Kočevje: Hotels, Lake, Culture and Cycling Routes

Kočevje can be explored from several perspectives: culture, nature and active pursuits can be found here in various forms.

Culture

The Regional Museum of Kočevje has been housed in the Šešek Home since 1963. The Šešek Home was built in 1938 as a Sokol Home and is an important monument to Slovenian statehood. The Regional Museum preserves the movable cultural heritage of the municipalities of Kočevje, Kostel, Loški potok and Osilnica and presents it to the public.

The parish church of St. Bartholomew stands in the centre of Kočevje by the Rinža River. It was built in 1903 in the Neo-Romanesque style and is decorated with works by Slovenian artists Slavko Pengov, France Kralj and Stane Jarm. The Staneta Jarma Trail also runs through the town centre. This easy walking trail features outdoor artworks by Stane Jarm.

Water and Forest

Lake Kočevje is an artificial lake that formed between 1973 and 1978 in the basin of a lignite mine. A 3-kilometre nature trail runs around the lake, allowing visitors to observe numerous plant and animal species. In summer, swimming, surfing, sailing, diving and fishing take place at Lake Kočevje.

Rožni Studenec is a shorter educational forest trail suitable for children that provides interesting information about life in the forest. The trail begins in Marof in Kočevje, leads through the forest to the Rinža River and the cold Mrzli studenec spring, and then returns to the starting point.

City Trails

“A Walk Through Kočevje” is a short, easy thematic trail around the town. It passes 23 buildings and 2 bridges. The “A Walk Through Kočevje” app shows a 3D reconstruction of the former Kočevje Castle.

Cycling

The MTB Trail Center Kočevje is located just outside Kočevje in Dolga vas. It has 11 trails of varying difficulty, with a total length of almost 20 kilometres. The grounds also include a paved pump track, offering cyclists of all ages a safe sporting experience. Družinski krog is an easy cycling route particularly suitable for short family outings around Kočevje.

Eleonorina pot begins in Kočevje. Kolesarska pot Stojna runs above Kočevje through the Stojna Mountains and away from traffic roads; technically, it is of medium difficulty. Kolpa – Rog is a challenging route from Kočevje to the Kolpa River and back to Kočevje through the forests.

The Pot do koče pri Jelenovem studencu cycling route begins at a car park on Podgorska Street and connects Kočevje with the summit of Stojna.

Getting There

Kočevje railway station is located on the outskirts of the town, about a ten-minute walk from the centre. Regular passenger service from Kočevje railway station towards Ljubljana resumed in 2021.

More Destinations

Other destinations at the same level are Osilnica, Vrh pri Fari and Banja Loka.

Back to the higher-level travel overview: Kočevje.