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 | Best Things to do at Lake Bohinj
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 | Best Things to do at Lake Bohinj
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.
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 | Best Things to do at Lake Bohinj
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.
View from the upper station | Best Things to do at Lake Bohinj
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.
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.
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 | Best Things to do at Lake Bohinj
Trail to Savica Waterfall | Best Things to do at Lake Bohinj
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.
Savica Waterfall | Best Things to do at Lake Bohinj
The view of Lake Bohinj from the viewing platform.
Things to Do in Lake Bohinj: On a Map
How to Use This Map: Click the tab in the top left hand corner of the map to view the layers (points of interest, restaurants, and hotel recommendations). You can click the check marks to hide or show layers. If you click the icons on the map, you can get more information about each point of interest. If you click the star next to the title of the map, this map will be added to your Google Maps account. To view it on your phone or computer, open Google Maps, click the menu button, go to “Your Places,” click Maps, and you will see this map on your list.
Do you want to learn how to put all of this together? Learn how to plan your time 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!
More Information for Your Trip to Slovenia
PLACES TO GO IN SLOVENIA: Visit lovely Ljubljana, spend the day in Lake Bled and Lake Bohinj, explore Vintgar Gorge and Tolmin Gorge, go hiking in the Julian Alps, and visit Predjama Castle and Skocjan Caves.
ISTRIAN PENINSULA: Learn about the best things to do in Piran, how to spend one day in Piran and Koper, and how to spend 3 days on the Istrian Peninsula.
PLACES TO GO IN CROATIA: Along the Dalmatian Coast, the towns of Split, Trogir, and Dubrovnik are wonderful coastal towns to add to your Croatia itinerary. We also have information about how to visit the island of Brac, how to explore the amazing Plitvice Lakes, and visit the Istrian Peninsula.
EUROPE ITINERARIES: Check out our article 10 Days in Europe: 10 Amazing Itineraries for 10 different ways to visit the best places in Europe. And if you have less time, check out our guide to 25 Ways to Spend One Week in Europe.
Planning a trip to Slovenia? Read all of our articles in our Slovenia Travel Guide.
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Comments 3
For anyone using public transportation to get to Bohinj Lake, the bus to Vogel chairlift only runs Thurs-Sunday. I rented a bike and it was a nice 3 mile ride there.
This is absolutely fantastic. I loved reading your blog and your pictures are amazing. Like your family, our family shares this intense desire to travel and explore the world. Exploring and finding hidden gems and off the beaten path is exactly my thing. We just returned from a spectacular trip to Spain (I say that about all my trips) and I’m already planning next for next summer. I was thinking Croatia and Slovenia and your pictures of lake Bled and Vintgar Gorge have captured my imagination. Looking forward if you could share some travel suggestions for these Balkan nations.
Author
Hello Raj. I’m glad we captured your imagination. 🙂 We have a lot of info on Slovenia, Croatia, Montenegro, and Bosnia & Herzegovina on our website. Croatia will be the busiest and most crowded country of the four in the summer, particularly along the coast, so just keep that in mind. Istria is less crowded and cheaper so I recommend spending a few days here, depending on how much time you have. There are a lot of ways to put together a trip here. Check out our 10 day Slovenia itinerary, 11 day Balkan Peninsula itinerary, and 3 day Istria itinerary for more ideas. You can piece these together depending on how much time you have to travel. Cheers, Julie