Velika Planina

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Velika Planina, meaning "big pasture" in Slovenian, stands as Europe's largest preserved shepherd's settlement. This remarkable plateau is in the Kamnik Alps and features approximately 140 distinctive wooden huts with characteristic oval shingled roofs extending nearly to ground level. This architecture is uniquely designed to shelter both herders and livestock. From June to September, the settlement transforms as shepherds arrive with their herds, bringing the traditional Alpine pastoral culture to life as a living ethnomuseum. The plateau offers year-round appeal with summer hiking trails, winter skiing, and remarkable landmarks including the Chapel of Our Lady of the Snows, Vetrnica cave, and the Preskar Museum housing the unique local trnič cheese. It is easily accessible via cable car from Kamniška Bistrica through conifer forests and alpine meadows with breathtaking mountain vistas and opportunities to stay overnight in traditional shepherd accommodations.