Ljubljana
46°03′ N 14°30′ ECityPop. 284,293Slovenia
Ljubljana suits a couple who come for the lights, with festive stalls strung along the Ljubljanica embankments. The 2026 switch-on is set for Friday 27 November at 17:00 on Prešernov trg, and the fair's own dates were not out when we checked.
Who should base here
The lights go on every year on the Friday before Advent, and the festive fair opens the same day along Breg and the riverbanks around Prešernov trg. In 2025 the fair ran from 28 November to 4 January 2026, so Ljubljana also works for a trip into the New Year. Concert stages on several squares fill December, and the city's party on New Year's Eve ends with a show from Ljubljana Castle at midnight.
Stay in the old centre on either bank of the Ljubljanica, and the fair, the squares and the riverside lights sit within a short walk. Come for the switch-on if you can. Visitors gather on Prešernov trg after 17:00 and count down the seconds until the city lights up, and the fair opens the same day.
Worth knowing
- The Ljubljana Tourist Information Centre is at Adamič-Lundrovo nabrežje 2.
- Turizem Ljubljana asks visitors to see the lights on foot, by bike, bus or train, since the city wants fewer cars in the centre in December.
Quick answers about Ljubljana
Is Ljubljana a good place to stay?
The lights go on every year on the Friday before Advent, and the festive fair opens the same day along Breg and the riverbanks around Prešernov trg. In 2025 the fair ran from 28 November to 4 January 2026, so Ljubljana also works for a trip into the New Year. Concert stages on several squares fill December, and the city's party on New Year's Eve ends with a show from Ljubljana Castle at midnight.