10 Reasons You Must Visit Slovenia

Imagine the scene; you are five years old, a young buck, a whipper snapper, eager to take on the world and all the challenges that it'll throw at you. The teacher has set a particularly difficult challenge today however, as she's asked you to draw a lake. Now, you aren't an ordinary five year old, oh no, you've got talent and ambition, so you set out to draw the finest lake you can. The water is bluer than blue, perfectly fitting into the eye's view. Mountains are in the background, creating some topographical context (five year old kids love topography). The lake looks a bit bare? Throw an island in the middle of it, and we'll put a church on the island because when we're five schools like to encourage that stuff. For the coup de grace, the cherry on the top of the cake, why not stick a castle on a hilltop above, because obviously.

This is literally what Lake Bled looks like. 

It isn't the only stunner of a lake in the country either. Just a short run (I've never ran between the two) we find Lake Bohinj, Bled's bigger and less heralded cousin. Bohinj is the lake that those who find Bled 'too mainstream' profess to prefer, and tourism-snobbery aside they make a pretty good point. Bohinj happens to be set in the confines of Triglav National Park too, which is the only national park in Slovenia. Lucky!