Festivals in Ljubljana – Festivals and events in Ljubljana

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2. How to get to Ljubljana – Getting to Ljubljana by plane, train, bus or car
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8. Where to eat in Ljubljana – Slovenian cuisine and gastronomy in Ljubljana
9. The best things to do in Ljubljana
10. Festivals in Ljubljana – Festivals and events in Ljubljana
11. Day trips from Ljubljana – Places to visit and Excursions around Ljubljana
12. Ljubljana in 3 days – what to see and do in 3 days

There are a lot of festivals and events going on in Ljubljana, I already mentioned some of them before... like the Open Kitchen, the Ljubljana’s Festive Fair, the Fete de la musique (Slovenian Music Days) and Film under the Stars at the castle.

I will list some more that might be of interest for you:

1. LIFFE – Ljubljana International Film Festival

Every year in November Ljubljana hosts the International Film Festival. It was established in 1989 as the Film Art Festival and its focus is on contemporary world film production as well as emerging directors and new trends in contemporary cinema. As they sell about 50 000 tickets during the festival, it is one of the biggest cultural events during the year. Furthermore international guests like directors, actors and producers visit the festival so after the movie you can ask questions and get a deeper insight of the content or how the moie was made. The festival itself lasts about 11 days and movies from all over the world are shown in different cinemas. The ticket costs between 4,50€ and 7€ for one movie but if you buy more tickets for different movies you get a discount.

2. Ljubljana festival

The Ljubljana festival takes place from the end of June until the end of September every year and offers a variety of music, theatre and dance performances of international and local artists. It is one of the oldest festivals in Ljubljana and has its roots in the first Tourist Week that was organised by the Ljubljana Tourist Society in 1952. It is awarded with the Golden Honorary Medal of Freedom (the highest award of the President of the Republic of Slovenia) and you will be able to go to 70 to 80 events, they play Classic, Ethno, Rock and Jazz music and perform opera, ballet and theatre. You will be able to see prima ballerinas if you want and listen to concerts of philharmonic orchestras. The event already hosted famous symphonic and ballet companies (the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, the Mariinsky Theatre of St Petersburg, the New York Philharmonic, the State Academic Bolshoi Theatre of Russia, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra from London, Béjart Ballet Lausanne, the St Petersburg Boris Eifman State Ballet, the Teatro alla Scala Ballet Company, etc. ) and it takes place at several locations in Ljubljana.

3. Nights in Ljubljana Old Town

This is a small festival which will be held in the end of the Summer to close the festival season and welcome autumn. The entrance is for free and you can enjoy outdoor concerts in the Old Town accompanied with some other cultural and entertainment events that are taking place in the streets and at the squares of Ljubljana.

4. Druva godba

Druga godba exists since 1984 already and is known as one of the most important music festivals in Central Europe. It is held in May every year, lasts for 3 days and the concept of this festival is to bring less well-known music from all over the world to one place and present it to the people. The music focuses on world and folk music, new urban sounds, and the fusion of older and contemporary musical approaches. The festival became a member of the international European Forum of Worldwide Music Festivals (EFWMF) and the concerts take place at various locations within the city. The artists come from France, the United States, Cuba, Senegal, Algeria, Portugal, Slovenia, The Netherlands, Belize etc. The festival itself cooperates with international organisations, cultural centres and embassies to improve its concept and get new ideas. The tickets for this festival are not that cheap, you can choose between a day pass or a festival pass. The day pass is on Thursday for 15€, on Friday for 27€ and on Saturday for 21€ (you can imagine that on Friday the most concerts will be held and the most interesting bands will play). The festival pass costs 39€ for all the three days.

5. Ljubljana Jazz Festival

The Ljubljana Jazz Festival (Prešernova 10) was established in 1960 and is one of the oldest Jazz festivals in Europe. It takes place in June every year for about 6 days and artists from all over the world perform in the city and they show a broad range of musical expressions, from the more exploratory and unidiomatic practices to metal-flavoured improvisations and funk or soul-tinged jazz ventures. Cankarjev dom is the organiser of this event and there are many open-air events accompanying the main festival (like street performances, residency programs, film screenings, round tables, exhibitions of posters, Jazz photography and other art work. The festival tickets is more expensive than the one for Druga godba, between 70 and 90€ for the whole festival.

6. Castle Days

The Castle Days are to be held in May every year at Ljubljana grad from 9am until 8pm. People celebrate that on May 16th 1905 the mayor of Ljubljana (Ivan Hribar) bought the Ljubljana Castle from the state authorities in the name of the city. The city offers a free programme of various events at the castle like a free tour and a Medieval Camp in the Castle Park and the Castle courtyard (from 10am until 6pm). You can see theatre performances (in Slovenian), musical performances and knights fights. There will be held a royal wedding in medieval style as well. The couple will be selected through a raffle and they get an organised wedding during the Castle days. The event is for free so you can just enjoy a step back into history.

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