7 Great Things to Do at Lake Bohinj in the Summer

Lake Bohinj is one of our favorite places in Slovenia. It is an outdoor playground, with opportunities to go hiking, kayaking, paddle boarding, and swimming. Ride the Vogel cable car for amazing views of Triglav National Park and walk to Savica waterfall, Slovenia’s most popular waterfall. Here are the best things to do at Lake Bohinj.

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The Best Things to Do at Lake Bohinj

St John the Baptist Church

This view of the stone bridge with St. John the Baptist Church in the background is the iconic view of Lake Bohinj.

St. John the Baptist Church

It’s so easy to get this photo. If you are arriving by car, park your car in the large public parking lot located behind Hotel Jezero. It’s just a two-minute walk to the lake and this viewpoint. You can take the photo from the side of the road or walk down the steps to the edge of the lake.

Water Sports on Lake Bohinj

If it’s a warm and sunny day, consider stand up paddle boarding, kayaking, or canoeing on Lake Bohinj. Tyler and Kara spent a few hours doing this and had a blast.

We rented two paddle boards from Alpinsport, which is located right next to the stone bridge. While the kids had fun on the lake, Tim and I chilled out at Kava Bar, right across the street from the bridge.

Zlatorog

This is another very popular photographic spot on Lake Bohinj. Zlatorog is a Slovenian god, a golden-horned chamois or ibex (depending upon the variation of the legend you hear) that lives in the mountains of Triglav National Park.

Zlatorog

To get here, it’s just a short walk along the edge of the lake from the stone bridge.

Mostnica Gorge

This gorge is similar to Vintgar Gorge, just on a much smaller scale. To hike along the entire gorge, it is 12 km round trip and takes about 3.5 hours. However, you can just hike along part of the gorge and still have some very nice views.

We never got to do this, since we ran out of time during our visit, but you can learn more about Mostnica Gorge here.

Walk around Lake Bohinj

There is a walking trail around the entire perimeter of Lake Bohinj. This trail is flat and easy to walk. I walked a small portion of it and along the way I saw a lot of families hanging out on the slivers of beaches along the water’s edge.

Swimming Lake Bohinj | best things to do at Lake Bohinj

The trail is 12 km long and it takes roughly 4 hours to walk around Lake Bohinj.

Ride the Vogel Cable Car

If you want a spectacular view of the Julian Alps without a lot of hiking, this is perfect.

Taking the cable car up to Vogel was one of our favorite experiences at Lake Bohinj. Once up on the mountain, the temperature is cooler, the crowds are lower, and the views are amazing.

Unfortunately, we came unprepared for this part of our visit. I had no idea of just how much there is to do once you get to the upper station. Once up on the mountain, there are several great alpine hiking trails to choose from, and we love hiking! We had no food, no water, and no sunblock (leaving them in our car because we thought this was just going to be a quick view from the cable car) and for us, that meant no hiking today.

I am going to give you more info, just in case you like the idea of tackling a short hike while on top of Vogel.

Getting to the Cable Car

Near the western end of Lake Bohinj is the lower station of the Vogel cable car. There is a small parking lot here, although most people end up parking along the side of the road leading into the parking lot. Parking is free.

Most people take the cable car round trip. You can hike up or down from the upper station, but if you have limited time, it’s best to spend the money and buy a round trip ticket.

Vogel Cable Car

Things to Do on Vogel

Once at the upper station, enjoy the view over Lake Bohinj from the viewing platform. If you have a fear of heights, you may want to skip this viewpoint. The metal grate you stand on does not block the view of ground that is now hundreds of meters below your feet. During our visit, there were a few people who were a bit freaked out by this.

Vogel Viewpoint | best things to do at Lake Bohinj

View from the upper station

Exit the upper station. Pop into the information center and get more information about the hiking trails here.

There is a second viewpoint worth visiting. From the information booth, if you walk around to the right, enjoy another awesome view of Lake Bohinj with the Julian Alps in the background.

Vogel Slovenia Viewpoint | best things to do at Lake Bohinj

You can simply end your visit here. But I recommend taking the Orlove glave chairlift to the higher viewpoint. The chairlift is included with your cable car ticket.

PRO TRAVEL TIP: It is much cooler up on Vogel than it is on the shore of Lake Bohinj. Even during the summer months, it’s a good idea to bring a jacket.

From the top of the chairlift, you can enjoy the view and then ride it back down to the upper cable car station. Or you can go hiking. There is a very short (about 15 minutes) hike to a viewpoint marked with a large cross.

On Vogel | best things to do at Lake Bohinj

From the chair lift, we hiked a short distance along the trail to Šija. On the way, we hiked up to a viewpoint on top of one of the hills and this was our view. In this photo, you are looking north towards Lake Bohinj and Triglav National Park. If you look closely, you can also see the viewpoint with the cross on top.

There is also a small restaurant and bathroom at the top of the chairlift.

If you want to go on a real hike, consider hiking out to Mount Šija and continuing on to the Vogel summit. From the top of the chairlift, it takes about 45 minutes to hike to Šija. From Šija, it takes another 1.5 hours to get to the Vogel summit. On a clear day, this would be awesome to do. You can get the full details on how to do this hike here.

A visit to Vogel can be quick, spending just a little time near the upper station to enjoy the view, or you can spend half of a day here, hiking along the mountain peaks.

Savica Waterfall

This A-shaped waterfall draws more visitors than any other waterfall in Slovenia. Savica waterfall, also called Slap Savica, is the water source for Lake Bohinj.

To get here, you can take the short trail (45 minutes to 1 hour round trip) or you can hike all of the way from Ukanc (7 km, 2.5 hours).

We took the short trail. From Lake Bohinj, continue driving down the main road, pass Ukanc, and drive to where the road dead-ends at a parking lot for Slavica waterfall.

Follow the marked trail into the woods. At the wooden cabin, pay your entrance fee (approximately €5 per person). Then, it is an uphill walk in the woods to the waterfall. Be prepared to climb a lot of steps!

Savica Waterfall entrance booth

Trail to Savica Waterfall

The trail ends at the viewpoint for Savica waterfall. The trail is fenced off, so you won’t be able to do more than enjoy the view and take a photo. Sorry, no swimming at Savica waterfall! There is also a viewing platform where you can get a so-so view of Lake Bohinj.

Slap Savica | best things to do at Lake Bohinj

Savica Waterfall | Best Things to do at Lake Bohinj

The view of Lake Bohinj from the viewing platform.

Lake Bohinj: On a Map

How to Use This Map: Click the tab in the top left corner of the map to see a list of the points of interest and to turn layers on/off. Click the icons on the map to get more information about each point of interest.

To take this map with you, click the star next to the title of the map which adds it to your Google account. Next, within your Google Maps app, select ‘Saved’ and then select ‘Maps’. This map title will now appear in your list.

How to Plan a Trip to Lake Bohinj

Do you want to learn how to put all of this together? Learn how to plan your time and find out where to stay in Lake Bohinj in our article:

Lake Bohinj Travel Guide: Itineraries for 1, 2, and 3 Days

Do you have plans to visit Lake Bohinj? Comment below if you have any questions!

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