How to Take a Day Trip from Ljubljana to Lake Bled (by Bus!)

The best-known destination in Slovenia is likely Lake Bled — and for very good reason.

This spectacular lake is wonderfully surrounded by the Julian Alps and Karavanke mountain range, as well as smaller mounds around the edge of the lake. (In fact, a castle is perched on one of them, high above the lake!)

But Lake Bled is most famous for the magnificently picturesque Bled Island and its famous little church. It’s an unforgettable sight, and a must-see during a visit to Slovenia.

If you can spend a night at Lake Bled, do it! Get up early and admire the lake with gorgeous early morning fog — and without the crowds.

But even if you only have enough time in Slovenia to experience Lake Bled on a day trip, you can have a wonderful experience. I did!

During my own trip to Slovenia, I visited Lake Bled via a public bus from Ljubljana. It was both easy and inexpensive, and I recommend it to other travelers who’d like to avoid the hassle of renting a car or joining a hurried group tour.

In this guide, I’ll tell you all about exactly how to take a day trip from Ljubljana to Lake Bled via public transit. Learn how to buy bus tickets, where to catch the bus to Bled, what to do during a day trip to Lake Bled, how to return to Ljubljana on the bus from Bled, and more.

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Taking the Bus from Ljubljana to Lake Bled

Your day trip to Lake Bled begins with a journey from Ljubljana’s bus station.

Buying Bus Tickets

The easiest way to purchase bus tickets to Lake Bled is on the Ljubljana bus station’s website, which specifically sells bus tickets between Ljubljana and other destinations in Slovenia and Europe.

To buy a bus ticket on the website, simply search for “Ljubljana bus station” as the place of origin and “Bled” as the destination and select your desired date.

However, if you purchase your bus ticket on the website, you will need to print it in order to use it, as the buses don’t accept electronic tickets. If you don’t have access to a printer during your visit to Slovenia, you can have your tickets printed for you at the bus station on the day of your journey. (This is what I did.)

You can also purchase bus tickets in person at the bus station. You’ll find Ljubljana’s bus station here, in a small building across from the train station. (NOT within the train station, as I initially tried.)

Bus tickets from Ljubljana to Lake Bled can be very inexpensive — I paid just €4 total for the round-trip journey — but the exact price you pay will depend on the day you travel. For the cheapest bus tickets, plan your day trip for a weekend, when tickets are substantially discounted.

Riding the Bus to Lake Bled

The attendants in the bus station will tell you where to wait for the bus to Lake Bled. When it arrives, board and choose any seat.

The bus to Lake Bled takes about one hour.

Personally, I took the 8:30 a.m. bus from Ljubljana (which arrives at about 9:30 a.m.). This was fine, but I would recommend taking an earlier bus if you can — from the way that early morning clouds were clinging to the mountains I saw during the bus drive, I strongly suspect that there might be some gorgeous fog hovering over the lake many mornings (but it had burned off by the time I arrived).

Arriving at Lake Bled

The bus will stop quite near Bled Castle, just northeast of the lake — right here.

Top Things to Do During a Day at Lake Bled

Here are my top recommendations for things to do during a day trip to Lake Bled.

Walk Around the Lake

If you only have time to do one thing at Lake Bled, make it a walk around the lake.

The path is easy to find and walk, and is mostly reserved for pedestrians (through note that some stretches are alongside a busy road). A full loop around the lake is just under 4 miles, and you can expect it to take about 2 hours if you walk at a leisurely pace with lots of stops for photos (like me!).

The walk is full of gorgeous views of Bled Island and Bled Castle, as well as the beautiful scenery in general.

On the day I visited Lake Bled, there was even a basketball tournament happening on the lake! They had set up a court in the middle of the water, somehow, and teams took boats to get from the shore to the court. Pretty wild to watch!

Climb to Mala Osojnica

While you’re walking around the lake, I recommend taking a detour to hike Mala Osojnica — a lakeside hill with spectacular viewpoints of Lake Bled.

This climb is no joke. Though it only takes about 60 minutes round trip (not including time to enjoy the view at the top, and give or take some time depending on your own speed and fitness, of course), I found it to be a difficult hike. It’s quite steep for most of the way, and it can be tough to find a good foothold in parts. There’s at least one section with a rope to hold onto, and one very steep set of metal stairs.

Nonetheless, this hike is doable by any person of average fitness and ability — just keep going.

And trust me: it’s very, very well worth it. There are several viewpoints of the lake as you climb, and then one substantial viewing area at the top. Each of them offer spectacular looks at Lake Bled, Bled Island, and Bled Castle. In fact, Mala Osojnica is likely to provide the best views you will see at any point during your day trip to Lake Bled. Don’t skip it!

You’ll find the trailhead for Mala Osojnica at the southwestern end of the lake (it’s indicated on the map near the top of this post).

Visit Bled Island

The easiest way to visit Bled Island is to purchase a journey on a pletna boat — a traditional wooden boat that’s controlled with large oars.

There are several docks around the lake where you can board a pletna boat heading for Bled Island — just keep your eyes open as you walk around the lake. Personally, I got my pletna ride here. I simply walked up to one of the boats and asked how much the trip would cost.

My pletna ride cost €18 for a round-trip journey. As we rode to the island, a guide played us some traditional Slovenian music, and told us about some Slovenian traditions and culture.

When we reached Bled Island, the guide explained that we could spend 40 minutes on the island, then would need to return to the same boat for our journey back.

To be honest, there’s not much to do on the island, so 40 minutes was plenty!

The main thing to do on Bled Island is to visit the church, its clock tower, and an accompanying museum exhibit. None of this is free: I paid €12 for a combination ticket. Frankly, I don’t think this particular cost is worth it — unless you put a lot of stock in the power of the church’s wishing bell.

Yes: the church has a bell that purportedly grants wishes. To get your wish, step to the front of the church, find the long rope hanging there, and pull hard on it.

Does the bell actually work? Well, I’ll let you know if my wish is ever granted! (Uh, hasn’t happened yet.)

You can also climb the clock tower and see the inner workings of the clock, if that’s of interest.

Bled Island also has a souvenir shop and a cafe with a seating area.

All in all, I don’t think the experience of actually being on Bled Island is anything to write home about it, but the pletna journey to get there is a great experience and is worth the cost.

Get Out on the Water

However, you don’t have to ride a pletna boat to get out on Lake Bled! There are a few other ways you can explore the water more directly, including:

• Renting a boat or paddle board: There are several places around the lake (see some of them marked in the map above) where you can rent a boat or paddle board and get out on the water on your own. If you think you’d like to spend longer than 40 minutes on Bled Island, this may be a particular good option, as you can paddle yourself to the island and stay there as long as you like, without having to return on a pletna guide’s schedule.
• Swimming: I’ve seen conflicting reports of whether visitors are permitted to swim anywhere they like in Lake Bled, but you can definitely swim in one of the several enclosed swimming areas near the shore. (See some of the locations in the map above.)

Visit Bled Castle

Climb up to Bled Castle for another great view of Lake Bled from up high — but this time, from the other end of the lake.

Bled Castle is perched at the top of a cliffside overlook, so you have to climb a lot of stairs to get there, but it doesn’t take too long to reach. (It took me about 15 minutes from the trailhead, which is here.)

I paid €15 to enter the castle. There, I found a museum about the castle itself (complete with some truly alarming wax figures), several viewpoints with wonderful views of the lake and the surrounding Slovenian countryside, a souvenir shop, and a cafe with outdoor seating.

A friend recommend that I try the famous Bled cream cake at the castle’s cafe, but I’m not a fan of cream, so I passed on it — maybe you will enjoy it more than I would have?

For what it’s worth, I think the views from Mala Ostojnica are better than the views from Bled Castle — and they’re free! If you only have the time and/or energy to complete one of these climbs, I’d recommend Mala Ostojnica over the castle.

Returning to Ljubljana

To return to Ljubljana from Bled, simply go back to the bus stop where you disembarked in the morning and board the next bus to Ljubljana using the return ticket you purchased that morning.

Be sure you know what time the last bus to Ljubljana is leaving that day, lest you get stuck in Bled for the night! You can check the schedule on Ljubljana’s bus website to confirm, or ask at the bus station when you leave for Bled in the morning. There may also be a printed schedule at Bled’s bus stop, but I wouldn’t necessarily count on it.

Final Thoughts on Taking a Day Trip to Lake Bled

Taking a day trip to Lake Bled is one of my favorite experiences in Europe to date. Don’t go to Slovenia without visiting Lake Bled!

I hope this post helps you feel confident in visiting Lake Bled via public transit. Taking the bus from Ljubljana to Lake Bled is easy, inexpensive, and more environmentally friendly than renting your own car.

Enjoy your visit to Lake Bled, and comment below if you have more questions about a Lake Bled day trip!

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