Ankaran

Town · Koper, 🇸🇮 Slovenia

Ankaran is a small seaside town at the southern end of the Muggia peninsula, on the north side of Koper Bay. It has been a separate municipality since 2011. Slovenian and Italian are both official languages, and the Italian border is only about 2.5 km away.

The town suits a quiet beach holiday. Pine-shaded bathing areas, olive groves and vineyards line the shore, and the western cape is a protected landscape park with cliffs and walking trails. Koper is about 10 minutes away by car. Strunjan, Portorož and Piran are all within about 30 minutes, so Ankaran also works as a calm base for the whole coast.

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When to visit

Late spring and early autumn are the best times for walking the coastal trails. The sea is warm enough for swimming from June to September. July and August are the busiest months on the beaches. Winters are mild but often wet and grey.

Best time to visit: May, June, September

Select a month

Typical weather in January

Poor

7° (feels like 4°) · extremes -4°–12°
1° at night
10 rainy days
5 sunny days
3 hours of sunshine per day
Dry air
Calm winds
11°C · too cold to swim
UV index 1 · low

Typical weather in February

Poor

9° (feels like 5°) · extremes -4°–14°
2° at night
9 rainy days
9 sunny days
4 hours of sunshine per day
Dry air
Calm winds
10°C · too cold to swim
UV index 1 · low

Typical weather in March

Fair

13° (feels like 10°) · extremes -1°–18°
4° at night
10 rainy days
12 sunny days
6 hours of sunshine per day
Dry air
Calm winds
10°C · too cold to swim
UV index 3 · moderate

Typical weather in April

Good

17° (feels like 14°) · extremes 3°–23°
8° at night
12 rainy days
12 sunny days
7 hours of sunshine per day
Dry air
Calm winds
13°C · too cold to swim
UV index 4 · moderate

Typical weather in May

Great

21° (feels like 20°) · extremes 9°–26°
13° at night
13 rainy days
14 sunny days
9 hours of sunshine per day
Dry air
Calm winds
18°C · cool for a dip
UV index 6 · high

Typical weather in June

Great

26° · extremes 13°–31°
17° at night
11 rainy days
16 sunny days
10 hours of sunshine per day
Comfortable humidity
Calm winds
23°C · cool for a dip
UV index 7 · high

Typical weather in July

Good

28° (feels like 29°) · extremes 15°–33°
19° at night
10 rainy days
19 sunny days
11 hours of sunshine per day
Humid air
Calm winds
25°C · warm for swimming
UV index 7 · high

Typical weather in August

Good

28° (feels like 29°) · extremes 15°–34°
19° at night
10 rainy days
18 sunny days
9 hours of sunshine per day
Humid air
Calm winds
25°C · warm for swimming
UV index 6 · high

Typical weather in September

Great

23° (feels like 22°) · extremes 10°–28°
15° at night
11 rainy days
13 sunny days
7 hours of sunshine per day
Comfortable humidity
Calm winds
23°C · cool for a dip
UV index 4 · moderate

Typical weather in October

Good

18° (feels like 17°) · extremes 6°–23°
11° at night
13 rainy days
9 sunny days
5 hours of sunshine per day
Dry air
Calm winds
19°C · cool for a dip
UV index 2 · low

Typical weather in November

Fair

13° (feels like 10°) · extremes 0°–18°
7° at night
13 rainy days
4 sunny days
3 hours of sunshine per day
Dry air
Calm winds
16°C · too cold to swim
UV index 1 · low

Typical weather in December

Poor

9° (feels like 5°) · extremes -3°–13°
2° at night
10 rainy days
4 sunny days
3 hours of sunshine per day
Dry air
Calm winds
13°C · too cold to swim
UV index 1 · low

Climate data: NASA POWER + Copernicus ERA5-Land and ERA5 · 1996–2025

Top sights

Debeli Rtič is the western tip of the peninsula, protected as a landscape park since 2018. Cliffs 12 to 21 m high drop into a shallow sea that is rich in marine life. The clifftop is a popular place to watch the sunset, and three recreational trails of 4, 5 and 6 km run through the park.
Debeli Rtič Beach is one of the largest beaches on the peninsula, below the cape. The beach of the Red Cross youth and health resort next to it is open to all visitors. The resort grounds also hold a Mediterranean park of about 7 hectares with more than 4,000 plants from all continents.
Valdoltra beach has stone platforms for sunbathing and a small lawn. It is popular with both locals and visitors.
The Mediterranean salt meadow at St Nicholas is the only meadow of its kind in Slovenia. Salt-tolerant plants grow here on the edge of the bay, and the site is protected as part of Natura 2000.
The former Benedictine Monastery of St Nicholas dates from the 11th century. It is now a four-star hotel in the Adria resort, next to a pine-shaded beach.
St Bartholomew Bay lies a few tens of metres from the Italian border. It has a natural grass beach, and the water is never deeper than 3 m.

Featured Lists

Andrea Skerlavaj from Trieste, Italia / cc-by-sa-2.0

Ankaran Highlights

Ankaran's headline sights: the Debeli rtič nature cape, Mediterranean salt meadows, an arboretum and a family theme park on the Slovenian coast near Trieste.

8 places

Sl-Ziga / pd

Ankaran Beaches

Pebble and rocky bathing spots along the Gulf of Trieste, from Valdoltra to the Debeli rtič cape.

5 places

Tours & Activities

Ankaran — Map

Ankaran — Travel Guide (PDF) Open the interactive map

Getting there

By air: The closest airport is Trieste Airport in Italy, about 45 minutes by car. Ljubljana Jože Pučnik Airport is about 1 hour 20 minutes by car.
By train: The nearest railway station is in Koper, at the end of the line from Ljubljana. From there, take a bus or taxi for the last 7 km.
By bus: Regular buses link Ankaran with Koper. In summer, a free shuttle connects the car parks, the beaches and the town centre. Visit Ankaran: public transport
By car: Koper is about 10 minutes away and Trieste about 25 minutes. Paid car parks serve the centre, Valdoltra, Debeli rtič and Lazaret, and a monthly season ticket is sold at the tourist information centre in summer.