Day 0: From Chamonix (France) to Slovenia

 

Hello! We are Sara and Jon, and we are biking across the Balkans from Slovenia to Albania. This blog is our space to document our road cycling journey. Every bike adventure is incredible, and we want to share our discoveries with you, hoping they will also be useful for your cycling adventures!



Our journey began on May 22nd, starting from Chamonix, France in a van, heading to Slovenia via Switzerland, Milan, Venice, and Trieste. We arrived in Piran, Slovenia, where we took a walk around the charming port city. **Be aware that in Piran you need to leave your car outside the city center. There are clear signs on the road directing you to the parking areas. Parking costs 2.90 euros per hour, and there are no free parking spots available.

Piran Coast

Piran Alleys



Piran is a small and beautiful port town, definitely worth a stop to explore and take a dip in the Gulf of Trieste. The water might be a bit chilly, but it's incredibly refreshing, especially in the heat of 2 pm. After a leisurely walk, we headed to our overnight stay: a gem in Secovlje called Casa Coronica. It's a farmhouse with stunning sea views, offering a cozy atmosphere, and run by a lovely family. Upon arrival, they welcomed us with a glass of their own-produced wine. Breakfast is made up of homemade delicacies produced exclusively on the farm. The incredible family allowed us to park our van on their property so we could start our biking journey! Thanks tons.

Casa Coronica









Location: Piran, Slovenia

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Day 11: From Nuglasica to Grabovica

Image
After the charming local experience, we continued our journey toward our next destination. We pedaled 74 km, passing vibrant poppy fields, remnants of war-torn houses, and stunning green areas along narrow roads until we arrived in Grabovica. The contrast with our previous destination was striking—no Bosnian coffee here, just cappuccinos and a more Westernized lifestyle and cuisine. We already missed our routine in the little towns, but it was great to find a good internet signal and a comfortable place to rest. When we arrived, it started to rain, so we headed to the restaurant of Eco Selo Grabovica for some dinner before going to rest for our next day.
Read more

Day 15: From Glamping Bagrem to Lukomir

Image
After our time at Glamping Bagrem, we set off for Lukomir, the highest village in Bosnia. This journey is not for the faint-hearted—the road is incredibly steep, with a 12% incline on a dirt path that seemed to stretch on forever. We ended up pushing our bikes for about five hours, covering two-thirds of the distance on foot. Despite the grueling effort and the intense heat, we were fortunate to find water sources along the way. The rugged beauty and expansive views of the breathtaking landscapes made every challenging step worth it. We took the most challenging route and had to push our bikes most of the time due to the dirt road and steep incline, which made it really hard to ride our road bikes. After 45km, we finally arrived in Lukomir at 10:30 pm, guided only by the faint glow of our lights and accompanied by the distant barking of shepherd dogs. The sunset views during our journey were out of this world, painting the sky with breathtaking hues. We were lucky to find our magical
Read more

Day 27: From Kotor to Perast

Image
Our experience with our accommodation in Kotor was unpleasant. We booked and paid for our stay through Booking.com, and had never encountered any issues with these reservations until that day. The person in charge of the accommodation arrived in the morning, demanding payment that had already been made through the platform, for which we had proof (from the bank and Booking.com). She was very rude, yelling and threatening to call the police, creating an incredibly grotesque scene. If you pass through Kotor, never stay at Ocea Apartments . After dealing with that scam, we continued our journey towards Perast. We pedaled 26.6 km along the bay until we reached our next destination. Perast has a better atmosphere than Kotor but is still a hub for mass tourism. Buses full of tourists arrive throughout the day, along with people from cruise ships, just like in Kotor. The local minimarket also tried to charge us double for some drinks and a bag of chips. When we confronted the cashier, she s
Read more