بلدية كومين

Late spring and early autumn are the best times: mild days, green or golden vineyards and few crowds. Summer is warm and good for farm visits. Winter is cold, with frost and some snow, and many farm inns keep short hours.

Nearby Dutovlje hosts a festival of teran wine and air-dried Karst ham. Ask locally for the current dates.

• Štanjel is the main reason to come. This stone village on a hill has a castle, narrow lanes and views over the Vipava Valley.
• Ferrari Garden is a terraced garden next to Štanjel, designed by Max Fabiani. It has a pond, a small bridge and wide views. It is a national monument.
• Church of St Daniel is a 15th-century church in Štanjel, built as the burial vault of the Cobenzl counts. Its bell tower has an unusual cap shaped like a lemon.
• Karst wine and farms: small family wineries and farms around Komen sell teran wine and Karst ham. Some open an osmica for a few days at a time to sell their own products.
• Caves and First World War sites: the plateau has many small caves and old military cemeteries. Marked trails lead to them through the oak woods.

• By car: this is the practical way. Komen is about 35 min from Nova Gorica and about 1 h 10 min from Ljubljana. Štanjel is about 15 min away. Buy the Slovenian e-vignette before you drive on motorways.
• By air: the nearest airport with scheduled flights is Trieste Airport in Italy, about 30 min by car. Ljubljana Airport is the other main gateway. Neither has a direct public transport link, so rent a car or book a transfer.
• By train: the closest mainline station is Sežana, on the Ljubljana to Trieste line, and you still need a car or taxi from there to reach Komen. Check the timetable before planning around it. Timetables: Slovenian Railways
• By bus: local buses are rare. Do not plan a visit around them.

Quick practical facts for Slovenia at a glance: