Should you visit Balaton Lake or Bled?
Which city is more affordable and which is best for your travel style? If you're trying to figure out where to go next, comparing the travel costs between Balaton Lake and Bled can help you decide which place is right for you.
Balaton Lake
Balaton is a major freshwater lake in Hungary and the largest lake in Central Europe with a shoreline of 197 kilometers. The region around the lake is a popular holiday destination with a great number of resort towns and high-rise hotels to accommodate visitors seeking out lakeside activities, beaches, volcanic hills, and vineyards. Some of the towns are also very historic, offering examples from eighteenth-century art and architecture to castle ruins.
Bled
Bled is an incredibly scenic place, on the east side of Lake Bled. The lake is a beautiful, rich, emerald green. There's a small island in the middle of the lake where you'll find a nice white chapel. The lake is surrounded by striking green mountains, among which you'll find the Bled Castle overlooking the scene. Bled also offers access to the nearby Triglav National Park, a popular destination for outdoor enthusiasts and adrenaline junkies. Within the national park you'll find countless waterfalls and the lovely Lake Bohinj. You can find plenty of opportunities for mountain climbing, rafting, and hiking. There's even a cable car if you're looking for an easy way to get some good views of the mountains and landscape.
Which city is cheaper, Bled or Balaton Lake?
These are the overall average travel costs for the two destinations.
The average daily cost (per person) in Balaton Lake is $81, while the average daily cost in Bled is $95. These costs include accommodation (assuming double occupancy, so the traveler is sharing the room), food, transportation, and entertainment. While every person is different, these costs are an average of past travelers in each city. Below is a breakdown of travel costs for Balaton Lake and Bled in more detail.
Accommodation
Balaton Lake's average price for two people sharing a typical double-occupancy hotel room is $90. A typical place to stay for one person, per day is $45.
Travelers usually pay around $102 for a double occupancy room in Bled If you want to be in a premiere location or have high end amenities, you can expect to pay a bit more.
Food
The price of a meal in Balaton Lake can vary widely. However, the average price for food per day is $26 per person, and a typical meal will cost around $10 based on the spending of previous visitors. Less expensive dining options can be found by eating street food or at fast food restaurants.
Food in Bled costs travelers about $26 per day on average. Restaurants can vary significantly in price, so choose wisely if you're trying to save money. Fast food and street stalls are typically your cheapest options, which sit down restaurants can be significantly more expensive.
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Food
Meals for one day
Balaton Lake $26
Bled $26
Food Tours and Cooking Classes in Bled
For Bled, here are some samples of tours and activities related to meals and dining experiences:
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Taste Traditional Slovenian Dinner & Live Folks Music&dance - Avsenik Homestade:
$115
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Istria Truffle Cooking and Tasting Half Day Experience from Koper, Portoroz, Ljubljana or Bled:
$391
Local Transportation
While taxis and private drivers typically cost much more than public transportation, people usually spend around $11 per day to get around in Balaton Lake.
To get around in Bled, the average visitor spends $31 per day, per person. This includes the costs of taxi rides and private drivers as well as public transportation, which tends to be much more affordable.
Hired Cars and Shuttles in Bled
Also for Bled, here are a few examples of actual transportation services:
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Vintgar gorge transfer:
$15
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Bled Castle Entrance Ticket with Transfer from Bled:
$47
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Private transfer from Bled to airport Ljubljana:
$84
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Private transfer from Bled to Ljubljana:
$92
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Private Transfer from Bled to Ljubljana Airport (LJU):
$111
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Private transfer. Bled- Portorož:
$268
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Private Transfer from Bled to Zagreb Airport (ZAG):
$332
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Private transfer from Ljubljana to Salzburg with stop at Bled 4 - 8 Passangers:
$684
Is it cheaper to fly into Balaton Lake or Bled?
Prices for flights to both Bled and Balaton Lake change regularly based on dates and travel demand. We suggest you find the best prices for your next trip on Kayak, because you can compare the cost of flights across multiple airlines for your prefered dates.
Entertainment
Activities, things to do, and other forms of entertainment usually cost around $19 per person, per day in Balaton Lake. This cost includes the price of admission tickets to attractions and museums as well as daily tours.
In Bled, the costs for things to do, activities, admission tickets, and other sightseeing expenses are on average $11 per person, per day.
Typical Entertainment prices in Bled
Below are a few sample prices from actual travelers for Bled's activities, tours, and tickets:
Tours and Activities in Bled
For Bled, here are a few prices for actual activities, tours, and tickets provided by various companies:
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Skip the Line: Bled Castle Admission Ticket:
$16
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Bled Slovenia: 3–Hour Rafting Experience:
$47
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Winter Triglav National Park Adventure - Half day trip from Bled:
$61
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Winter Triglav National Park Adventure - Half day trip from Bled:
$62
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Lake Bled and Bled Castle Tour:
$65
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Winter Triglav National Park Adventure - Full day trip from Bled:
$73
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Winter Triglav National Park Adventure - Full day trip from Bled:
$75
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Emerald river tour:
$88
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sLOVEnia BEEKEEPING EXPERIENCE:
$89
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Self-guided Cycling Tour from Pokljuka to Lake Bohinj:
$92
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3-Hour Guided Snowshoeing Adventure in the Slovenian Alps:
$93
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Postojna Cave and Predjama Castle Tour from Bled:
$98
Alcohol
The average person spends about $8.25 on alcoholic beverages in Balaton Lake per day. The more you spend on alcohol, the more fun you might be having despite your higher budget.
Typically, people visiting Bled spend on average $13 on alcoholic beverages per person, per day.
Typical Alcohol prices in Bled
Some typical examples of the costs for nightlife and alcohol in Bled are as follows:
When we compare the travel costs of actual travelers between Balaton Lake and Bled, we can see that Bled is more expensive. And not only is Balaton Lake much less expensive, but it is actually a significantly cheaper destination. So, traveling to Balaton Lake would let you spend less money overall. Or, you could decide to spend more money in Balaton Lake and be able to afford a more luxurious travel style by staying in nicer hotels, eating at more expensive restaurants, taking tours, and experiencing more activities. The same level of travel in Bled would naturally cost you much more money, so you would probably want to keep your budget a little tighter in Bled than you might in Balaton Lake.
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