- What makes this work is the scale: a working distillery, a group small enough that everyone can ask questions, and often one of the founders doing the talking.
- Ratings are high and unusually consistent across every platform that lists it, and several reviewers say they were surprised Ljubljana had a distillery at all.
- It suits travellers who enjoy understanding how something is made more than those looking for a quick stop between sights.
9
At Broken Bones the tasting table stands in the same room as the still, a few steps from where the gin and whisky were made. Sessions are small, booked in advance and usually led by one of the founders, so questions about botanicals or cask choice get answered by the person who made the decisions. This is Ljubljana's only gin and whisky distillery, and its spirits have won more than 120 international awards. It is a short trip out to Vič, away from the sightseeing route up to Ljubljana Castle.
Plan Your Visit
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Opening Hours
Closed now
Opens in 16h 58m
Today: Closed
The shop may be accessible outside published hours while staff are present; call ahead. Weekends and public holidays are generally closed, but group visits may be arranged with the operator. Guided tastings and experiences require advance booking; please arrive at your booked start time.
Mon 12:00
Monday12:00–17:00
Tuesday12:00–17:00
Wednesday12:00–17:00
Thursday12:00–22:00
Friday12:00–17:00
SaturdayClosed
SundayClosed
Entry Fee
Paid
Adults from EUR 9.00
Ticket prices
Official source
Broken Bones Tasting
A short guided tasting through the distillery’s range, led by a member of the distillery team.
Standard prices
Adult
Approx. 25 minutes.
€9.00
Broken Bones Gin Experience
A 90-minute founder-led visit focused on the distillery’s gins, closing with a gin tasting and two signature cocktails.
Standard prices
Adult
€25.00
Broken Bones Whisky Experience
A 90-minute founder-led visit focused on the distillery’s single malt whiskies, closing with a whisky tasting and one signature cocktail.
Standard prices
Adult
Taste the whisky at different stages of its development.
€35.00
Broken Bones spirits from A to Z
A 90-minute guided journey through the distillery’s complete range — vodka, brandy, rum, whisky and gin — with one sample of each category and two cocktails.
Standard prices
Adult
€30.00
Official prices updated:
25 Aug 2026
- Four ticketed products run here and all of them must be booked ahead: the short Broken Bones Tasting, the 90-minute Gin Experience, the 90-minute Whisky Experience and the Thursday spirits from A to Z session.
- Every one includes a tasting, and the three 90-minute formats also include cocktails.
- Booking direct with the distillery is cheaper than booking through the city tourism channel, where the published price already includes booking fees.
- That channel also asks for a minimum of two people on its gin and whisky products, while the distillery's own pages set no minimum.
- Gift vouchers and private group arrangements are handled separately, and the Thursday cocktail evening is walk-in bar service rather than a ticketed visit.
Parking Situation
Private parking for guests
View options
Parking Options
Official source
Situation: Private parking for guests
Parking info updated: 10 Sep 2026
- Four free guest spaces are directly in front of the distillery, which is the simplest option when one is available.
- If they are taken, there is paid parking on parallel Fajfarjeva ulica, and coaches can park at the end of the building.
- The P+R at Dolgi most is a short walk away and charges two different rates depending on whether you continue into the city by public transport.
Visitor Requirements
Visitor guidance
View requirements Requirements
Visitor Requirements
Important
- Ticketed tastings: all four ticketed experiences are 18+ for anyone taking part in the alcohol tasting.
- Under-18 visitors: welcome in the shop and may sit with the group, but may not taste or otherwise drink alcohol.
Parking Fee
Free
Access Notes
Booking required before arrival
Suitable For
Couples+4 more
Stroller accessibility
No data
Wheelchair access
No
Estimated visit time
1–2 h
Family Friendly
Partly
Pet Friendly
Yes
Walking Difficulty
Easy
Best season
Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter
Highlights
Guided by the producing operation
Products available to buy on site
Tasting of the producer’s own product
Internationally awarded spirits
Locally foraged botanicals
Signature cocktails included
Slovenian oak maturation
Working craft distillery
Safety Notes
!Alcohol tasting — plan safe transport
Photo Tip
The room is small and industrial, so shoot close rather than wide: copper and steel behind the bottles on the tasting table, or a backlit glass with the still behind it. Interior light is low and mixed, so keep the camera steady. Photography is welcome, including publishing what you shoot.
Before You Go
!Advance booking required
!Alcohol served
!Alcohol tasting 18+
!Guided visit only
!Products available to buy
!Tasting included
!Ticket required
!Working production site
Access & Parking
Detailed access info in Plan Your Visit ↑
Broken Bones is on Tržaška cesta in Vič, southwest of the centre and easy to reach by road or public transport. There is free guest parking at the building, with paid alternatives nearby. The operator recommends LPP bus 6, and the Ljubljana Dolgi most railway halt is on the same street, both leaving a short flat walk to the door. Because every ticketed experience includes spirits tasting, arriving without the car is the safer plan.
Interesting Facts
1
Ljubljana's first distillery in sixty years
When Broken Bones began distilling in 2012, city archive records indicated that Ljubljana had gone at least six decades without a working distillery of its own. Three friends who had grown up around family beer, wine and spirits production decided to change that. The founders still tell that story on every tour, because it explains why a capital city with deep drinking traditions had nothing of its own to show visitors until very recently.
2
A name earned the hard way
The distillery is named after a genuine accident. On 13 July 2016, while the founders were working on a whisky distillation, one broke his leg and, a few days later, the other broke his nose. Rather than bury the episode they adopted it as the brand, and Broken Bones has carried it since. It is usually the first thing a guide explains, and it sets the tone for a company that talks openly about how hard the early years were.
3
A whisky built from scratch
The whisky project began in 2012 with a phone call and a proposal to make a Slovenian single malt that could stand beside Scotch. Years went into choosing the style, designing and building the pot still themselves, and selecting malt, yeast and barrel types, before maturation even started. The result was the first Slovenian single malt whisky, and it is why the whisky tasting is the more expensive of the two flagship experiences.
4
Botanicals picked by hand in the Karst
The gins take their character from botanicals selected and picked by hand in Slovenia's Karst region, including local juniper and rosehip. These go in alongside more traditional gin botanicals such as linden flowers, coriander, cardamom, angelica, liquorice and lemon zest. It is the clearest link between the bottle and the Slovenian landscape, and one of the parts of the process the founders spend most time on during a tasting.
5
Whisky that ages in Slovenian oak
Rather than relying only on the ex-bourbon and ex-sherry casks that dominate the industry, Broken Bones matures its whiskies in barrels made from Slovenian oak alongside used American oak. The distillery credits the local wood with giving the spirit a distinctive floral character. Maturation happens on the premises as well as in warehouses outside the city, and the choice of local timber is presented as a deliberate part of the house style rather than a cost decision.
6
More than 120 international awards
The distillery states that its spirits have collected more than 120 international awards across gin, whisky and its other categories, including recognition for best European whisky and for the world's best gin. For a producer that released its first whisky only a few years ago, that record is the main reason visitors travel out to Vič rather than simply drinking in the old town. Award bottles usually appear on the tasting table during the guided sessions.
7
The tasting happens inside the working distillery
Broken Bones is small, and the tasting takes place in the same space where the spirits are made rather than in a separate visitor centre. Guests sit at a table with the production equipment around them, which several visitors describe as industrial but comfortable. It also means group sizes are genuinely limited, and a session booked at a quiet time can end up feeling close to private.
8
Usually hosted by a founder
The 90-minute experiences are presented by one of the distillery's founders rather than by a hired guide. One co-founder holds a distilling diploma from the British Institute of Brewing and Distilling and has more than twenty years of experience across winemaking, brewing and distilling. Visitors single this out in reviews more often than anything else, because questions about fermentation, cask selection or botanical sourcing get answered by the person who made those decisions.
9
A range that grew one spirit at a time
The distillery has steadily added new spirits since its commercial launch, working through vodka, brandy, rum, two whiskies and a widening range of gins. The brandy is distilled from wines supplied by a Goriška Brda winery and aged in Slovenian oak, and the vodka is filtered through charcoal made from barrels that previously held Broken Bones whisky. The Thursday evening spirits from A to Z session exists so visitors can taste across the whole range in one sitting.
10
A cocktail bar that opens once a week
Every Thursday the distillery stays open until 22:00 and runs as a cocktail bar, using its own gins and whiskies. It is the only evening in the week when the building is open late, and the only session you can join without a booking. For travellers who want the place without the presentation, Thursday is the day to come.
Visitor Wisdom
Traveler Insights
Combined public visitor ratings from Google and Tripadvisor. Last verified August 2026.
- The hosts come up again and again in reviews: knowledgeable, warm, and talking about their own work rather than reciting a script.
- Being taught by a founder, or by the person who actually distils the spirits, comes up repeatedly in reviews as a reason the visit stands out.
- The gins draw consistent praise and plenty of visitors mention buying a bottle on the way out.
- The cocktails at the end are treated as part of the experience rather than a token finish, and the small group size leaves room for real questions.
- The distillery is not in the Old Town, so build in the short trip out to Vič.
- Bus 6 and the Ljubljana Dolgi most railway halt both leave a short flat walk to the door.
- Every ticketed experience has to be booked in advance, and the tasting itself is 18+.
- Under-18s may come into the shop and sit with the group, but they cannot drink.
- Portions are sampling measures rather than full pours, though there are several of them, so sort out your way home before the session starts.
- Best for gin and whisky drinkers, couples, small groups of friends, solo travellers and anyone interested in how a small producer works.
- It is also a good wet-weather option and a change from the central monuments.
- Under-18s can come along and visit the shop, but they cannot take part in the tasting and there is no child version of the product.
- It is least suited to anyone who needs to drive afterwards, and to visitors expecting a large visitor centre with an exhibition, because this is much smaller and more personal than that.
- The published shop hours are not a walk-in guarantee for a tasting, so reserve before you travel.
- Weekends and public holidays are generally outside the regular programme unless a group visit has been arranged.
- Do not assume the 16:00 slot is always the short tasting: Wednesday uses that time for the Gin Experience, and Friday can run both the Gin and Whisky Experiences as separate groups.
- Arrive at the booked start time and call ahead if you are running late.
- The last avoidable mistake is driving out and only then working out how much you will be tasting.
- Thursday is the one day the distillery stays open into the evening as a cocktail bar, and the only day the spirits from A to Z session runs.
- If you want the whole range rather than one category, that is the session to book: vodka, brandy, rum, whisky and gin in a single sitting.
- Book a midday weekday slot instead if you want the quietest room and the most time with whoever is hosting.
- If you are interested in how Ljubljana makes its drinks more broadly, pair this with Union Experience, which tells the city's much older brewing story.
- Under-18s are welcome in the shop and can sit with the group during a tasting, but they cannot taste or drink anything alcoholic.
- That makes all four ticketed products adult experiences without making the building itself off limits to younger visitors.
- Plan for children to come along rather than take part, and bear in mind this is not set up as a family attraction.
- The setting is small and industrial, so the frames that work are close ones: copper and steel, bottles on the tasting table, a glass held up to the light.
- The light itself is low and mixed, so come prepared for dim interiors.
- Because it is one room, the still is usually somewhere in the background of whatever you shoot.
- The operator is happy for visitors to take photographs and publish them.
- People tend to remember Broken Bones for the hosts rather than the building.
- The picture that recurs in reviews is a small, unfussy room where someone who spent years getting a Slovenian whisky right explains how they did it and then pours you some.
- Reviewers describe leaving with a bottle and with a better sense of the city than they expected from an industrial street in Vič.
Quick Facts
Estimated visit time
1–2 h
Best season
Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter
Walking difficulty
Easy
Family friendly
Partly
Pet friendly
Yes
Entry Fee
Paid
Access type
Direct roadside access
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