Overhead of main Reading Room at National  University Library.

National & University Library

Top choice in Ljubljana


This library is architect Jože Plečnik’s masterpiece, completed in 1941. To appreciate this great man’s philosophy, enter through the main door (note the horse-head doorknobs) on Turjaška ulica – you’ll find yourself in near darkness, entombed in black marble. As you ascend the steps, you’ll emerge into a colonnade suffused with light – the light of knowledge, according to the architect’s plans.

The Main Reading Room (Velika Čitalnica), open to nonstudents only by group tour (adult/child €5/3) in July and August, has huge glass walls and some stunning lamps, also designed by Plečnik.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Ljubljana attractions

1. City Museum of Ljubljana

0.05 MILES

The excellent city museum, established in 1935, focuses on Ljubljana’s history, culture and politics via imaginative multimedia and interactive displays…

2. Ilirija Column

0.06 MILES

The column in the centre of Trg Francoske Revolucije recalls Napoleon’s Illyrian Provinces (1809–13), when Slovene was taught in schools for the first…

3. Trg Francoske Revolucije

0.06 MILES

Once the headquarters of the Teutonic Knights of the Cross (Križniki), the square now houses the Križanke open-air theatre. The Ilirija Column is in the…

4. Novi Trg

0.06 MILES

South of Cobblers' Bridge, this was a walled settlement of fisherfolk outside the town administration in the Middle Ages. Remnants include the very narrow…

5. Equrna Gallery

0.07 MILES

Arguably the most innovative modern gallery in town thanks to the discerning owner/curator.

7. Cobblers' Bridge

0.11 MILES

In the midst of the Old Town, a small street running west from Stari trg called Pod Trančo (Below Tranča) leads to this evocatively named footbridge…

8. Stari Trg

0.12 MILES

Lined with 19th-century wooden shopfronts, quiet courtyards and cobblestone passageways, this is the heart of the Old Town. From behind the medieval…

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting:
    {
      "url": "slovenia/ljubljana/attractions/national-university-library/a/poi-sig/1259875/360721",
      "destination": "Ljubljana",
      "continent": "Europe",
      "country": "Slovenia",
      "city": "Ljubljana",
      "position": "superzone"
    }