Piran is a beautiful coastal town in Slovenia that is definitely worth visiting. Slovenia doesn’t have a huge coastline but they certainly made the most of what they’ve got. You might be wondering how to get to Piran so you can include it in your Europe Itinerary, but it’s actually easily reachable from many destinations. Here are some of the best ways to get to Piran from Ljubljana, Venice, Trieste, Rovinj (Croatian Istrian Coast), Vienna, UK and more.
Contents
How To Get To Piran Slovenia Map
Ljubljana To Piran
Venice To Piran
Trieste To Piran
Rovinj To Piran
Vienna To Piran
How To Get To Piran From The UK + More
How To Get To Piran Slovenia Map
Ljubljana To Piran
Ljubljana To Piran By Bus
We personally did this journey and got the bus from Ljubljana bus station (directly in front of Ljubljana train station) to Piran. It took about 3 hours with quite a few stops along the way. Our route went a beautiful scenic way, but also went up and down mountains and along windy roads for a fair chunk of the trip.
There are a few buses that make this journey each day, we got the longest one as that was the departure time that worked for us. There are also shorter routes, the shortest being 2 hours 20 minutes, and this only has 9 stops along the way and would, therefore, be more direct. Buses run every day of the week.
If you want to leave from Ljubljana bus station in front of the train station, you will need to look for this name on the schedule: Ljubljana Avtobusna Postaja, sometimes abbreviated to Ljubljana AP.
Journey TIme: 2 hours 20 minutes to 3 hours by bus
More Information: Avtobusna Postaja Ljubljana
Ljubljana To Koper By Train + Koper To Piran By Bus
If you’re not interested in travelling by bus, you can also go from Ljubljana to Koper by train, which takes 2 hours 20 minutes, and then get the local bus from Koper to Piran, which takes between 40 to 47 minutes.
Journey Time: 3 hours + waiting time via train and bus
More Information: Slovenske železnice (trains) | Arriva (Bus)
Read More:
20 Incredible Things To Do In Ljubljana Slovenia + Map
Where To Stay In Ljubljana Slovenia: Our Ljubljana Accommodation Guide
Where To Eat In Ljubljana Slovenia: Restaurants, Cafes, Desserts and Markets
Venice To Piran
There are a few options when it comes to getting from Venice to Piran, including ferry or train with a combination of bus, ferry or car.
Venice To Piran Ferry
In the peak seasons (April to October) there is a weekly Venice to Piran Ferry that runs on Saturdays by Venezia Lines.
Journey Time: 2 hours 45 minutes by ferry
More Information: Venezia Lines
Venice To Piran By Train (Via Trieste)
You can also get from Venice to Piran by getting an Italian train to Trieste in Italy, which takes between 1 hour 40 minutes and 3 hours depending on which train you get. You can see how to then get from Trieste to Piran below.
Journey Time: Between 1 hr 40 mins to 3 hrs to reach Trieste depending on which train you select.
More Information: Trainline
Read More: A Guide To Venice Italy: Eat, See, Do, Stay + Essentials
Trieste To Piran
Getting from Trieste to Piran is quite simple and there are a few options depending on when you visit.
Trieste To Piran By Ferry
In the summer months, from the end of June until the beginning of September, Liberty Lines runs a 30-minute ferry from Trieste to Piran. This runs on Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday.
Journey Time: 30 minutes by ferry
More Information: Liberty Lines
Trieste To Piran By Bus
There is also a bus that runs from Trieste to Piran which takes 1 hour 15 minutes. This is run by Arriva and only operates Monday to Friday. If you need to travel on the weekend you can take a bus direct to Portoroz, run by Flixbus and it takes 1 hour, and then you can either get a taxi or a local bus to Piran, which only takes 5 – 10 minutes and runs every 20 minutes.
Journey Time: 1 hour 15 minutes by bus
More Information: Arriva | Flixbus
Rovinj To Piran (Croatian Istrian Coast To Piran)
Combining your trip to Piran with the Croatian Istrian Coast is a great idea. Even though they are close it can be a little tricky to easily get between the two, but it’s definitely worth it.
Rovinj To Piran By Bus
You can get a direct bus from Rovinj or Pula to Portoroz with Flixbus that takes between one and two hours. These look like they run every day. From Portoroz, you can take the local bus (7 minutes) or taxi to Piran.
Journey Time: 1 hour 5 minutes to 1 hour 50 minutes by bus
More Information: Flixbus
Rovinj To Piran By Shared Or Private Shuttle Service
If you want the convenience of leaving from Piran and getting to Rovinj, Pula or anywhere on the Croatian Istrian Coast, door to door, then take a look at a shared or private shuttle service GoOpti. We used this option to get from Piran to Rovinj and it was so easy and comfortable. We will talk more about our experience with GoOpti in our upcoming ‘How to get to Rovinj Croatia’ article.
Journey Time: 1-hour door to door (pending waiting times at the border crossing) by shuttle
More Information: GoOpti
Rovinj To Piran By Ferry
Another great option to reach Croatian Istria is the ferry from Piran to Rovinj, which runs on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday and takes between 1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes. This ferry only runs from late June to early September.
Journey Time: 1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes by ferry
More Information: Trieste Lines (run by Liberty Lines)
Vienna (Austria) To Piran
Vienna might seem like it’s far away from Piran, but it’s actually a pretty simple and beautiful route. It’s also an alternative Itinerary if you are planning on visiting both Vienna and Venice, for example, you could stop off at Piran and Ljubljana along the way.
So the easiest way to get from Vienna to Piran is to get one of the most beautiful train journeys in Europe, from Vienna to Ljubljana. This will take you through stunning mountains and takes 6 hours and 15 minutes. Once you arrive in Ljubljana, you can spend a few nights here, and then make your way from Ljubljana to Piran (see details above), or you can continue straight onto Piran from the bus station directly in front of the train station.
We travelled from Vienna to Piran in one day, as we had been to Ljubljana before and unfortunately didn’t have time to spend time there again. So from personal experience, we can say that even though it was a long day, it was definitely do-able and also had some stunning scenery. But if you have the time, we would recommend breaking the trip up in Ljubljana.
Journey Time: 6 hours 15 minutes (train) + 3 hours (bus)
More Information: OBB (trains) | Avtobusna Postaja Ljubljana (bus)
How To Get To Piran from The UK or Other International Destinations
If you are coming from the UK, America, Australia, or other international destinations, you might be wondering the best way to reach Piran Slovenia.
From the UK you can get flights to the nearest Airports to Piran, which are Trieste (Italy), Pula (Croatia Istrian Coast). You could also get flights to more major airports slightly further away such as Ljubljana (Slovenia) and Venice (Italy). From these airports, you can make your way to Piran following the above information.
From the United States, Australia and other further away destinations, it will most likely not be possible to get a direct flight to Slovenia. The closest International Airports that you can get direct flights (stop-over from Australia) to may include Milan (Italy), Vienna (Austria), Zurich (Switzerland) and Munich (Germany). However, the best way to plan a trip to Piran Slovenia from these destinations would be to have it as a stop along the way in you’re itinerary of a region nearby, as it doesn’t make a lot of sense for it to be your first or last stop due to location.
Read More:
A Guide To Piran Slovenia: Things To Do, Where To Eat, Hotels + Essentials
Where To Stay In Piran Slovenia: Best Piran Hotels + Map
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Hi, we are a couple of Aussies in our early 60’s, currently staying in Ljubjlana for 6 nights as part of our 4 month trip…..I really appreciate the information given here regarding day trip to Piran and have decided to do this tomorrow…thanks heaps for the info – it’s very helpful to us…..keep up the great work. Sue Ramsbottom
Hi Sue, thanks so much, so happy you found it helpful! 6 nights in Ljubljana would have been amazing, as well as a 4-month trip! How did you enjoy Piran?