Bled (German: Veldes or Feldes) is a town in Slovenia in the Gorenjska (Upper Carniola) region. Bled is close to the Austrian border, on the edge of the Triglav National Park. The city gains a special attraction through Lake Bled (also Veldeser See or Blejsko jezero). Bled Castle (Blejski grad), built directly on the lake on a steep cliff, dominates the landscape and offers a magnificent view of the regional Alpine landscape.
By plane
The nearest airports are Ljubljana Airport (Brnik) or
Klagenfurt. Ljubljana Airport has better and faster transport links.
From there you can either rent a car or take the bus to Bled. Bled
train station is outside of town. Some hotels and guesthouses also
offer a pick-up service for a fee. Small planes can also fly at the
Lesce sports airfield near Bled.
By train
There are hourly
trains from Ljubljana - Ljubljana and Jesenice to Bled. Trains
running from Austria to Ljubljana - Laibach often stop in Bled as
well. Bled has two stations: Lesce Bled railway station -
international - express trains all stop there. 10 minutes drive from
Jesenice and 50 minutes from Ljubljana. Bled Jezero - local -
passenger trains towards Nova Gorica 15 min to Jesenice.
In
the street
The easiest way to get to Bled is by car. If you are
coming from Germany or Austria, you have to drive onto the motorway
at the Villach junction in the direction of Ljubljana - Laibach - it
is well signposted. After the border you drive through the 7864m
long Karawanken tunnel, where a toll of 7.60 euros has to be paid.
After a short drive (about 12 km) on the Slovenian motorway you will
reach the exit for Bled-4km.
Buses run hourly from Slovenia's
capital to Bled (every hour, about 75 minutes) and also every hour
back to Ljubljana/Laibach (every half hour on the clock, e.g. 4:30
p.m., 5:30 p.m.).
Parking at the sports field, Prešernova
cesta 59, 4000 Kranj. The cheapest parking lot in Bled, within
walking distance from the lake. Price: 1 €/h 08:00 - 17:00,
otherwise free. Accepted payment methods: coins, exchange machine
available.
Parking at the castle. If you have trouble walking,
you can park directly at the castle. The parking time is limited.
Price: €3, maximum 3 hours.
Downtown parking lots. The parking
fees in the city center are almost the same everywhere. Price:
€2.50/h, 00:00 - 24:00.
Bled is a fairly small town so all the important points are within walking distance. Only if you want to go to the island of Blejski Otok in the lake, you have to take a boat (pletna) or an electric boat for a fee of €12.00.
Blejski Grad Castle and Castle Museum (Blejski grad).
You can either walk or drive to the castle, which is about 140 meters
above the lake. If you want to go on foot, follow the sign Grad (which
means castle in Slovenian) from the promenade. A long staircase leads up
to the castle. Here and there is a bench that invites you to rest.
Alternatively, you can walk down the street. From the castle there is a
beautiful view over Bled. When the weather is nice, you can see almost
the entire Upper Carniola. Admission also includes a visit to the castle
museum. This museum mainly deals with the history of Bled. Don't expect
too much from the museum though, you can consider it a nice bonus to the
beautiful view. The castle also houses a café, a restaurant, a wine
shop, a honey shop and souvenir shops. Each entrance ticket includes a
€1 voucher for the café or honey shop. Open: 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.; May
– October 8.00 a.m. – 8.00 p.m. Price: adults €13 (2022),
students/seniors €7, children €4 (2013).
Lake Bled and the island
of Blejski Otok. The lake was created by the melting of the Bohinj
glacier. It is 2120 m long, 1380 m wide, the maximum depth is 31 meters.
The lake is at an altitude of 475 m. Bled Island can only be visited in
summer, when electric and rowing boats can sail on the lake. On the
island is the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. 99 steps lead
up, which a groom has to carry his bride up as a token of love. In the
church there is a rope in front of the altar, with which you can ring a
wishing bell; that's why the ringing of this church sounds a bit
inharmonious when approaching across the lake. Price: Free entry to the
island, €6 for the church and museum.
Parish Church of St.
Martin. Today's neo-Gothic parish church, dedicated to St. Martin, was
built in 1905 on the site of an earlier Gothic church. The church was
frescoed by painter Slavko Pengov in 1932-1937. Most of the marble
sculptures inside are from the restorer Ivan Vurnik from Radovljica.
Grasčina Grimšče. Grimschitz Castle.
all year round
Circumnavigation of the lake A walk
around the lake is very nice in good weather and takes about 2 hours. On
the southern shore, however, you sometimes have to walk along a main
road with a lot of traffic.
winter
In winter you can ski above
the lake. However, there are only two lifts and one piste that is about
1 km long. So if you want to go on a skiing holiday, you are better off
in nearby Kranjska Gora. If there is enough snow, there are also several
kilometers of cross-country trails in Bled and the surrounding area.
Summer
Of course, Lake Bled is ideal for swimming in summer. The
water is very clear and clean. The surrounding mountains protect against
cold north winds and thus enable a long bathing season. As early as
1895, the first bathing establishments were built on the lake.
On
the western part of the lake near the campsite there is a large
sand/pebble beach for swimming. Food and drinks are also available
there.
In the summer season, the ski lift and the ski slope are
converted into a summer toboggan run. You can take the ski lift up the
mountain and whiz down the mountain again on a small 'sled'.* Boating on
the lake. The traditional wooden boats are called pletna.
But fans of
action-packed sports will also get their money's worth in Bled. There
are guided rafting tours (Bled Rafting) and parachutists can also
indulge in their hobby in Bled (Alpine Flying Center Lesce/Bled).
Furthermore, the area is ideal for mountain biking and racing bike
tours. All requirements are satisfied here.
To row a boat. There
are several boat rental companies around the lake. In about 15 minutes
you can reach the island. Price: rowing boats approx. 15 €/h. Accepted
payment methods: Cash.
Swim to the island of Blejski Otok (any
part of the shore depending on fitness and swimming experience).
Depending on the entry point, it takes 30 minutes to 2 hours to get to
the island. Even good swimmers should be accompanied by a boat to be on
the safe side. Price: free.
Sea resort Grajska plaža, 4260,
Veslaška promenada 11, 4260 Bled (below the castle on the lake shore).
Tel.: +386 69 947 648. Below the castle, on the outskirts of the town,
there is a seaside resort with sunbathing lawns and a kiosk. Also
suitable for children, with a slide, diving board, non-swimmer area and
playground.
Regular events
New Year's Concert. Classical music
concert in the ballroom.
Violin Festival. Concerts with world-class
violinists in Bled and the surrounding area in June and July.
Blejski
dnevi. The 4th weekend of July, with the local craft fair, concerts,
burning candles and fireworks on the lake.
No Borders Music Festival.
Special concerts by bands from different parts of the world in August.
Pokljuka. Marathon Cross Country Race.
Christmas concert and
torchlight procession along the lake.
New Year's fireworks, on the
lake.
You probably don't go to Bled for shopping. There is a
souvenir shop in the castle museum, for example. Articles for daily
needs can easily be found in the shopping center across from the lake
and casino in Bled, or in the local supermarkets (Hofer, Lidl,
Mercator). There are also sporting goods here. The small shop "Daniels"
is also very nice, small gallery with accessories, you can always find
unusual things here.
The Bled Market is held every second
Saturday of the month from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. in the courtyard of
the Bled Cooperative (Rečica - Za Žago 1A).
A regional specialty are the original Bled cream
cakes, which are freshly prepared every day by the Parkhotel's pastry
shop. Every café and restaurant in Bled and the surrounding area offers
them. Very tasty, definitely try it, but unfortunately also a small
'calorie bomb'.
Restaurants can be found mainly on the promenade
and in the immediate vicinity of the lake.
Cheap
Peglez'n
Restaurant
Gostilna pri Planicu, Grajska cesta 8. Tel.: +386 (0)4
5741613.
Middle
Pizzeria Restaurant Rikli, Cankarjeva 6. The
restaurant is located on the shore of the lake, above the casino. Fish,
various meat dishes and pizza are offered. Vegetarian dishes can also be
found on the menu. In the warm season there is a terrace. Price: Pizzas
are available from €6.
Pizzeria Rustika, Riklijeva cesta 13, 4260
Bled (walk north from St. Martin's Church, after 100 m the pizzeria is
on the right-hand side). Tel.: +386 4 576 89 00. Open: Mon - Sun, 12:00
- 23:00. Price: Pizza from around €10. Accepted payment methods: Visa,
cash. last change: Aug. 2019 (details may be outdated)
upscale
Restavracija Mayer, Želeška cesta 7. Tel.: +386 (0)4 5765740.
Restavracija Union, Ljubljanska 9. Tel.: +386 (0)4 5780150.
Restavracija Labod, Cesta svobode 8a. Tel: +386 (0)4 5798453.
Restavracija Okarina, Ljubljanska cesta 8. Tel.: +386 (0)4 5741458.
Panorama Restaurant, Cesta svobode 12. Tel.: +386 (0)4 579 12 75.
nightlife
Bled is certainly not a city where you can experience a
lot in the evening. One possibility is the casino. This is located
directly on the waterfront. There are also two nightclubs and a number
of small bars and pubs ranging from cozy to rustic.
Casino Bled,
Cesta svobode 15, 4260 Bled. Tel.: +386 45741150. Open: 24 hours a day.
Cheap
Pension Bledec. In this youth hostel, which
is open all year round, you can also stay overnight at very reasonable
prices.
Vila Gorenka. Private rooms & youth hostel at reasonable
prices.
Camping Bled, Kidriceva 10c. Tel.: +386 (0)4 5752000, fax:
+386 (0)4 5752002. Nice campsite at Lake Bled. The sanitary facilities
are modern and well-kept. There is a restaurant, a snack bar and a bar
on the beach.
Middle
Garni Hotel Villa Bojana, Ljubljanska
cesta 12 (200 m from the lake). Tel.: +386 4 576 81 70, email:
info@bled-hotel.com. 3 star family hotel. 11 rooms. Free internet
access: LAN and WLAN in every room. roof terrace. Check in: 13. Check
out: 11.
Apartments Vila Nana. Private bed and breakfast in
Bled/Slovenia with rooms and apartments, quiet location, 5 minutes walk
to the center and the lake. Feature: pension. Price: Rooms from €35
excluding tourist tax.
Hotel Jadran, Cesta Svobode 12. Tel.: +386
(0)4 5791000, Fax: +386 (0)4 5741841.
Hotel Trst, Cesta Svobode 12.
Tel.: +386 (0)4 5791000, Fax: +386 (0)4 5741841.
3 Hotel Astoria,
Prešernova 44. Tel.: +386 (0)4 5794400, fax: +386 (0)4 5794401.
4
Hotel Jelovica, Cesta Svobode 8. Tel.: +386 (0)4 5796000, Fax: +386 (0)4
5741550.
5 Hotel Krim, Ljubljanska cesta 7. Tel.: +386 (0)4 5797000,
fax: +386 (0)4 5743729.
upscale
Vila Bled. The Vila Bled is
the former summer residence of President Tito, it is certainly the most
exclusive address in Bled. The hotel is located on the shore of Lake
Bled in the middle of a park, with a wellness area and free Wi-Fi.
6
Grand Hotel Toplice, Cesta Svobode 12. Tel.: +386 (0)4 5791000, Fax:
+386 (0)4 5741841. The hotel is located directly on the shore of the
lake, with a wellness area and free LAN. Decorated in the style of the
1930's, with many well-known personalities, such as Prince Charles, as
guests.
7 Golf Hotel, Cankarjeva 4. Tel.: + 386 (0)4 5791700, Fax: +
386 (0)4 5791701.
8 Hotel Park, Cesta Svobode 15. Tel.: + 386 (0)4
5791800, Fax: + 386 (0)4 5791801.
9 Hotel Lovec, Ljubljanska Cesta 6.
Tel.: +386 (0)4 5768615, fax: +386 (0)4 5768625.
10 Komaps Hotel,
Cankarjeva cesta 2. Tel.: +386 (0)4 5782100, fax: +386 (0)4 5782499.
11 Hotel Ribno, Izletniška 44. Tel.: +386 (0)4 5783100, fax: +386 (0)4
5783200.
The first mention of Bled as Ueldes (in modern
graphics: Veldes) in the Mark Carniola can be found in a royal document
dated April 10, 1004, when property there was transferred to the Bishop
of Brixen Albuin I by the Roman-German King Henry II . In 1011 Henry
also gave the rock and the castle on it to Albuin's successor, Adalbero.
It became the administrative seat of the Brixner manor in Oberkrain. In
1278, sovereignty over the Duchy of Krain passed to the Habsburgs after
King Rudolf I had defeated Ottokar II Přemysl in the Battle of
Marchfeld. However, the manorial rule remained in the hands of the
prince bishops of Brixen until the abolition of the manorial rule in
1848, as shown by the numerous representations of the coat of arms of
the Bishopric of Brixen (Tyrolean eagle with a crosier and a silver lamb
on a red background) and the bishops in the castle. The church patronage
of the castle chapel, which is dedicated to the Brixen diocesan saints
Ingenuin and Albuin, is also a reminder of the Brixen rule. In 1852 the
bishops of Brixen sold their last dominion rights in Veldes.
Just
like the other areas of Slovenia, the region around Bled belonged to the
Holy Roman Empire until 1806 and to the Habsburg Empire of Austria since
1804, namely to the Crown Land Duchy of Carniola. When Austria-Hungary
was dissolved in 1918, Slovenia opted for the newly founded Kingdom of
Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. To this day, the connection to southern
Carinthia, where a Slovene ethnic group has lived for centuries, has not
been severed. For centuries, the Loibl Pass connected the Bled region
with Klagenfurt and Lower Carinthia. The Karawanken tunnel with a
railway line has existed since 1906, and a second motorway tunnel since
1991, providing a direct connection to the regions of Villach,
Wörthersee, Ossiacher See and Spittal an der Drau.
prehistory and
early history
The area around Bled was probably settled for the first
time around 20,000 years ago. In the millennia of the Stone Age,
initially the abundance of game, later the fertile soil and the
protected location of Bled contributed to the stronger settlement. It is
not known whether the Bronze Age pile-dwelling villages around Ljubljana
(Laibach) advanced to Bled. Excavations at the foot of Castle Hill at
Bled have revealed 80 graves from the early Iron Age (between 800 and
600 BC). In the 3rd century BC, Celtic tribes advanced into the area. In
113 BC The Germanic tribes of the Cimbri and Teutons crossed Slovenia
and the area around Bled and thus prevented the expansion of the Roman
Empire towards Noricum for some time.
Roman rule
Only Julius
Caesar's successor, Octavian (Emperor Augustus), integrated Noricum with
Bled into the Roman dominions. The mountain ranges near Bled are also
named after Julius Caesar: the Julian Alps. The Celts had already mined
and processed copper and metal from the region around Bled (Jesenice).
The Romans now pushed mining and the technical processing of metals and
thus ensured further influx.
Migration and the Middle Ages
During the European-Asian migration period from about 350 to 600 AD,
some Germanic (Lobards, Ostrogoths and Visigoths) and later Slavic
tribes also migrated through the region around Bled. Only the South
Slavic tribe of Slovenes settled permanently at the foot of the Julian
Alps and Triglav (between 560 and 600 AD). The first Slavic settlements
around Bled date from this time, in the Middle Ages the villages of
Mlino, Zagorice, Grad and many more developed from them. Just like the
rest of today's Slovenia, Bled was also part of the first all-Slavic
state federation from the year 631 AD, which was founded by the Frankish
merchant Samo was founded. Bled belonged to the sub-area of Carantania,
which was conquered by the Franks in 788. After the end of Frankish
rule, the Bavarian influence increased through the archbishopric of
Salzburg, and from 1004 Veldes belonged to Bishop Albuin von Brixen as a
gift from Emperor Heinrich II. From the late 13th century, Veldes, like
the whole of Carniola, Carinthia and Styria, was part of the Habsburg
dominions.
The peasant unrest and uprisings against feudal and
clerical exploitation in the 15th and 16th centuries also spread to what
was then Veldes. In 1558 Herbard VIII von Auersperg took over Castle
Veldes as patron of the Protestants. However, in the course of the
Counter-Reformation, the clergy and nobility recaptured all the formerly
Protestant communities around the town by the end of the century.
Veldes experienced an economic upswing during the reign of Maria
Theresa (1740-1780), even before that "Feldes" was known as the "healthy
bath", its springs and lake attributed healing effects and were also
viewed and targeted as a health resort by "more remote places". has been
visited. In the Napoleonic era, Veldes was assigned to the Illyrian
provinces, after which it fell back to the Habsburg dominion or was made
available again to the diocese of Brixen, whose most important
long-distance possession it had been for centuries, about which its land
registers, its income registers, provide information.
In the
middle of the 19th century, the diocese of Brixen sold its property to
the owner of the ironworks in Aßling (Jesenice). Castle and lake changed
hands several times in the years that followed until 1919. In 1858, the
Swiss doctor Arnold Rikli, who worked with naturopathic treatments,
established the "Mallnerbrunn" natural sanatorium on Lake Veldes, laying
the foundation for the town's reputation as a climatic health resort, so
that in 1901 the New York Times read it under the title "Natural cure in
Veldes". could:
"In the south-west corner of the Austrian Empire
in the province of Carniola there is the strangest of all the countless
"cures" for which Austria is no less known than Germany and Switzerland
[...] There are many Austrians, Germans, French, Italians and
Hungarians, who make an annual pilgrimage to the small valley in the
Julian Alps. Even Russia and England are sometimes represented among old
Arnold Rikli's patients […] Veldes is a beautiful place, an interesting
one that deserves greater notoriety this side of the Atlantic.”
Meyers Konversationslexikon reports:
"Veldes (Slovenian Bled or
Grad), village in Krain, District Authority Radmannsdorf, 501 m above
sea level. M., on the lovely Lake Veldes (150 hectares, 28 m deep), on
the Aßling-Trieste state railway line, popular bathing resort and summer
resort, has an old castle on a steep cliff, a pilgrimage church (Maria
im See) on a picturesque Rocky island, mineral spring (22.5°), sea
baths, Riklic natural (sun) sanatorium, spa house with park, hotels and
villas and (1900) 578 (as municipality 1646) Slovenes. Resident.
Southwest the picturesque valley of the Bohinj Sava. cf.
Schweiger-Lerchenfeld, Veldes (Vienna 1889)."
In 1870, with the
Tarvisio – Ljubljana section of the Rudolf Railway, the Lees/Lesce
station, today Lesce-Bled, was put into operation.
The Austrian
arctic researcher Julius von Payer regularly spent his summer vacations
in Veldes and became an enthusiastic supporter of the treatment methods
of the Riklische Anstalt with their extensive summer baths. In August
1915, Payer died of a heart attack in Bad Veldes. Until the end of
imperial Austria, the city belonged to the Crown Land Carniola, with
Bled forming an independent municipality in the political district of
Radmannsdorf and also belonging to the judicial district of
Radmannsdorf.
When the k.u.k. Monarchy, the National Council of
Slovenes decided on October 31, 1918 to join the SHS state, which was
proclaimed in Agram on October 29. The monarchically governed state now
consisted of Serbia, Croatia and Slovenia and was called the Kingdom of
Yugoslavia from 1929 onwards. However, the Soča/Isonzo valley, the part
of the Collios populated by Slovenians, the karst region and Istria fell
to the victorious Italy. The German place name Veldes was no longer
officially used.
The Yugoslav royal family Karađorđević chose
Bled as their summer residence, and Yugoslav Prime Ministers as well as
Belgrade court circles stayed there for spa treatments, so that
picturesque Bled became a place of international gatherings of statesmen
and diplomats.
In 1930 King Alexander received the Italian
ambassador Galli in Bled and made him proposals for a radical change in
Yugoslav-Italian relations and future new alliance policy, Hermann
Goering held talks there with the Yugoslav Foreign Minister Milan
Stojadinović, and at the end of August 1935 took place there a
conference of the Little Entente - Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Romania -
took place in which "in view of the pre-war situation in central and
south-eastern Europe" any possible restoration of the Habsburg dynasty
"in any central European state" (meaning Hungary and Austria) was firmly
rejected A number of states that emerged from the Danube monarchy, as
well as the Yugoslav general staff, considered such a restoration to be
more dangerous than a possible annexation of Austria to the German
Reich.
Yugoslavia was attacked and occupied by German and Italian
troops in 1941. In the Park Hotel in Bled (then Veldes again), the "KdS
Veldes", made up of about 200 men and made up of the Criminal Police,
Gestapo and SS, was set up for all of Upper Carniola. Under the motto
"Original German land is coming home", a staff office of the SS "Reich
Commissioner for the Consolidation of German Nationality" in the
occupied areas of Carinthia and Carniola was set up in the Parkhotel,
and the notorious "resettlement staff" carried out its activities from
here. In the period that followed, local partisans from various
political groups, especially in the region around Bled, put up ever
stronger resistance to the occupiers, which they met with extreme
severity.
After World War II, Slovenia was part of the Yugoslav
multi-ethnic state under Josip Broz Tito, who owned a villa near Bled
and occasionally resided there as head of state, continuing the
tradition of the Yugoslav royal family.
Economically, the region
around Bled developed much faster and more modernly than other parts of
Yugoslavia thanks to tourism and nearby industry as well as good
transport connections and the proximity to Italy, Austria and Germany.
Since June 25, 1991, Bled has been part of the sovereign state of Slovenia. After independence, the region around Bled experienced an economic boom. In 1996, Bled became an independent municipality and is also the seat of the IEDC-Bled School of Management, founded in 1986, a business school with multiple international accreditations. In mid-December 2006, the district of Gorje was spun off from the municipality of Bled and has since formed its own municipality.
The municipality thrives on tourism and benefits
greatly from the location of Lake Bled at the foot of the Julian Alps,
which makes the holiday region, which is popular with hikers and water
sports enthusiasts in summer, a popular destination for winter
vacationers in the winter months. The surrounding mountains protect the
alpine town from the cold north winds and thus enable a long bathing
season.
The beginnings of tourism in Bled date back to 1855, when
the Swiss naturopath Arnold Rikli recognized Bled's favorable mountain
location and healthy climate with a long bathing season. As early as
1895, the first bathing establishments and accommodation for bathers
were built on the lake. Rikli developed a special spa and bathing plan
with various treatments and healthy nutrition, which is still popular
today. Rikli's applications are intended to provide relief for
rheumatism, migraines, circulatory disorders, sleep disorders and much
more.
At the beginning of the 21st century, in addition to health
tourism, sports tourism also developed in Bled. Mountain hiking,
mountain biking, rafting, rowing and, in winter, skiing are very well
represented there.
Today, Bled is a modern seaside resort with
Alpine-style mountain houses, Wilhelminian villas, hotels, guesthouses,
a casino and more recent new buildings. The place is known for family
vacations as well as for sports and health. Lesce sports airfield is
located near the city, the nearest international airport is Brnik, 35 km
north of the capital Ljubljana.
The Bled cream cakes are known
nationwide.
Bled is also a member of the Alpine Pearls, which
promote environmentally friendly mobility in the Alps.