By air to Velika Planina - 60 years of Cable Car

On September 13, 1964, it was exactly sixty years since the first official ride of the cable car to Velika Planina. On that Sunday, the president of the Kamnik municipal assembly, France Vidervol, cut the ribbon at the entrance to the silver gondola, officially opening it to the public. It was the first of its kind in the Yugoslavia—without a single support pillar.

At the upper station of the Velika Planina cable car, an exhibition by the Medobčinski muzej Kamnik and Velika Planina d.o.o. commemorates this ceremonial moment and its consequences—the blossoming of tourism.

Dreams of easier access to Velika Planina and initial cable car projects began almost a century ago. “Velika Planina above Kamnik may indeed get a cable car. The project is not ambitious but modest, almost self-evident…” stated the Jutro newspaper on April 7, 1928, further adding, “Prices will be so low… that even less wealthy social classes will be able to visit. Velika Planina has all the conditions to develop into the Yugoslav Davos…”

It was not until thirty years later (in 1958) that the Kamnik Municipal People’s Committee launched a new investment program. The designated route was planned about 2 km from Stahovica near Predkonjska, where a forestry hut and an abandoned porphyry quarry were located. From there, the cable car was to lead to the top of Velika Planina. A prolonged fundraising effort began, but neither the municipality nor numerous companies succeeded in collecting the required millions.

Meanwhile, the Krvavec cable car was constructed, reigniting the desire for one on Velika Planina. A company named “Žičnica Velika Planina” was established, and the originally envisioned route was relocated. The valley of the Kamniška Bistrica River near Predkonjska is too narrow for turnarounds and parking lots. Hence, the route was moved to Smečje Mlake below Kraljev Hrib.

Initially, a project designed by engineer Kostnapfel and illustrated by Vlado Kopač was prepared. According to this plan, the cable car would overcome a 1,050 m elevation difference, stretch 2,625 m, and include an intermediate station at Kuklarji. It would end at Tratica on Zeleni Rob at an elevation of 1,600 m. This section was intended for skiers, who could ski across the plateau from Šimnovec to Kuklarji without the need for a separate lift. The station would also be near a holiday village.

The start of the cable car’s construction was delayed. The original route was modified (to the current one in use today), and some projects were replaced. The actual construction began in 1961, with new plans drafted by the company Metalna Maribor.

Before the cable car construction began, a cargo cableway was built, transporting up to 1,800 kg of cargo per trip to Šimnovec, day and night. Using the cableway, water (as Velika Planina has no natural springs), cement, and gravel were transported. With these materials, a tourist settlement was built at Za Gradiščem and Na Jamah, the upper cable car station, and in 1962, the construction of the Šimnovec Hotel and the chairlift to Zeleni Rob began.

The cable car enabled the broader and faster development of tourism, increased visits to the plateau, and provided access to this alpine gem for those who could not reach it on foot. Let us preserve it so that future generations can continue to enjoy its beauty.

Written by: Janja Železnikar