More and more foreigners in well-visited...

More and more foreigners in well-visited Slovenian mountain huts.



The first half of the 2019 summer mountaineering season in Slovenian mountain huts has been successful, with the peak expected until the end of August if weather conditions are favorable for visiting the mountains. Hut keepers are observing an increasing number of foreigners, who will be assisted in route planning by the new guide to the Slovenian Mountain Trail in English. The Alpine Association of Slovenia (PZS) is involved with mountain huts in two European projects - Life SustainHuts introduces new and original energy solutions, the Alpe Adria Experience Region strategically directs sustainable tourism development in the Karawanks -, and this year it has also equipped 28 mountain huts with special laminated maps.







Slovenia is crisscrossed by a network of more than ten thousand kilometers of mountain trails leading to 178 mountain huts, shelters, and bivouacs with 7,400 beds and more than 10,000 seats. According to the latest data, Slovenian mountains are visited annually by 1.7 million visitors, with more and more foreigners among them. "The year 2018 was relatively successful for mountain huts and thus set benchmarks for this season, although we do not have reliable statistical data. In assessing this year's mountaineering season, we must realize that it is heavily dependent on August and September, and the weather has a major impact on mountain visits. Huts that have been open since April are currently recording even slightly lower attendance and worse results than in the same period of 2018, while high-mountain huts that opened later due to delayed spring snow are achieving results in July at the level of July 2018. If the weather conditions are suitable, we can expect a mountaineering season at the level of 2018, of course with possible deviations between individual huts, especially lower-lying ones," explains Vice-President of the Alpine Association of Slovenia Miro Eržen.







The Alpine Association is currently a partner in two European Union projects that also include mountain huts. The Life SustainHuts project aims to reduce carbon dioxide emissions in the natural environment by introducing new and original energy solutions based on renewable sources, while the goal of the Alpe Adria Experience Region project is to strategically direct sustainable tourism development in the Karawanks on both sides of the border into specialized green tourism offerings. "As demonstration objects for Life SustainHuts, mountain huts in Spain, Italy, and Slovenia are included. In July 2019, within the framework of the project, we completely newly established a self-sufficiency system for electricity at Pogačnikov dom na Kriških podih. Electricity is generated via solar panels and a small wind turbine for electricity production. With this investment, there will no longer be a need to use generators, which pose a significant potential environmental hazard, which is especially important for sensitive mountain environments such as Triglav National Park," explains PZS expert collaborator Dušan Prašnikar and also describes the Alpe Adria Experience Region: "The emphasis is on developing hiking, cycling, and soft winter tourism products. Within the project, we have carried out investments in mountain huts in the Karawanks: an info point has been set up at Koča na Golici, Koča pri izviru Završnice has acquired wooden interior furnishings and a heating system, and Dom na Zelenici, Dom na Kofcah, and Dom pod Storžičem have new equipment for serving hikers and touring cyclists. We will establish the Trans Karavanke touring cycling route connecting Tromeja and Jezersko, and certain marked mountain trails in the Karawanks connecting the valley to the Karawanks ridge, where the panoramic trail runs, will also be renovated."







"The biggest advantage of being included in the SustainHuts project for us is that we have sufficient electrical energy available, the biggest difference is that this year we haven't needed the generator at all yet, whereas previously we always did in bad weather, and it looks like we won't need it. Regarding ecological aspects, we generally encourage visitors to bring their own bedding to reduce the use of our fresh bedding, which we transport back to the valley," we learn first-hand from the keeper of Pogačnikov dom na Kriških podih (2050 m, PD Radovljica) Maša Stanič, who also boasts very good attendance: "July was probably a record month for attendance in our hut, and there's also a lot of bustle at the beginning of August, everything is fully booked. Every year there are more foreigners, they are the ones who come even in announced rain. At the beginning of the summer season, there are traditionally more foreigners, in August we expect more Slovenians, who are more day visitors, while foreigners mostly overnight with us. For the entire season, it's approximately half and half." The popular hut in the Julian Alps is mostly visited by Belgians, Germans, and Dutch, there are more and more Israelis, and mountain enthusiasts from the USA and Australia also come.







Good attendance is also at Češka koča na Spodnjih Ravneh (1542 m, PD Jezersko), which reigns over Jezersko, the first Slovenian mountaineering village, into whose international family Luče will join in September. "The season feels very good to me, 70 percent of guests are foreigners who come even during the week, the vast majority are Czechs, their number is still increasing. Since 1990, we have been collaborating with the great promoter Ladislav Jirasek, so more and more Czechs visit us, who are proud that they built this hut, there are also many Austrians, as the Czech Hut is very well-known there, and in Slovenia it's something special, as it has remained the same since its construction in 1900, just with some cosmetic additions. There are also many hikers on the Slovenian Mountain Trail, surprisingly this year there is a large increase in Americans on the SPP," says keeper Karmen Karničar and adds: "From my experience, I can say that Czech tourists are good guests, friendly, polite, but regarding mountain experience, it's varied, just like with Slovenian hikers. There are more and more people in the mountains who I would first recommend taking a safe hiking course, as they often overestimate themselves."







Traditionally, at the peak of the season, the most visited huts are those in the Triglav range and Kamnik-Savinja Alps, as well as those more easily accessible for families, including huts in the Posavje hills and the wider Pohorje area. Good attendance can also be boasted by Dom na Uršlji gori (1680 m, PD Prevalje) in Carinthia, which has both certificates - family- and environment-friendly mountain hut. "At Uršlja gora, we have higher attendance than in previous years, especially during the week, so we are very satisfied. I'm in my third season at the hut and I can say that we have raised both the offer and attendance to a higher level - with friendliness, outdoor service, hospitality offerings, quality and a large selection of food, as well as promotion via social networks," boasts tenant Sonja Podbregar: "In summer, many families visit us because the hut is fairly easily accessible and because we pay special attention to the youngest guests. Every year there are also more foreigners, among overnight stays already about 80 percent, as day visitors say ten percent. Slovenians predominate as day guests, while those hiking the Carinthian or Slovenian Mountain Trail overnight the most. Among foreigners, Germans, English, Dutch, Belgians, and Poles predominate, who visit us because of the Slovenian Mountain Trail, so the new SPP guide in English is very welcome."







The Slovenian Mountain Trail (SPP) is the most popular long-distance trail in Slovenia and one of the oldest in Europe and the world. The Slovenian Mountain Trail guide by Gorazd Gorišek, Mojca Stritar Kučuk, and Andraž Poljanec was published last October, and due to growing interest from foreigners in the SPP, the English version Slovenian Mountain Trail, translated by Gorazd Pipenbaher, was published in early August, presenting the entire trail as a sequence of individual daily stages, with added tips for safer mountain visits. The guide clearly provides a brief route description, stage start and end elevation, elevation gain, length and walking time, route difficulty, points of interest along the way, possible ascents to nearby peaks, and emergency descent options to the valley. For all huts on the trail, information, descriptions, and QR codes for smartphones are collected, and a stage route map and profile are added.







The first step toward safer mountain visits is route planning using a mountaineering guide and map, so this year the Alpine Association produced special laminated maps for mountain huts, which, in addition to showing the wider hut area, contain important information for mountain visitors. The maps are installed in 28 huts across Slovenia, mostly the more visited ones in the Julian and Kamnik-Savinja Alps, and it will gradually equip other mountain huts with them. In huts, at PZS, tourist and other points, mountain visitors also have available a leaflet with tips for safer summer mountain visits in Slovenian and English.