Slovenia is one of the prettiest places I have visited in Europe so far.  I love the snow capped Julian Alps and the beautiful rivers and lakes.  Being a mountain girl from Virginia it felt like I was coming home just with bigger mountains and lots of snow.

Our first stop was to visit Lake Bled.  Lake Bled is famous for its bluish-green lake, picture-postcard church on an island, a medieval castle clinging to a rocky cliff and some of the highest peaks of the Julian Alps.  Words cannot express how beautiful and relaxing this little Slovenia destination is.

We took the Plentna Boat over to visit the little church on the island.  The ownership of the Plentna boats was handed down from generation to generation and has remained in individual families throughout the centuries.  There are only 23 boats on the lake now and the one we rode on was hand made by our oarsman and his father just last year.

After the visit to the island we headed over to the Park Hotel to try the “Bled Cake” on their roof top where we had a fabulous view of the castle on top of the mountain behind the lake.

The cake was divine!  It had a wafer like crust on top and bottom then a pudding like filling and the creamiest whipped cream I’ve ever tasted.  And if that wasn’t enough, they add powdered sugar on top.

Bled Castle is a medieval castle built in 1011 and it is the oldest Slovenian castle.  It is also one of the most visited tourist attractions in Slovenia.

After lunch William and I headed about 10 minutes out of the town to Vintgar Gorge.  The Gorge has always been viewed with awe and respect by the local people and once you see its beauty it is easy to understand why.  The construction of the tourist bridge and trail was very dangerous but was successfully opened in 1893.  The path is over a mile long and you get views of the clearest water I’ve ever seen.  The river drops over several waterfalls, still pools and rapids.

 

Our host Patricia who is now almost a family friend gave us a few tips on how to best enjoy Lake Bled.  So after a long day of exploring we decided to follow one of her tips to go to the Ziva Wellness Spa.  We booked a special romantic bath for two followed by a couples massage.

Our spa package included use of their multiple pools, hot tubs and saunas so the next day we returned to enjoy and relax more.  The best thing about the hot tubs was the very private pool after the saunas with this unbelievable view.

What a great day in Lake Bled, Slovenia!