A storybook alpine lake with an island church and a cliff-top castle.
Surface area
1 km²
Maximum depth
about 30 m
Elevation
475 m
Continent
Europe
Countries
Slovenia
Did you know?
Lake Bled holds Slovenia's only natural island, crowned by a church reached by traditional pletna boats.
Little-known fact
Couples climb the church's 99 steps — by tradition the groom carries the bride — to ring a wishing bell inside.
Highlights
- A fairy-tale alpine lake
- Slovenia's only natural island
- Home of a wishing bell
Life in the Lake Bled
The fish and animals, waterbirds and water plants — including some of the rarest — that this water supports.
Waterbirds
Grey heron
A patient, statue-still angler that stalks the shallows of rivers and lakes across the Old World.
Mute swan
The great white swan of European waters, gliding in pairs that often mate for life.
Mallard
The familiar green-headed dabbling duck — ancestor of most domestic ducks — found on waters worldwide.
Water plants & reeds
Water lily
Rooted in the mud, its round pads and star-like flowers float on the still surface of lakes and backwaters.
Interactive · 3D dive
How deep does a lake go?
A lake is layered from the sunlit, weed-filled shallows down to a cold, dark bed. Tap a zone to dive the submersible through the water column — and meet the life that belongs at each depth.
Tip: hover the column to tilt it · tap a layer to dive
Littoral Zone
The warm, bright band close to shore where sunlight reaches the bottom. Reeds, water lilies and rooted plants grow thickly here, making it the busiest, most crowded part of the whole lake.
Who lives here