Žalec: Holiday Apartments and Holiday Homes

The municipality of Žalec lies in the heart of the Lower Savinja Valley, is considered the region’s centre, and is the heart of hop growing and the brewing industry in Slovenia.

The Green Gold Fountain commemorates Žalec’s rich hop-growing tradition and serves beer from Slovenian microbreweries.

For travellers who would like to rent a holiday apartment in Žalec, choosing accommodation is part of their personal travel planning.

Culture

The archaeological park of the Roman Necropolis in Šempeter is considered one of the most important and best-preserved monuments from the Roman era in Slovenia and Central Europe. More than 100 family tombs were excavated in the Roman Necropolis in Šempeter, including large tombs made of Pohorje marble with statues of the families buried inside.

The Eco-Museum of Hop Growing and Brewing is located in a former hop-drying facility and has four floors of exhibitions on the cultivation and processing of hops. The defensive tower next to St Nicholas’s Church was built at the beginning of the 16th century and is the only surviving part of the former fortification wall in this area. It houses a wine cellar with a selection of the best wines from the Savinja Valley, as well as a permanent ethnographic exhibition on tools and equipment used for viticulture and winemaking.

The Savin House houses the memorial room of the composer Risto Savin, the Jelica Žuža Gallery and a gallery of artists from the Savinja region. The Mining Museum in Griže presents a permanent exhibition with historical documents and antiques from the Zabukovica–Liboje mining area and can be visited by prior arrangement. The Church of Saint Cantianus was built during the Roman era and contains a painting of Saint Cantianus and his companions, the martyrs, painted by Valentin Metzinger in 1757.

Zotl’s Forge is a 16th-century building with contemporary vaults, cobblestones typical of the period and a Gothic stone portal. The Basilica of the Holy Mother of God in Petrovče contains the Plainer Altar from 1605, considered the oldest Slovenian wooden Renaissance altar, and is an important pilgrimage site. Novo Celje Manor was built from 1756 to 1764 as a planned new centre for the nobility of Celje.

Nature and Landscape

Vrbje Pond lies south of Žalec near the Savinja River in a protected area. A 3 km-long eco-educational trail runs around Vrbje Pond and can be used in all four seasons. More than 170 bird species have been recorded at Vrbje Pond.

Pekel Cave has a well-secured path that passes numerous stalactite formations and side tunnels and leads to a 4 m-high underground waterfall on the Peklenščica stream.

Žalec and the Lower Savinja Valley are surrounded by a ring of hills: the Dobrovlje Plateau to the west, the Zasavje Hills to the south and the Ponikva Plateau to the north.

Activities

The Kotečnik natural climbing area has more than 300 climbing routes with difficulty grades ranging from 4b to 8c. The Kotečnik climbing area is suitable for all seasons, as well as for beginners and highly experienced climbers, and is also visited by mountain hikers.

Savin’s Trail leads through twelve stations in the town. It can be followed independently with a brochure or with a local guide.

The traditional Hop Trail hike begins on the last Saturday in August at the Eco-Museum of Hop Growing and Brewing. It follows a level route of approximately 14 km.

The Garden of Medicinal and Culinary Plants offers insights into the cultivation and use of plants. The Herb Park by the defensive tower displays familiar plants traditionally used by Slovenians for culinary purposes.

Other local pages: Žalec, Polzela, Vransko, Tabor, Prebold, Petrovče, Braslovče, Prekopa.

To the higher-level travel overview: Slovenia.