A fairytale castle high on a bluff, with a crystal clear lake underneath, snow capped alps in the background: Bled has all the ingredients for becoming a major tourist spot. Located in the Julian alps, a bus ride of about an hour takes you from Ljubljana to this mountain resort. The main sights in the area are the Bled castle which has a pricey restaurant and a mediocre museum but the best views imaginable of the lake and the island with the Church of Sv Marika Bozja on it. The island can be visited by gondola, or by canoe from the Park Hotel. It is approximately 3 miles around the lake, which makes it a nice after dinner stroll.
The Vintgar Gorge is an excellent daytrip. It's about 4 km north of town and the hike there is great. The Vintgar Gorge carves its way through the vertical rocks and is graced by the Radovna with its waterfalls, pools and rapids. It's 1.6 km long and the path leads you over bridges and galleries. The path ends with a bridge overlooking the 16 m high Šum waterfall. The Vintgar Gorge is among the more important tourist sights in Slovenia.
The Pokljuka ravine lies above the valley of the Radovna river and is 7 km from Bled. The ravine is 2 km long and 40 m deep in its most picturesque part. It was carved into limestone by water flowing from the Pokljuka glaciers, the only reminder of which is the Ribščica stream, a tributary of the Radovna river. Paths for visitors lead into the most beautiful central part of the ravine. The main path runs along its bottom, while side branches lead to the edges of the ravine and connect it with Zatrnik.
