Bled

Introduction

Bled is a town on Lake Bled in the Upper Carniolan region of northwestern Slovenia. It is the administrative seat of the Municipality of Bled, and it ranks among the country's most visited tourist destinations.

Before you go

Bled draws visitors for its romantic scenery and its role as a gateway to Triglav National Park, where outdoor adventure opportunities abound. The town's signature sight is a little white church on an island in the middle of an emerald green mountain lake, with Bled Castle perched high above amid the Julian Alps. Plan your timing with care: Bled becomes extremely crowded during the summer months, especially at weekends. A winter visit, while cold, gives you the chance to see a frozen Lake Bled and have the place largely to yourself. If you want more peace in any season, head to the side of the lake opposite the town, which is often somewhat quieter.

Before setting out, note that the TIC sits by the lake at the foot of the castle on Cesta Svobode 15. If your plans include outdoor activities, be sure to take the necessary precautions.

Getting there

Most travellers reach Bled through Ljubljana, and the simplest approach is by bus. Services leave the capital hourly, on the hour, and make the return trip hourly on the half-hour; the journey takes about 75 minutes, and schedules are available online. The bus station in Bled sits centrally, northeast of the lake where Cesta Svobode meets Grajska Cesta. Be aware that many Ljubljana-bound buses set passengers down at Lesce-Bled station, 4 km southeast of town, where you can switch to a local bus into Bled.

By train, services from Ljubljana also arrive at Lesce-Bled station, 4 km southeast of Bled, with the trip taking slightly under an hour on a regional train. These run irregularly but roughly once an hour, and a few faster IC services operate each day. Buses link the station with Bled at least every 30 minutes, and taxis are available. On the far side of the lake, opposite the town and 1.5 km away, Bled Jezero station handles trains to and from Jesenice and Nova Gorica every two hours or so. If you fly, Jože Pučnik Airport is the closest, reachable by bus or taxi, while the small civil airfield at Lesce-Bled serves sport and recreational fliers.

Getting around

Bled is small enough to cover on foot, and a walk around the lake takes just over an hour. To reach the lake's island, the traditional option is the pletna, a boat resembling a huge gondola. Pletnas depart from various locations around the lake, and the round trip takes around 90 minutes in total, including about 60 minutes of rowing and 30 minutes on the island. Rowers typically wait until at least ten people are aboard before departing, and the fare is fixed per person and paid in cash. You can also rent a rowboat to make your own way to the island church.

Bled and its surroundings are well suited to cycling, and bicycles can be rented at many outdoor agencies. Note that there are no designated bike lanes in Bled, and cycling off-road or off-track is not allowed in Slovenia. Horses can also be rented, with or without guides or instructors, at most outdoor agencies, and horse-drawn carriages are available for rides around the lake, up to the castle, and further afield.

Where to stay

Bled's accommodation spreads from the lake shore and the old part of town out to the surrounding villages, with the widest choice in the budget and mid-range brackets. Camping Bled sits in a green setting close to the water, while hostels and guesthouses cluster at the edge of town and in the centre: Bled Castle Hostel 1004, the BACK Bar & Hostel above a bar beneath the castle, Bledec Youth Hostel & Penzion, which is popular with families and includes breakfast, and Traveller's Haven in a typical early-20th-century Bled house a few minutes from the bus station and the lake. Jakelj Backpackers House lies about 10 km out in Zirovnica but offers free pickup from the train station, family-run dinners of Slovenian fare and a wide range of outdoor activities. Vila Gorenka Guesthouse, built in 1909, is another small budget option.

For mid-range stays, family-run pensions and small hotels are the norm. House Klasika, a four-star pension in the centre, is known for its hospitality, breakfast and traditional architecture, and Apartments Špec offers furnished apartments for two to four people in a quiet central spot. BledRoom, Hotel Jelovica, Garni Hotel Berc, Garni Hotel Jadran, Garni Hotel Villa Bojana, Family Hotel Savica, Hotel Trst, Pension Mayer, Pension Mlino and Pension Tiffany all lie within walking distance of the lake or centre, several with lake views, gardens or terraces. Hotel Ribno and Krek Pension sit in Ribno, 2 km out, and Krek Hotel is at the Lesce/Bled motorway exit. At the top end, the Best Western Premier Hotel Lovec, Golf Hotel with its wellness centre, the five-star Grand Hotel Toplice with thermal springs, the historic Hotel Vila Bled on the southern shore, King's Club House on the golf course and the lakeside Park Hotel, where the famous cream cakes originated, cover the splurge bracket.

Food & drink

Most of Bled's hotels have their own restaurants and bars, but several stand-alone places are worth seeking out. Expect prices to be inflated by the town's tourist trade. Whatever else you eat, try the local speciality known as kremna rezina or kremšnita (Cremeschnitte), a cake layered with vanilla custard and cream.

• Castle Restaurant, up at Bled Castle, suits a special occasion and is less expensive than you might expect; booking is advised, especially for the outside tables along the wall.
• Gostilna Pri Planincu on Grajska cesta has been running for over a century and still keeps its original ambience.
• Labod on Cesta svobode has a nice view and closes on Sundays.
• Ostarija Peglez'n on Cesta Svobode is a great fish restaurant.
• Topolino on Ljubljanska cesta is Bled's most sophisticated outfit, gorgeously decorated and beautifully lit, with high-quality food and wine to match its expensive prices; it closes on Tuesdays.

What to see and do

Lake Bled is the centrepiece of any visit, a glacial lake fed by springs rather than tributaries. Bled Island sits in the middle, reachable by rowboat or pletna, and excavations there have uncovered a pre-Romanesque chapel and a large Slavic cemetery. On the island, the baroque Church of the Assumption, dating from 1698, holds well-preserved frescoes of the life of the Virgin Mary and a wishing bell installed in the original Gothic church in 1534. Local tradition says a husband who carries his newly married bride up the 99 steps from the dock will secure a happy marriage, and ringing the bell will fulfil a wish. Above the lake, Bled Castle is a white and red castle enclosed by a Romanesque wall with parapets, ramparts and towers; its upper courtyard has a 16th-century chapel with frescoes from 1700, a small museum of castle history and medieval weaponry, and a terrace with views over the lake and island. Paths marked Grad lead up in a steep 15-minute climb.

For views, hike to Velika Osojnica, a peak at the southwestern corner of the lake that is popular with photographers, or take the easier climb up Straza, covered in linden oak and spruce. Mala Osojnica near Camp Zaka and the castle are also good photo spots. Southwest of Bled, near the village of Bohinjska Bela, you can visit the narrow 18 m Iglica Waterfall, which drops over a vertical wall of Permian limestone and is popular for rock climbing, and the Babji Zob caves, a 300-m system with rare helictites and a tooth-shaped pillar. Outdoor operators in town arrange paragliding, skydiving, hiking, canyoning, kayaking, rafting, hot air ballooning, cycling, rock climbing and via ferrata, and rent bikes and equipment; canyons near Bled allow you to jump and rappel over waterfalls, and Triglav National Park has sport climbing areas. You can swim at Grajsko kopališče, the Castle Bathing Area on the north shore, which has pools, waterslides, a trampoline, a climbing wall and a grassy beach, or swim across the lake and around the island with a swimming adventure operator. Other options include indoor ice skating at Sportna Dvorana, golf at the Bled Golf & Country Club, mini golf behind Hotel Park, summer tobogganing on a 520-m track, fishing on the lake with a permit from the tourist office, and spas and wellness centres for thermal pools, saunas and massages. Festivals include Bled Days on the fourth weekend of July, with fairs, concerts, fireworks and candles lit on the lake; the International Music Festival Bled in early July; and Medieval Days at the castle on the first weekend in June.

Three days in Bled

Day one: Start in Bled itself and get your bearings along Cesta Svobode, where the TIC can help you plan. Walk the shore of Lake Bled and watch the pletnas, the traditional wooden boats rowed standing up by their rowers. Climb to Bled Castle above the lake for the view over the water, the town and the Julian Alps beyond. In the evening, eat Upper Carniolan cooking and finish with a cream cake.

Day two: Head into Triglav National Park for a day of walking in the Julian Alps. If you would rather stay low, follow the lake path and stop at the most, the small island in the middle of the lake, reached by pletna. Note that horses graze on some of the meadows around the park edges. Back in Bled, have a drink at BACK Bar.

Day three: Use the town as a base for a wider look at Slovenia. Buses and trains run from Bled Jezero, Lesce and Jesenice, with connections toward Ljubljana, Nova Gorica and Jože Pučnik Airport. If you are driving, the roads through the Municipality lead quickly into the hills. Before you leave, take one last slow circuit of the lake. Camping Bled and Bled Castle Hostel are among the places to stay if you are extending your trip.