How to Get From Rijeka to Ljubljana by Train
Our preferred method of travel is by train, but despite traveling for the last 4 months we’ve only been able to get two trains. One from Zagreb to Split and the one from Mostar to Sarajevo. This part of Europe (Bosnia & Herzegovina, Croatia, and Montenegro) doesn’t have many train routes.
We’ve been relying on buses but it was good to be able to finally get a train again. After 8 days in the wonderful city of Rijeka, we decided to head to Ljubljana, the capital city of Slovenia.
Train Times
There are only two trains a day on this route. An 11:50 train that arrives at 14.57 (3 hrs 7 mins) and an 18:47 train that arrives at 21:47 (3hrs). You can check train times on the Deutsche Bahn website but can’t book tickets there.
We bought our tickets at Rijeka Train station.
Train times for the return journey from Ljubljana to Rijeka are:
Leave 08:25; Arrive 11:25
Leave 15:20; Arrive 18:27
Rijeka Train Station
Rijeka train station is around 500 meters from the bus station and is walkable from the city center. The station looks quite big when you approach it, but it’s mostly closed.
The ticket office is small, with just one counter. There are luggage lockers there but they were all out of order when we visited. They were also all out of order at Zagreb train station as well.
Out tickets cost a very reasonable 9 EUR each.
We asked for train tickets for 8 June. The tickets we got show that they are valid for 8-11 June. I’ve never seen train tickets sold like that.
Rijeka Train Station Grain Silos
While we were at the train station, I noticed the building above. I found out that they are grain silos that currently hold grain that came from Ukraine. Due to the war, the grain can’t be shipped by sea, so needs to be shipped by rail. I was told that the route is via Poland and Romania. I also read this story about grain silos in Ukraine being full and requests being made to Rijeka to store some.
On the other side of the silos is the sea. Grain arrives by train, is stored in the silos, and then shipped to its final destination by sea. It’s interesting to see how the rain for our food is delivered. This is something we rarely know about or notice.
You can see photos of the grain silos from the opposite direction on my post about Walking along the Molo Longo.
Our Rijeka to Ljubljana Train
The train arrived at the station about 30 minutes before it was due to leave, as the engine needed to be taken off and put back on the other side of the train.
The train had 4 carriages and each carriage had compartments. We had this one to ourselves. There was also a section of the carriage for storing bikes.
The Train Journey
The train stopped at Sapjane station, which is the last stop in Croatia. This used to be where you got stamped out of the country. As Croatia has now joined the Schengen zone, there weren’t any checks.
After the train crossed the border, it stopped for around 15 minutes at Ilirska Bistrica train station. Two Slovenian immigration officers did a passport check. I asked why they were checking passports and they said it was a Schengen check. I was about to mention that it wasn’t a Schengen border but they left too quickly. So I have no idea why they’re still doing border checks.
Ljubljana Train Station
The train arrived on time. It was pouring with rain so we had to wait in the station for almost n hour to wait for it to stop. After that, we walked to the apartment we’d booked. It was 800 meters from the station.
Pro tip: Do not get taxis from the bus or train station. Many locals warned us about them. Uber isn’t available in Ljubljana. We were advised to download the Taxi Metro Ljubljana app for calling a taxi. We didn’t need to use it because Ljubljana is pretty walkable.
If your accommodation is too far away to walk, I’d suggest using Taxi Metro app.
Book your hotel in Ljubljana
When not staying at Airbnb apartments, our favorite booking website is agoda.com.
