookings for another 30,000 have already been made."

Figures from the Financial Administration show that 511,554 vouchers, worth EUR 69.8 million, were redeemed between 19 June and 23 August, whereas the total value of vouchers available is around EUR 357 million.

Počivalšek believes the tourist vouchers have saved the summer season for many tourism companies or helped some survive the epidemic, at the same time enabling many to be able to afford to go on a holiday.

He is also confident that thanks to the vouchers, Slovenians have discovered many corners that have so far been less known and less visited. He hopes the thrill at discovering Slovenia turns into a trend of Slovenians spending at least part of their holidays at home.

Although it is too early to take stock of the summer season, Počivalšek said "we are better off than some comparable countries".

In July and August, tourist numbers at some locations were already on a par with or even better than last year, the only difference being that domestic tourists outnumbered foreign ones, he explained.

He believes these figures could hardly be reached if the epidemiological situation had not been kept under control. He thus urged tourism companies to be innovative in providing for coronavirus safety, so that foreign tourists could soon return in bigger numbers.

As for extending the use of vouchers into the spring of 2021, the minister said efforts were now focussed on encouraging people to use them by the end of the year.

"Should any other measures be needed, I believe we'll take them in time," Počivalšek said at a news conference in Ljubljana.

Over EUR 1 million in vouchers was spent a day in the period between 19 June and 23 August, with the average age of tourists using the vouchers at slightly over 38.

The figures also show over 55,700 people aged an average 64 years transferred their vouchers on family members, meaning many elderly did not go on holiday themselves.

You can see more of this data at SURS

STA, 25 August 2020 - The 16th Izola international film festival will bring a total of 36 feature films and 67 shorts to the Slovenian coast this summer, with the main part of the festival taking place between 26 and 30 August in the coastal town of Izola.

The number of films remains comparable to previous years, whereas the format of the festival has been somewhat adjusted to the coronavirus.

Besides the main segment in Izola, a number of films have been screened around Slovenia since 16 June, according to the director of the Kino Otok - Isola Cinema festival, Tanja Hladnik.

Tartini Festival Brings Baroque, Classical Music to Piran & Koper, 20 Aug to 11 Sept, 2020

The third segment will take place online in September, when the Slovenian Cinematheque hosts a retrospective of Portuguese director Pedro Costa.

Balloon by Chinese director Pema Tseden and The Orphanage by Iranian director Sadat Shahrbanoo will open and close the main festival segment, respectively.

Both films are from Signals, the section which features established filmmakers, film selector Varja Močnik explained at a recent news conference in Ljubljana.

She also highlighted Corpus Christi by Polish director Jan Komasa, Oliver Laxe's Fire Will Come, Islandic director Runar Runarsson's Echo and Sons of Denmark by Ulaa Salim, which focuses on a terrorist attack in Copenhagen.

The Good Neighbours section will feature two Serbian films, Ivana the Terrible by Ivana Mladenović and My Morning Laughter by Marko Djordjević.

A new section, Chiaroscuro, will bring several films focussing on burning issues which are usually not in the focus of media attention, including Francis Alys's Sandlines, the Story of History, a story about children in Iraq.

The other new section introduced this year, dubbed Extraserial, brings Bruno Dumont's black comedy TV series Coincoin and the Extra-Humans.

A total of 61 short films from 22 countries will be shown as part of the Video on the Beach section brings, while children will also be able to watch a series of films for them.

Hladnik said that some films would be screened twice because of Covid-19 restrictions allowing smaller numbers of visitors at one venue.

Get more details on the Kino Otok website

STA, 24 August 2020 - Entry into Slovenia from Croatia has continued to run unexpectedly smoothly despite the approaching Monday midnight deadline for returns without compulsory quarantine due to rising Covid-19 figures in Croatia. Interior Minister Aleš Hojs assessed that the returns got dispersed across the past week and that some also opted for quarantine.

The Slovenian police said that traffic on the border had been comparable to previous end of August or even calmer; there were no delays at border crossings in the afternoon.

"There has probably been no excessive pressure on the border crossings because we already started announcing the possibly of Croatia being red-listed the weekend before the last one," Hojs told the STA today.

The minister also suggested that some, although not those tied to school or work, had decided to continue their holiday and accept quarantine after it ends.

He moreover said it was very possible that the estimate of 150,000 Slovenians holidaying in the neighbouring country had been exaggerated.

The ministry does not have the exact data, but estimates now suggest around 50,000, whereas the Croatian Tourism Board put its estimate at 45,000.

Hojs added that police teams on the border had been reinforced and that the issuing of quarantine orders was running smoothly, with the average time to issue one standing at 12 to 14 minutes.

He said more than 800 quarantine orders had been issued on Sunday to passengers who were returning from red-listed countries such as Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina.

The Croatian Tourist Board has reported that 2.6 million overnight stays by Slovenian tourists were recorded in Croatia from 1 to 23 August, which is 94% of last-year's figure. The Slovenian tourists mostly opted for private accommodation and camping, while 20,000 also stayed in a hotel.