Summer and early autumn are perfect to go bear watching because days are long and bears venture out to find food before dusk, according to Miha Jernejčič of the Notranjska Regional Park.

Bear watching is safe if the visitors are accompanied by an armed hunter, he said. "The walled-in lookout is 4 metres off the ground and there is no possibility for the bear to approach the humans."

An automatic solar power food dispenser is installed under the lookout. This is necessary so that the bears do not connect the food available with the presence of humans.

"If bears sense that humans are nearby, they retreat," said Jernejčič.

The Notranjska Regional Park charges EUR 90 for a single person bear watching trip, a pair will pay EUR 120, while a group of three will pay a total of EUR 150. Most of the visitors who opt to go bear watching come from Europe, Jernejčič added.

Apart from the Notranjska region, bear watching is also possible in the vast woods of Kočevska region.