An electric-powered vehicle named Kavalir (Gentle Helper) has also been introduced. This is a free city centre transport option, friendly to both people and the environment. Kavalirs, mainly intended for the transport of the elderly, mobility-impaired people and visitors, run around the pedestrianized historical city centre at a speed slow enough to be hailed anywhere on the street. Additionally, Ljubljana has increased the number of city buses running on methane, which has visibly reduced CO2 emissions.

And this is not all - the city also prides itself on having an astounding per capita green space provision of 542 square metres, some of which is right in the heart of the historic city centre. The residents of Ljubljana are also lucky to live next to a river and drink excellent potable water of a quality equal to that of water from subterranean sources, which is not processed with any technological procedure. During the warmer months, both locals and visitors are very glad of the city’s 30+ drinking fountains that provide free refreshment. They are easily accessible and simple to find via the Tap water Ljubljana app.

The Ljubljana Marshes, included in the UNESCO World Heritage List, are a unique landscape at Ljubljana’s doorstep. It is a natural area of swamps and peat bogs known for rare animal and plant species. Covering around 160 square kilometres, it is home to 161 bird species, 86 of them endangered.

Ljubljana is also proud to be the first EU capital to have announced a zero waste plan and has received several international awards for its mobility strategy and the accessibility of its public spaces to mobility-impaired people.

Prestigious accolades matter (but are not everything)

All these efforts haven't passed unnoticed. In the past few years, Ljubljana has become a recipient of prestigious high-profile international awards and recognitions (beside the title of European Green Capital 2016), which are a valuable, yet not most important, indicator of the destination's overall performance. From this long and quite impressive list, we are particularly proud of:

• Our ranking, for five consecutive years, among the Global Top 100 Sustainable Destinations by Green Destinations. At the ITB 2019, Ljubljana received the highest recognition in the Best of Cities category for its best practice - the implementation of the Locally Grown Food Exchange. The award focuses on the contributions made by tourism organisations and destinations in order to recognise the change makers; those leading the way to make tourism more sustainable by taking responsibility for driving down the negative impacts of tourism and increasing the positive ones. Slovenia is also the first country in the world to be declared a green destination based on the Green Destinations Criteria (2016).
  
  
• Our award in the area of sustainable tourism in the 2019 European Capital of Smart Tourism’s selection for the most important measures and plans in the fields of sustainable development, accessibility, digitalisation, cultural heritage and creativity. This is a new initiative launched by the European Commission.
  
  
• Our prestigious WTM Responsible Tourism Award for Best of Communication in 2017, for our promotion of sustainable mobility by following national green policies, and with efforts to improve the lives of citizens by managing the flow of tourists and expanding our offer to the surrounding region.
  
  
• Our 2015 WTTC Tourism for Tomorrow award conferred by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), which recognised that in recent years, the city has been completely redesigned with sustainability in mind. This award is regarded as the highest accolade for sustainability within the global travel and tourism industry.

The course of tourism development in Ljubljana has clearly shown that our big achievements in haven’t been overnight successes - Ljubljana’s sustainable development is an ongoing project with a long-term aim of addressing the needs of 21st-century urban life while taking into account the wellbeing of both residents and the local environment. Above all, they are clear proof that sustainability is a deeply-rooted value that the locals have actively embraced, and that is something we take great pride in, as it transcends the significance of even the most distinguished international recognitions.

What does the future hold?

The ongoing expansion and improvement of the city's tourist offer in a broader sense is also important to enhancing Ljubljana's destination appeal. In the next few years, the city will see an intensified development of its overall tourist and congress offer, particularly in the hotel sector. Additionally, a brand new Arrivals passenger terminal at the Ljubljana Airport is to be completed by spring 2021.

Ljubljana's growing visibility in the international meeting industry market can be attributed to several factors, including continuous marketing efforts by the key local stakeholders active in international associations, as well as in the corporate events segment.

Several new hotel openings are planned in the next four years that will bring a range of modern venues for various types of event. Across the street from the InterContinental Ljubljana, a new 5-star hotel is expected to open in spring 2021. Four new 4-star properties are also being built: two of them within the city centre. In spring 2019, after a full renovation, the Central Hotel will have been transformed from a primarily 4-star business property with a privileged downtown location into a lifestyle hotel with modern urban vibes. The Union Hotels group is currently also investing in the partial refurbishment of the Lev Hotel.

A few smaller boutique hotel projects in the city centre have been announced, too. Last, but not least, two existing hotels, Four Points by Sheraton Mons Ljubljana and the Best Western Premier Hotel Slon, have presented their development plans, which will bring a total of 220 new rooms on the market. From the current capacity of approximately 2,800 rooms, their estimated number should reach 4,000 by 2024.

Last but not least, 2021 will also see the opening of the completely renovated Sugar Factory (“Cukrarna”) Gallery project, located about 10-min walk from the old town. The new multifunctional event/cultural space with a very rich history - having once been the largest sugar processing plant in the Habsburg Lands - will accommodate approximately 1000 guests.