The Ljubljana Festival, world-class music in a Plečnik courtyard

Over seventy years of the festival

It began in 1952 with a Tourism Week organised by the city’s tourist association, and the first official festival followed from 4 to 13 July 1953. The founder, Fran Vatovec, wanted Ljubljana to become for its corner of Europe what Salzburg, Verona or Edinburgh are for theirs. Today the festival says it stages 70 to 80 events of several genres each summer for around 80,000 people, and hosts about 6,000 artists a year from more than 50 countries.

The roll call is impressive, from the Vienna and Israel Philharmonics to La Scala and the Bolshoi, and from Rostropovich and Menuhin to Anna Netrebko and Jonas Kaufmann. British names are part of it too. The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra has played here, and in 2026 the London Symphony Orchestra came with Antonio Pappano. The same summer brought the Staatskapelle Dresden with Daniele Gatti and Yuja Wang with the Mahler Chamber Orchestra, before the closing concert by the Baltic Sea Philharmonic at Cankarjev dom on 8 September. The festival has belonged to the European Festivals Association since 1977.

Križanke and the other venues

Its home is Križanke on French Revolution Square. This is the former monastery of the Teutonic Knights, which Plečnik turned into a performance venue and which has been a cultural monument of national importance since 2016. Inside there are several stages, the open-air summer theatre, the Foyer, the Pergola, the Devil’s Courtyard, the Knights’ Hall and the church. It sits naturally alongside the other Plečnik works in Ljubljana that UNESCO listed in 2021.

The big orchestras usually play Cankarjev dom, and the festival also takes events out to Congress Square, the Philharmonic, the Opera and the National Gallery. Buses 2, 3, 3B, 3G, 11, 11B and 27 stop at Križanke. If you have a hire car, the handiest garage is under Zvezda Park at Kongresni trg; the alternatives are in parking in Ljubljana.

Festival tickets and discounts

Tickets are sold on the festival website, through Eventim and at the Križanke box office, and on the day, if any are left, at the venue box office from an hour before. There are no standard reductions for students, pensioners or groups unless an event says otherwise. What does work is the festival club, free to join, with 20% off in the presale and 10% off in general sale.

Tickets cannot be exchanged or refunded unless the organiser cancels. If it rains on an outdoor event, it moves to a covered hall or another date. Križanke, the Philharmonic and Gallus Hall have free wheelchair spaces and a seat for a companion with a ticket.

If you are staying the night, see the best hotel deals in Liubliana for your dates: the well-placed rooms go fast.

The rest of the year and the other summer festivals

The festival is not only July and August. Since 2017 it has run a Winter Festival at the start of each year, whose 10th edition had its presale open until 5 November 2026, and in December music school pupils play in the Knights’ Hall. Those dates fit nicely with Christmas in Ljubljana.

Summer adds more. The Tourist Board highlights the Ljubljana Jazz Festival, which it calls the oldest of its kind in Europe and which has run for more than 60 years, the Ana Desetnica street theatre festival, now over 30, the summer cinema at the castle and the Friday Odprta kuhna on Pogačar Square. At the end of August there are also free concerts across the city’s streets and squares.

Fitting the festival into a trip

I would check the programme before booking flights. A concert evening at Križanke pairs well with a day on the old town and the castle, and I would spend the rest of the stay on day trips from Ljubljana. The 2027 dates were not out on 17 October 2026; I will add them as soon as they are. If your trip coincides with it, see what else is on during summer in Slovenia.

If you are staying the night, see the best hotel deals in Liubliana for your dates: the well-placed rooms go fast.