my family are going on holiday to Lake Bled in Slovenia this summer and i've convinced them to let me take my bike. does anyone have any experience of that area or know of anyone who does and could tell me what the road surfaces are like, because i don't want to take my bike all that way and not be able to use it enough. it's a road bike so i need the roads to be fairly good quality. i assume they will be fine, but it's worth checking.

cheers, Paul

What are the widest tires you can fit on your bike? I live on a gravel/dirt road and ride on a lot of gravel and chip and pour surfaces. I find 30 to 32 mm tires are ok. you should be able to get them on your bike - check for brake clearance. Have a good trip.

Joe

I cycled a small corner of Slovenia as a short cut from one point in Austria to another, and the roads were fine.

My father-in-law is from Slovenia and has been back several times recently. According to him, road surfaces are fine but be prepared for very steep and narrow stretches, particularly in rural areas. Also note that many Slovenians think it's perfectly normal to drink a lot of wine late into the night, then roar home on these same roads. Probably a good idea to limit rides to daylight hours.

If you meet any Bevcics, say "Hi" for me since we're probably related.

WHile I haven't been cycling around Bled, I have backpacked in the area. The road surfaces were good as I remember, but as stated it is steep and narrow. Scenery on Lake Bled and in the Alps is truly amazing, and I imagine it would be very pleasant in the summer (I was there in January). The people were nice, and I had good luck hitchhiking past the last bus stop into the Alps.

Honestly that is all I can tell you. With some planning it would be an amazing trip. I would love to get back to Slovenia for some bike touring, if possible.

Good luck!

Roads in Slovenia are fine, as soon as I left Hungary (rubbish) and its roads (rubbish) I was impressed. In fact, mostly all of the country I saw on may way through was friendly, well-developed and beautiful.

steep is fine
aarrrghh they all want to fly now, aparently 1500 miles is too far to drive. i'm trying to get them to HTFU

I'll flat out state that I've never biked in Slovenia. But I did travel around there quite a bit a few years ago. The scenery is spectacular, you can literally witnes the metamorphasis of the Italian/Mediterranean inspired cultural worldview into the Germanic as you tavel from the coast to the interior and go from the snow-capped Julian alps to the Adriatic coast near Piran.

My word of warning is that I had some very scary moments while a passenger in a car thinking my life was going to end from some of the crazy driving I saw. I'd be careful and scour maps for some quiet routes.

Ive been there on a bike twice, its a fantastic country for cycling, lots of people do it, there are officially designated cycle touring routes, lots of good bike shops and bike hire, surfaced roads are all good and many of the unsurfaced ones are cyclable on a road bike. I used 32mm touring tyres.
From Bled there is a great flat trail NE to Kranjska Gora (it runs parallel to the busy E61). After a steep little ride with fabulous mountain views, it joins the main road. At K.G, turn left up to Virsc pass, a true Alpine switchback pass. From here you can roll down to Korabid. The whole circuit back to Bled may be possible but I havent ridden that.
The local maps have lots of detail but occasionally things are in the wrong place for navigating trails.

If you are looking for places to stay you should consider Tourist Farms, they are a way to get into the countryside, eat some typical Slovenian food and chill out.