SOCIAL PROGRAMME

PRE-CONGRESS TOUR

Tours for accompanying persons

POST-CONGRESS TOUR

Exact time and place of departure for each tour

All excursions start (and end) from Kongresni trg at specific time for each tour.

Casual (walking) shoes are recommended for all tours!

IRG 35 TOURS Registrants

HOW TO REGISTER

Registration for social program and other services by the Local Organiser (meal package, poster printing) is no longer possible. All who have registered with Form C will receive a registration confirmation in this week.

CANCELLATIONS

If a registration for Local Organiser Service is cancelled after 7 May 2004, 50 % of the fee will be refunded. After 1 June 2004 no refunds will be made.

Announcements

POST- CONGRESS TOUR excursions are cancelled due to low number of registrations. All other excursions will perform as planed. Further instructions for excursions will follow in next week.

Additional info for social program: miro.tomazic@bf.uni-lj.si

PRE-CONGRESS TOUR 

SATURDAY, 5 June 2004

Venice (full day)

Transfer to the Slovene coast will be organised. There you will board the catamaran "Prince of Venice" (fast ferry) and after 2.5-hour-long journey you will arrive in Venice, where an English-speaking guide will accompany you through the streets of the "floating city", situated in a lagoon with 118 islets. You will visit the San Marco's Square, the mighty Doge's Palace, the Rialto Bridge and other interesting sights of the city. The rest of the afternoon is free for individual explorations.

In the late afternoon you will board the catamaran again and return to the Slovene coast, where a coach will be waiting for you to take you back to Ljubljana.

Price: 100 EUR per person

The price includes: Bus transport, drive with catamaran "Prince of Venice", English-speaking guide, guided sightseeing tour of Venice

Minimum: 20 Persons

Russians and Byelorussians (and other countries of ex-Soviet Union) need:

• Visa for Italy.

• Photocopy of the passport,

• Photocopy of the travel ticket

• Photocopy of the hotel  voucher

Some countries who needs visa for Italy: Albania, Afghanistan, Armenia, BiH, Bulgaria, Egypt, Gruzia, India, Iran, Iraq, China, Macedonia, Yugoslavia, Romania, Ukraine

More info: http://www.veniceby.com/ or http://www.venetia.it/

SUNDAY, 6 June 2004

Postojna caves (full day)

Postojna caves - a two million years old and 27 km long system of subterranean caves is one of the most easily accessible networks of underground caves in the world. A ride by electric train will be followed by a guided walk through a series of caves with stalactites, stalagmites, pillars and translucent curtains that create unforgettable impressions the underground waters are the home of the world's unique, rare, and endangered species of the amphibian Proteus angyinus, or "human fish" as it is popularly called here. After the visit of the caves stop at a local karst farm to taste the typical karst specialities - the fermented ham "prosciutto" and the ruby-red wine Teran.

Price: 40 EUR per person
 

The price includes: Bus transport, English-speaking guide, entrance to the Postojna Caves

Minimum: 20 Persons

More info: http://www.postojnska-jama.si/

Tours for accompanying persons

Monday, 7 June 2004

Otočec & Kostanjevica (full day)

Otočec Castle, a jewel rising from the mists of the Krka River, is the only water castle in Slovenia and far around. Its earliest foundations were built in the Middle Ages, and its present appearance was created during the Renaissance when it became the property of Baron Ivan Lenkovič, the chief commander of the Croatia-Slavonia march. Today the castle is a five-star hotel where rooms and apartments with period furniture unveil the centuries and whose restaurant is renowned for its selection of the best Slovene wines and its domestic and foreign dishes, particularly game and mushroom specialties. Special attractions of the castle include the castle reception with attendants in period clothing, medieval music that accompanies guests from the moment they enter the courtyard, torches and candles lighting the castle, the echo of riders leaving the stables at nearby Struga Castle, and the rumbling of horse-drawn carriages carrying castle guests across the wooden bridges.

Price: 50 EUR per persons

The price includes: Bus transport, English-speaking guide, entrance to Kostanjevica Museum, entrance to Otoceč castle, lunch in Otočec

Minimum: 20 Persons

More info: http://www.krka-zdravilisca.si/en/otocec/, http://www.galerija-bj.si/aindex.htm  

Tuesday, 8 June 2004

Visit to Ljubljana (full day)

Take a ride with the tourist train, which sets off from the very central Prešeren Square and takes you to the Ljubljana Castle that has been the symbol of the Slovene capital for centuries. It is worth climbing to the top of the viewing tower, as a wonderful panorama on the city and its surroundings will reward your effort. Join a sightseeing tour with one of our licensed local guides. This two hours' walk features the main sights in the Old Town, including the baroque cathedral of St Nicholas, the elegant Fountain of the three Carniolan rivers ,the Town Hall; you will proceed further through the Town Square and cross the Cobblers' Bridge and the Triple Bridge. You will also explore the left bank of the Ljubljanica River: the Slovene Philharmonic, the University, the Ursuline Church of the Holy Trinity and the classicist Kazina.

Price: 20 EUR per person

The price includes: tourist train, English-speaking guide, entrance to Ljubljana castle, lunch

Minimum: 20 Persons

More info: www.ljubljana-tourism.si or www.slovenia-tourism.si

Thursday, 10 June 2004

Bled (full day)

Admire the most popular tourist resort in Slovenia - Bled. It is often referred to as the pearl of the Alpine region owing to its emerald-green lake, a church on the island in the middle of the lake and a medieval castle from the 11th century, perched on a cliff over the lake. The visit to Bled Castle will be followed by some free time. Drive further to Radovljica - one of the towns that preserved the medieval form and stop for lunch in a typical local inn.

Price: 50 EUR per person
 

The price includes: Bus transport, English-speaking guide, entrance to the Bled Castle, lunch in Radovljica, a ride with pletna to the Bled Island
 

Minimum: 20 Persons

More info: http://www.bled.si/

POST- CONGRESS TOUR

Friday, 11 June 2004

The Castle of Ptuj (Ptujska gora) (full day)

Picturesque castle above the town Ptuj has defended the settlement below the castle walls for centuries but today it is admired by visitors with its exceptional picturesque architecture and composition with old town. It is situated on the hill above the left bank of the Drava river. The oldest archaeological findings are from the end of the III. millennium B.C.

Famous antar road has taken its course over the Drava river below the castle hill. Old Romas set up a fortress and perhaps also a basilica. The oldest, still standing castle buildings are from the Middle ages. The castle and the town were owned by the Salzburg archdiocese in that time. The oldest written document about the castle is from the middle of the 12th century when the castle was build against the constant Hungarian invasion.

Administrators of the castle were ministerials who got the name "Lords of Ptuj".

Several architectural changes were made during the following centuries and the castle is settled as an imposing museum in a present time.

Price: 70 EUR per person
 

The price includes: Bus transport, English-speaking guide, entrance to the Castle, visit to the Ptujska gora (church), lunch

More info: http://www.ptuj.si/index.htm, http://www.ptujska-gora.si/

Saturday, 12 June 2004

Škocjanske caves, Lipica (full day)

The Škocjan Caves are composed of a system of eleven interconnected caves, flatfloored valleys extending over collapsed dolines, natural bridges and sinkholes. For these reasons, the Caves have been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1986. The Caves lie in the heart of the Kras region, whence the word "karst", used by geologists all over the world, originates. They are adorned with marvellous multicoloured stalactites, stone curtains and broad rimstone pools. The Reka river, which gives the caves their basic features, still cascades through the underground gorge, tumbling over rock walls and finally coming to rest in small lakes.

Price: 50 EUR per person
 

The price includes: Bus transport, English-speaking guide, visit to cave, tour to the stud farm, lunch

Minimum: 20 Persons

More info: http://www.park-skocjanske-jame.si/, http://www.lipica.org/