The Three Castles Trail is an 8.7-kilometer route around the Trška Gora area, stretching between two picturesque castles – Stari Grad to the east and Hmeljnik Castle to the west. To the southeast, the emerald Krka River surrounds Otočec Castle, the only river castle in Slovenia, which is usually the starting point of our route, with an elevation gain of approximately 500 meters.
The Trška Gora hill stretches out between two picturesque castles – Stari Grad (“Old Castle”) in the east and Hmeljnik Castle in the west; while in the south-east, the emerald Krka River envelops the only river castle in Slovenia, the beautiful Otočec Castle. The 8,7 km journey starts at Otočec Castle, from where there is a forest path leading along the right bank of the Krka River to the bridge, and onwards to the town of Šempeter. The woodland trail continues to Stari Grad Castle, and onwards in the direction of Dolenje Grčevje, then crosses the Lešnica stream over the footbridge and wends its way to Črešnjice.
The trail continues past the hospitable Open Vineyard Cottages in the direction of Golušnik. Along the trail, you can sit on the Princess’ Bench to rest and enjoy the beautiful views or visit the lovely museum at the Redek vineyard cottage to learn about life on Trška Gora in the past and the present. The trail continues along the ridge between Gorenje Kamenje and Gorenje Grčevje. The trail finishes at Hmeljnik Castle, which offers beautiful views of the Dolenjska hills and the motorway to Ljubljana winding its way among them.