About The Photographer
Masa Vodenik is a self-taught photographer who lives in a small town of Hrastnik in central Slovenia. She is an economist during weektime, but on weekends she becomes an ambitious landscape photographer who doesn’t want to miss a single second she could have used to take a great photograph.
Masa’s passion for photography increased steadily since she started doing photography in 2010. Since then she successfully combines her love for travel and hiking with her enthusiasm for photography. She has traveled to many places around Europe including Venice, Tuscany, Corsica, Sicily, Cote d’Azur, Tenerife, Gran Canaria, London, Barcelona, Vienna, Prague, Budapest and many more, always searching for the perfect shot. As an avid hiker, Masa also spends a lot of her time in the mountains of the Slovenian Alps and she never forgets to take her camera with her.
Below is a selection of 35 beautiful landscape photos from around Slovenia that Masa Vodenik kindly shared with us. For more of her work, be sure to visit her wonderful photography blog Masa Vodenik Photo or follow her on Instagram!
Photo Gallery
A beautiful picture gallery containing 35 breathtaking landscape photos from around Slovenia by Masa Vodenik.
In reality, Lake Bled is just as beautiful as it appears in pictures. With a picturesque castle overlooking the lake, a church on a small island, and mountains everywhere you look, it’s delightful. Ojstrica in Mala Osojnica are two hills at the Lake Bled from where you can get best view on the lake, island, castle and the Karawanks mountain range in the distance.
Lake Bled is beautiful in winter with the scenery of snow, but it is also attractive in other seasons. You can enjoy the scenery unique to each season from fresh green of trees in spring to glowing red, orange and yellow leaves in autumn.
Floating in the middle of Lake Bled is the only natural island in Slovenia. Named after the lake, Bled Island is what remains of an Ice Age limestone moraine covered with trees in a glacier hollow. There are quite a few buildings on this small island but the most important is the Pilgrimage Church of the Assumption of Mary which has stood there in its current form since the 17th century. On the south side of the island is a 99 step stone staircase which leads to the church.
Less touristic than Bled, Lake Bohinj is according to some even more beautiful and serene. It’s hemmed in by the breathtaking Julian Alps and quilted in verdant greenery.
If you like hiking and magnificent Alpine scenery, then Bohinj should definitely be on your list of places to visit in Slovenia. From Lake Bohinj, the mountains are everywhere you look, calling for you to start hiking. This beautiful view of Lake Bohinj is from the Dom Na Komni mountain hut.
Only two kilometres from the village of Kranjska Gora, Lake Jasna is a very picturesque small crystal-clear alpine lake. The statue of Goldhorn or Zlatorog as it is called in Slovene is standing proudly at the lake shore, don’t forget to take a photo or two! The scenery on the lake is terrific and the views around the lake are wonderful.
There are quite a few lovely natural attractions to see in the picturesque Jezersko valley, the most well-known among them is the Plansarsko Jezero lake (a.k.a. Lake Plansar). This small lake was made by locals after a much larger glacial lake that existed in the same place drained away.
Located in the Triglav National Park at an altitude of 1340 meters, Lake Krn or Krnsko Jezero as it is called in Slovene is the largest Slovenian alpine lake, 390 meters long, 150 meters wide and nearly 18 meters deep.
The Lovrenc Marsh Lakes or Lovrenska Jezera as they are called in Slovene is a turf swamp with more than 20 tiny lakes that are located near the Rogla ski resort in north-eastern Slovenia. The surrounding area is a natural habitat for rare plants and other species. Following a wooden footbridge, you can walk through the swamps without harming nature and if you climb up the wooden viewing tower you get great views of the lakes that are considered a natural phenomenon.
The emerald green Zelenci lake is part of the Zelenci Nature Reserve located near the beautiful alpine village of Kranjska Gora in the far northwestern corner of Slovenia, only a stone’s throw away from both the Italian and Austrian borders. The clarity of the water is fantastic and the breathtaking surrounding alpine scenery is reflected into the lake. It is an absolutely wonderful place for a tranquil afternoon out.
The Zavrsnica reservoir is located at the foot of the Stol mountain (the highest peak in the Karawanks mountain range) near the village of Zirovnica in northwestern Slovenia. The reservoir is part of the Zavrsnica Recreation Park and was made by stemming the Zavrsnica stream. The nature around is gorgeous and there’s a lovely trail going around the reservoir. It is a very popular spot for walkers, cyclists, picnics, dog-walkers, and more.
The hike to the Triglav Lakes Valley is a must-do for all who visit Slovenia and are eager for a taste of its mountain scenery. The valley is named for a system of ten lakes that sit in this high mountain valley in the Julian Alps. In the background you see the Koca Pri Triglavskih Jezerih mountain lodge.
Double Lake or Dvojno Jezero as it is called in Slovene comprises two interconnected lakes and lies at the southern edge of the Triglav Lakes Valley in the heart of the Julian Alps and the Triglav National Park.
Sleme or Slemenova Spica as it is called in Slovene is a lovely viewpoint that offers a superb view of Mt. Jalovec and other mountains of the Julian Alps.
Slovenia’s 4th largest city Kranj lies at the confluence of the Sava and Kokra rivers. The northern side of the city is surrounded by the peaks of the Karawanks mountain range while the Sorsko polje plain extends on the southern side. It is a very industrialized city and the economic, cultural and educational centre of the Upper Carniola region of Slovenia. In the center of this fairly large city with about 55,000 inhabitants, you will find the historic medieval town which is the heart and soul of Kranj with several cultural monuments, cafes, bars, restaurants, shops, galleries and theatres.
At an elevation of 898 meters (2,946 feet), the summit of the Grmada hill offers great views of Slovenia’s third-largest city Celje, a lovely town with interesting historical sights and a pleasant mix of Renaissance, Baroque and 20th-century buildings.
The second largest town on Slovenia’s Adriatic coast, Izola used to be a thriving fishing town but is now a very popular tourist destination with a relatively large yacht harbour. It has a lovely historic town center with beautiful stone houses and narrow streets that make you feel the medieval charm of the town.
A lot of people say that Piran is the most charming coastal town of Slovenia, and we definitely have to agree with that. It has stylish colored historic houses and a recognizable Venetian lighthouse tower. A rocky border lines the waterside. The town juts into the Adriatic Sea on a peninsula shaped like a spear point.
Slovenia is a very small country and it only has a little more than 46 kilometres length of coastal shore. The popular towns are Koper (the largest town on Slovenia’s Adriatic coast), Izola (a warm-spirited old fishing town), Portoroz (the most vivid beach resort on the Slovenian coast) and Piran (the loveliest and most charming).
Every year between April and October, the Soca River draws watersports enthusiasts from all over the world keen to test out one of the most beautiful and challenging white water rivers in Europe.
Only a short hike from the town of Bovec on lovely and pretty easy trails you can find the Virje waterfall, one of the most beautiful spots in this part of Slovenia. There’s a wonderfully green pool at the foot of the falls – the colors are really incredible and the whole scene looks like it came straight from the pages of a children fairy tale book. The waterfall is about 12 meters high and can be up to 20 meters in width, depending on the flow of water.
A hike to the beautiful Savica waterfall is a must do when in the Lake Bohinj area. The best time to appreciate the waterfall is in spring when the snow is melting and the water drops a towering 78 meters into the emerald green pool below. To reach the waterfall it’s a roughly half an hour walk up a slope – the steep path is well marked, but it can be slippery and it’s not suitable for those with walking problems.
The Logar Valley or Logarska Dolina as it is called in Slovene is one of the most beautiful valleys not only in Slovenia but in the whole of Europe. It is a 7 kilometres long and about 250 metres wide U-shape valley embraced by the Kamnik-Savinja Alps. It’s so green and peaceful you can really enjoy some down time in absolutely remarkable surroundings.
The Logar Valley will leave you with unforgettable memories.
Your time spent in the Logar Valley would not be complete without a trip to the Rinka waterfall, one of Slovenia’s highest waterfalls. To reach the waterfall it’s a roughly ten minutes walk up a forested slope. The waterfall itself drops a towering 90 meters and as soon as the water hits the bottom, it goes underground and reappears in the lower part of the Logar Valley as the Crna river.
More dedicated hikers can climb the steep trail and see another breathtaking view of the Rinka waterfall from an elevated position.
Only a short drive away from the popular tourist destination of Lake Bled is the stunningly attractive Vintgar Gorge (for this reason it’s sometimes known as Bled Gorge). The walk along the gorge can take around 45-60 minutes, depending how long you spend taking photographs and admiring the crystal clear waters of the Radovna river.
The beautiful nature and the crystal clear green waters of the Savinja river near the village of Luce, east of the Logar Valley.
The Renaissance Bogensperk Castle with its rectangular courtyard and three towers was built in the 16th century and is one of the most important cultural monuments of Slovenian history. In the 17th century the castle was the home of the renowned Slovene polymath and historian Janez Vajkard Valvasor, who turned the castle into a cultural and science centre. The castle now houses a museum devoted to the Valvasor’s life and work.
The Tamar Valley is one of many beautiful glacial valleys in the Julian Alps. It is only a few kilometres from both the Italian and Austrian borders, in the far north-west corner of Slovenia. The valley is best known as the home of the Planica ski-jumping hills.
Jezersko is a very scenic valley in the Kamnik–Savinja Alps, south of the Seeberg Saddle mountain pass and the border with Austria. It is a very beautiful place but sadly really underrated as very little is written about Jezersko in the media and it definitely deserves to be more widely known among international travelers.
The scenic Zajamniki mountain pasture with a charming group of about 80 shepherds’ huts is located at the western edge of the Pokljuka Plateau above the famous Lake Bohinj at an elevation of 1234 meters. The pasture offers amazing panoramic views of the Slovenian Alpine mountain scenery and is also known as the balcony of Pokljuka.
The delightful Planina Visevnik is located in the Julian Alps above Bohinj and boasts six wooden huts topped by shingled roofs. The huts are now used as weekend huts, but the traditional style is much preserved. One of the huts also offers refreshments to hikers in the summer months.
The scenic Velika Planina plateau is located close to the town of Kamnik in the heart of the Kamnik-Savinja Alps. The architecture of the unique herdsmen’s huts whose roofs are covered with pine shingles has made the place a popular tourist attraction. The huts are surrounded by dairy mountain pastures that are located at an elevation between 1200 m to 1668 meters. Most of the huts aren’t very old, as they were burned down during the World War II and rebuilt in the traditional style after the war. You can easily access this unique mountain village by cable car from the village of Kamniska Bistrica.
In the spring, farmers bring their sheep up to the high pastures of the Julian Alps (1200-1800 meters), where the sheep graze in fresh mountain air, eating a summer diet of nutrient-rich grasses and enjoying more free space (and great mountain views). In the background you can see Mt. Triglav, at 2,864 meters the highest mountain in Slovenia and the highest peak of the Julian Alps.
The heart is a symbol of love, most often romantic love, but love in a broader sense as well. Slovenia is the only country in the world, which has the word LOVE in its name. So we decided to end this gallery with a photo of a heart-shaped road amidst the vineyards in the village of Spicnik.
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