The area around present-day Ptuj has been inhabited since the late Stone Age. Ptuj already existed during Roman times and in the 9th century Ptujski Grad (Ptuj Castle) was built above the river to protect the region. Ptuj obtained town rights in 977, making it the oldest municipality in Slovenia.

• Ptujski Grad (Ptuj Castle) was destroyed by forerunners of the Hungarians, but it has been beautifully restored. It houses a museum with major collections of musical instruments, tapestry, weapons and other historical treasures. The castle has been converted into a museum of regional history.
• Little Castle.
• One of the most beautiful monuments in the town center is Orfejev spomenik (Orpheus Monument), which consists of a Roman tombstone from the 2nd century AD. It was used as a penitents' stone and has been the center of Ptuj's lapidary since 1830.
• The free-standing Town Tower is in the center of town.
• Cerkev sv. Jurija (St. George's Church) was originally built in the 12th century, but it includes parts that date from an earlier 9th-century church that stood there once. In the 15th century, the church was redesigned in Gothic style. The church is dedicated to Saint George and it is located behind the monolithic Roman tombstone of Orpheus Monument. The church features Renaissance and Baroque gravestones on its exterior walls.
• St. Oswald's Church.
• Ptuj's tower is known as Povoden's Museum. It was named after Simon Povoden, on whose initiative, Roman remains that where found in the vicinity were integrated into the foot of the tower.
• Ptuj Town Hall.
• Ptuj Town Theatre.
• Upper Mansion.
• In the western part of town is the Gothic and early Baroque-style Conservatory, which was once a Dominican monastery. Its renovated presbytery is all that remains, but it still used for services.
• The Minorite Monastery is located on Ptuj's eastern fringe.
• Franciscan monastery.

Accommodation is available in Ptuj and there are several restaurants in town. Ptuj is 115 km northeast of Ljubljana.

The Haloza Hills, south of Ptuj extend all the way to the border with Croatia and form one of Slovenia's most important Wine Regions. Some 11 km (7 mi) southwest of Ptuj is Borl Castle, from where the Haloze Trail (Haloska Pot) runs through the beautiful region of hills, vineyards, cornfields and large areas filled with sunflowers.

Ptuj sits in the traditional region of Styria in the northeast of Slovenia.

Ptuj ©Brut Carniollus

Ptuj ©Daniel Thornton