Thank you for your message. My wife and I plus our 16 year-old- daughter are hoping to visit Slovenia this summer. We may be joined by friends who have a daughter the same age. At this point, we are thinking of flying in and out of Venice since that will be the last stop on our trip. We plan to begin at Lake Bled, since we find it helpful to start at a relaxing spot to recover from the plane flight and the time change. Altogether, we would probably be in Slovenia for five or six days and it's important that we make a plan that keeps my daughter (and her friend?) interested. We are all reasonably well traveled. My daughter has been in Europe six or eight times and the year before last lived in Switzerland for a month studying French.

We particularly enjoy beautiful scenery and are reasonably active. Most of us play tennis, but that's not essential. Boating, either for sightseeing or on our own, also appeals to us. Although we generally do not join organized tours, we occasionally have found it worthwhile to hire a private guide for notable places. Sometimes, are we pleased just to drive and explore.

As far as lodging is concerned, we are more concerned with comfort, setting, and friendliness than luxury. We would rather stay at places that reflect the local area than at cold, commercial hotels that could be found anywhere. Food is one of our big interests. We always seek out places that are special either for their atmosphere or their food. Our meals are often the most important parts of our trips.

I hope that's enought information to get you started. One more thing: We are planning to rent the car at the Venice airport, but had heard (can't remember where?) that there may be a problem renting in Italy and then driving to Slovenia. If that is correct, we might have to arrange alternate transportation from Venice to Slovenia and rent only within Slovenia.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Russell