Rowing on Lake Bled using sports boats with oars, and visiting the Bled Island with the traditional “pletna” or boat

© 3glav.com

Even though it is still possible to use sports boats with oars or self-propelled vessels to navigate on Lake Bled, visitors can no longer moor their vessels or land on the Bled Island with these vessels. It is explicitly prohibited to use electrically-powered vehicles on the lake. Visitors can visit the island aboard a hydrobus, using wooden boats with oars or the traditional “pletna”.

Lake Bled invites you to a workout

On the lake, it is still possible to work out and use boats with oars such as kayaks, canoes, SUPs etc. Users of self-propelled vessels may enter and exit the lake in Mala and Velika Zaka.

It is strictly prohibited to use electrically-powered vehicles on Lake Bled, such as electric and motorised surfboards, seeing as they pose a risk to swimmers due to their high speed.

Bled Island has a surface of only 8,000 square metres

Bled Island, with its surface of only 8,000 square metres, offers a limited quantity of piers and boat mooring places. They are available for “pletnas”, traditional wooden boats with oars, the hydrobus and all boats supplying the Bled Island. Passengers may only disembark in locations provided for this purpose. The aforementioned vessels are the only vessels that are allowed to moor and disembark on the island – pursuant to the Municipal Spatial Plan (MSP), landing was never planned for or allowed for other vessels.

The visitors visiting the island using the vessels that are not allowed to moor on the island will be informed and redirected by island employees and traffic wardens of the Intermunicipal Community Inspectorate of the Municipalities of Bled, Bohinj and Železniki.

Visitors of the religious services held in the Church of St. Mary's Assumption on Bled Island can make use of the free transport offered by the Bled Parish, transporting the passengers with the “Sinaj” boat from the harbour under Villa Bled. The boat leaves for the island half an hour before each religious service.

© Boris Pretnar

The purpose of the measures that have been adopted

In 2016, an amendment of the navigation regime decree also allowed for the navigation of other, non-traditional vessels such as SUPs, kayaks and canoes on Lake Bled. Since 2016, the number of these aforementioned vessels has grown exponentially. The pressure of tourists visiting the island using various vessels represents an erosion issue, seeing as there is not enough mooring places for these vessels, which is why visitors disembark wherever possible, dragging their boats and SUPs over tree roots and soil, which results in permanent damage to trees and the coastline. Pursuant to the Municipal Spatial Plan, the landing of sports rowing boats was never planned for or allowed on the island; in line with controlling tourist flows, island employees and traffic wardens will redirect and inform visitors pursuant to the Decree.