Plečnik House, the home and studio of Ljubljana's architect

Who Plečnik was and why the house matters

Jože Plečnik was born in Ljubljana in 1872, left to study in Graz at 16 and later trained under Otto Wagner in Vienna. He worked in Vienna and Prague, where he renovated the castle for President Masaryk, and came home after 33 years determined to turn a provincial town into a nation’s capital. From 1921 he taught architecture at the new university, and his 1929 urban plan let him put that vision into practice on very little money, according to the Ministry of Culture.

The house is at Karunova ulica 4 in Trnovo. Between 1923 and 1925 he added a cylindrical annex himself, the tower that defines the house, and over the years took on the neighbouring house at number 6 and a garden with a lapidarium.

What to see at Plečnik House

Two things. The original home, with his furniture, library, drawing tools and personal belongings left as they were, and a permanent exhibition of sketches, plans, photographs and models in wood, clay and plaster. The Plečnik Collection was set up in 1972 within the Architecture Museum, opened to the public in 1974 and has been run by the Museum and Galleries of Ljubljana since 2010. After two years of work, the house reopened in September 2015 and in 2018 won a Europa Nostra award, Europe’s top honour for cultural heritage.

The house is not frozen in time. Until 24 January 2027, from mid-October, it shows «Ginkgo biloba, prišlek», an installation by Ana Sluga within a cycle that invites today’s artists to respond to the architect’s rooms.

Guided tours, hours and booking

Doors open from 10am to 6pm every day except Monday. It does not open at all on 1 January, 1 November or 25 December, and it closes at 2pm on 24 and 31 December. The home is only shown on a guided tour that leaves every hour on the hour, run in Slovene and English when the group is mixed. The ticket with exhibition and tour costs €12 for adults and €9 reduced; the exhibition alone is €8. Under-6s go free. The museum recommends buying online and choosing a time slot.

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Fitting it into Trnovo

I would visit the house first thing, then walk the river embankments back to the centre, passing the Trnovo Bridge and the National and University Library. That gives you a well-rounded half day on Plečnik’s works in Ljubljana, the thing that sets this city apart from any other capital. Another of his UNESCO-listed works is the Garden of All Saints at Žale cemetery.

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