Ljubljana, Slovenia →
Zagreb, Croatia
Ljubljana, Slovenia to Zagreb, Croatia by bus
I was on a three city trip between the cities of Ljubljana, Zagreb and eventually Belgrade.
I have several options to to chose from to make the journey between these cities. They are relatively close to each other so I needed to weigh up cost, time and convenience to get the best transport method. I looked at plane (far too close to each other to merit it really). Train was an option but times and costs were not good. Eventually I decided that bus was the most convenient and economical way to get between them. Here’s my reviews on the trip from Ljubljana to Zagreb by bus.
Slovenia – Ljubljana to Zagreb by bus
My my journey from Slovenia – Ljubljana to Zagreb by bus, started after my stay in Ljubljana, (see Ljubljana review here). I took a non-stop coach to Zagreb (see Zagreb post here), where I stayed for a few days exploring the city. This was part of my 3 city/3 nation trip that included an onwards journey to Belgrade, Serbia, a few days later. See Belgrade review here.
I bought my ticket a month in advance on www.getbybus.com website. I found it a really good site (ticket was 11 Euros, with a 2.5 hours stated trip. It is so easy to book from abroad using a credit card. My ticket was bought in advance but tickets can be bought on the day from the ticket office.
I have used this excellent website several times and their customer service online is fantastic.
There are several companies operating this route and it takes between 2 hours 15 mins and 2 hours 50 mins depending on the company and route taken. Prices are between 9 and 11 Euros, again depending on the coach company and timing.
The main bus station is actually in front of the city’s main train station so is really easy to find, The actual place was a give away to find considering there were dozens on coaches parked on the open plaza in front of the train station. I noticed there was a modern ticket office containing a small café and shop as part of the open parking lot style of the bus station.
Being fairly much near the centre it is also easy to get to, in fact for me just a 15 mins walk from my hotel.
Once at the coach station, it was just a question of finding which was my coach. When I found mine I could see it was a modern, clean coach and I was actually able to board early as had I turned up 15 mins ahead of departure.
My 10:30 departure was fine, left on time and arrived a few minutes early so no complaints there. I noticed there was a modern ticket office containing a small café and shop as part of the open parking lot style of the bus station.
However I also noticed that despite my coach being quite empty other services had closed bookings as they were full, so my advice is to book and pay early.
As a testament to this website’s good customer service, I got great help when I messed up my booking. I managed to book the wrong day- my fault. A simple email to them explaining my error and which coach I actually wanted was quickly replied to and they did it all swiftly and reissued my ticket within a couple of hours with no amendment charge – amazing.
The journey was however on a really foggy day and the whole reason for travel by land was to see the landscape between the two countries so unfortunately I saw not much of that. The next day in Zagreb was also a bit foggy hence the slightly blurred look to some photos there.
Slovenia – Ljubljana to Zagreb by bus by Barry Till, traveltheworldclub.com
If you are wondering how to get tickets and info on getting to the location in this post, please take a look at Bookaway. Their website is here https://www.bookaway.com
If you need specific ticket and timetable info on the destination I have featured here on this post, then click here for a link below to their site for this destination.
I use many forms of travel and often have to go to multiple sites to find prices, timetables and availability of tickets etc, but Bookaway has it all in one handy site.
I can recommend this site as I use many of the methods of transport and even the very companies they advertise on their site.
Their prices are similar to what you would find on the individual company sites, and often cheaper. The big advantage is that u have one site to visit for all destinations they cover and it is a fast and reliable system that you can depend on.
Hope you make use of Bookaway to ensure you get the best value and service for travel tickets.
Jan 2018
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I love traveling by bus when visiting new places and have to agree big time with booking early since I have had so many bad experiences with fill buses all over the world.
This was my first cross-border experience on a bus and it was so easy and comfy. Minimal regs at the crossing and the bus was so empty. It encouraged me to do it more often. Yep, I’ve been booked on a full bus and see people disappointed when they turm up to board without a booking.
It’s easy to hop on a bus and explore all these European cities in no time. I love that we have such a good infrastructure in Europe and it’s accessible for people to explore. I’d be interested to hear more about the bus. Was it a travel coach with toilets on board? Did you have onboard entertainment, comfy seats? Does the bus stop on the way to pick up snacks or has other cities on the way?
Carolin | Solo Travel Story
On this particular bus it was very modern, big, comfy and had onboard toilets. No onboard entertainment but the journey was less than 2 hours I believe. It was an express so stopped at one city on the way. After stopping at Zagreb (my stop),it was going on to a city on the coast as its final destination. I loved it – so easy and comfy and very inexpensive. We certainly do have a good intercity/country bus/coach network in Europe and its usually quite cheap.
Sounds like a great way to travel between the two places. And so cheap! I always enjoy taking a bus or train, it’s a great opportunity to watch the world go by, and usually inexpensive in Europe. I’d love to visit both Croatia and Slovenia one day
I’ve started travelling by bus between countries a lot more over time.I’ve found it cheap and easy and very comfy. I feel I get to know a little more about a country if I can see its landscapes go by and appreciate the scenery. Much better than the inside of two anonymous airports.
I’ve only ever travelled in Europe by train for longer excursions and bus when there is no metro within the city limits. Sounds like this is a great option and short 2 hour trip instead of renting a car. Good to hear you have great customer service.
There is a great bus network in Europe now connecting all cities and I certainly plan to make more use of it in the future.
If you definitely want to see a place by land, this is the way to go. And I’m glad to see and hear that your experience was a good one and that the coach, and surrounding station, was modern. Sorry that you didn’t get a chance to see the landscape though because of the fog.
Yes, pity about the fog. I’ve had several similar experiences with the weather that put a dampner on seeing things becuse of fog/mist
Buses in other countries are so quick and easy compared to the UK, I never get buses at home but get them between cities in Europe all the time. So cheap too and no liquid limitations
I’m the same, I rarely use buses here in the UK, but often do on mainland Europe. UK Inter-city buses can be expensive unless booked months in advance with a discount/voucher deal. I guess I already jnow what the landscape will look like too, so it’s less of an incentive.