Cross Country Skiing

The fairytale winter landscape around Kranjska Gora is the perfect terrain for recreation and enjoying the outdoors, with around 40 km of well-maintained cross-country ski trails running from the Martuljek Forest to Planica and Tamar. The trails have several levels of difficulty and are suitable for beginners, families and the more experienced. If you are going to get on cross-country skis for the first time, we recommend that you follow the cross-country ski courses offered by the local ski schools. Equipment is also available for rent at the many ski rent shops in the area.

In Planica, you can ride through the world-famous cross-country skiing events that take place every year in the beautiful valley below Ponce Mountains. The events are renowned for their good organization and a large number of visitors, which was instrumental in winning the Nordic World Ski Championships in 2023. The Championships have made history as one of the biggest sporting events in the whole of Slovenia.

Nordic skiing in Planica has been developing continuously since the beginning of the last century, culminating in the complete renovation of all ski jumps and the construction of a modern Nordic Centre, which Planica really deserves. The sport is also the lifeblood of the locals and of the nearby village of Rateče, where tourism has recently been strongly developing.

Cross-country skiing is becoming increasingly popular

In recent years – it has become a leading discipline alongside ski flying, as more and more attention has been focused on building new cross-country skiing trails and maintaining the quality of the existing ones, as the unspoiled nature and the backdrop of the mighty mountains of the Julian Alps – Ponce Mountains – have led to a huge increase in the number of visitors every year. Efforts have also been made to ensure an adequate number of car parks, which are a growing problem due to the high number of visitors.

Suitable for beginners and professionals alike the slopes from Kranjska Gora past Podkorn to Rateče are mostly sloping and run along a cycle path just below the ski slopes. There are a few short breaks due to the crossing of roads and ski slopes, and from Rateče to Planica it runs through forests, meadows, and forest glades in the back part. From Planica onwards, there are groomed trails all the way to the end of the picturesque Tamar valley (from Rateče to the Tamar lodge, the trail is about 7 km long and is a bit more challenging due to the 260 m ascent). In Planica itself, there are over 25 km of groomed cross-country skiing trails at an altitude of between 800 and 1,100 meters.

If there is enough natural snow, there are also trails in the Gozd Martuljek, Mojstrana, and Zgornja Radovna. You can also go for a recreational run in the evening, as there is a circular track behind the Hotel Kompas, which is illuminated with floodlights. The Planica Nordic Centre also has an underground hall with artificial snow on which cross-country skiing is possible even in summer.

Scheme of the cross-country skiing trails