Lake Bled, Bled

So does Slovene gem Bled looks like from the air. Blue water, an island with a church in the middle, lots of greenery around, the castle on the rock. And as a background (not seen in this photo)- the Julian Alps with Triglav and the Karavanke Mountains, and the slopes of Jelovica and Pokljuka.

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Pletna is the Slovenian name for these special row boats which take you to Bled Island. The ride is not that cheap, we were a group of 12 and payed about 5 EUR per person. It's even more expansive if you are alone. But, if you want to get your wishes come true, you need to pay!

The boats can be found in several spots around the lake. It will take you to the island and pick you up after about 30 minutes.

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Another nice romantic thing to do which doesnt take alot of time is to take a boat trip to the island in the middle of the lake. You can get a boat from anywhere around the lake which will take you to the island and give you about 20mins to wander around and then will take you back. (Don't worry it is just enough time - its a very small island!)

On the island you can visit the main attraction which is the small chapel with its famous Wishing Bell in front of the altar on which you are supposed to pull and ring whilst making a wish! You can also admire the architecture of the chapel and clock tower and if you like visit the souvenir shop or have a coffee in the cafe....although we preferred to walk all around to take pictures of the spectacular view of the lake, the village and the mountains from different sides of the islands.

A corner of peace and scenery. The lake is surrounded by mountains and forests and in its middle there is a small island with a church. You can walk around or explore the woods and enjoy the beautiful view.

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No trip to Lake Bled is complete without a trip to the island. It is there, afterall. Getting there by gondola can seem expensive, but you spent the money to come all this way, so what's a little more money? The gondola ride out was very peaceful, ours was not too crowded since it was off-season mid-week, and we had the island pretty much to ourselves.

There are several places where you could rent a canoe for half an hour. It's a little pricey at 10 euros, but it's fun and you get a chance to visit the church on the island. If you don't want to row there yourself, there are organized rides to the island also.

You could park your boat in front of the stairs on the island... remember to tie you boat down.

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A walk around the lake takes about 1,5 hours and offers very nice views on the castle of Bled and the island “Blejski otok” with its church. The most beautiful views are from the southern part, however the path there is next to the street. The northern part is quieter, but there are lots of trees so that you don’t see much.

Here you are in the Alps of all things, looking over a glacial lake that is as picturesque as any you will find. To top off its charm, there is a small island in the middle of the lake and atop it sits a charming little church. There are not a lot of 'must see' things here so you can just relax on a boat ride to the island, enjoy the scenery and eat while watching over it all.