Alpine views at Sobe Stojanovic (Sobe Stojanovic (Bled, Slovenia))

Member Name: fizzywizzy

Product:	Sobe Stojanovic (Bled, Slovenia)
Date:	20/07/09 (135 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Beautiful, comfortable house, friendly helpful host, great breakfast

Disadvantages: Location not great for everyone as on the edge of town

Across much of central and eastern Europe a sign saying "sobe" outside someone's house means that there are rooms to let to tourists; many also have the equivalent in German "Zimmer frei". I recently suggested to a colleague who wanted a cheap holiday that he should fly to Croatia using budget flights from our local airport and find rooms with an old dear when he arrived. Both he and another colleague had never heard of this and expressed concerns that it was an open invitation to serial killers - whether that be the guest or the host, I didn't bother to ask. Why would it be more risky to stay in someone's home than in a hotel? Hotels are full of oddballs in my experience. Besides, we do have the same thing here in Britain, the only difference is that the owners don't come out onto the street looking for lodgers.

Anyway, in very touristy places hotels can be expensive so private rooms can be a good option for budget travellers. In the picturesque town of Bled in Slovenia's Julian Alps, lots of families rent out rooms to tourists all year round. You can simply enquire at the door of any house with the "sobe" or you can book through a number of websites or at Kompas Travel and there is a branch of this Slovenia-wide travel agency in the centre of Bled in the shopping centre.

On this visit to Bled we found a website listing private accommodation with plenty of photographs and a decent map so we could see how far from the centre of town it was. The website gave an e-mail address for the owner; Janja replied almost immediately and we agreed a price. She didn't ask for any money; we could pay on arrival. I asked about taxis to Brnik airport for the day we were flying home and she said she'd check the price and get back to me the following day; true to her word, she replied with a price. A few days before we were due to arrive I reconfirmed the reservation by e-mail and Janja gave me her mobile number in case we were delayed.

We had a good idea of where the house was when we got off the bus but it wasn't until we started walking that we realised we were heading towards the same area we'd stayed in five years earlier. Then we turned onto the street and found it was the same street - and, yes, it was the very same house. On that occasion we'd arrived in Bled without accommodation and had found a room through Kompas Travel, the elderly owner had even come to pick us up in his car.

My parents especially were delighted with their first glimpse of the house with its colourful blooms and masses of fragrant lavender in the front garden. It's not hard to see why there are lots of framed certificates for "Most Beautiful House" on the wall in the breakfast room. All the gardens in the area are beautiful, many have fruit trees and vegetables plots but all have lots of gorgeous well-tended flowers and most balconies are decorated with vibrant baskets that let the flowers cascade over them.

Janja was waiting for us and welcomed us in cheerily. We didn't remember her from our previous visit but that was during the week and it is common for people to work during the week and have someone else look after the guests during those days, then take over at weekends. Our rooms had just been made ready; one at the front of the house with a lovely sunny balcony and another that looked out onto the side of the house which had no balcony but did have an en suite bathroom. The other room had a bathroom opposite it across the landing.

We took the room with the en suite, my parents took the one with the balcony. We were able to peek into the room we'd had previously which has been updated slightly since we were last there. Both rooms were a modest size but there was still enough room for a double bed (two singles pushed together in one of the rooms), a side table and two easy chairs. There was also enough room to move around the bed easily. There was small wardrobe, just big enough for a couple of days and a useful open hanging area which would be good for winter visits as you'd be able to hang up wet clothing and prevent getting clothes in the wardrobe wet. There were two quilts for the bed, one for each person but we didn't need them in July and soon threw them off. The pillows were big squashy feather ones and I should have asked Janja if she had a synthetic one but I forgot and didn't want to disturb her late in the evening. I ended up rolling up the quilt and using that instead. The mattress itself was comfortable and we had a good nights sleep. Even my mother who usually complains about beds commented on how comfortable she found hers. As the house is in a quiet location it was very peaceful not just at night but during the day when sitting out on the balcony. Unfortunately the same could not be said for some of the other guests who made a lot of noise on the landing in the morning.

The bathroom was small but spick and span. Bled can be freezing in winter so it was good that there was also a big radiator in the bathroom but it was so close to the toilet that I can imagine a few nasty surprises as arms brush the hot metal of the radiator. There was always plenty of hot water and pressure didn't appear to be affected by people using other showers at the same time. There are two bathrooms on the landing for those rooms that don't have en suites. When we arrived Janja explained which one was for which room but when my mother was showering someone tired the door and then started complaining loudly that someone was in "their" bathroom. We then heard Janja explain that the other was their bathroom and that they should stick to their own; I suspected that both people from another room wanted to use one bathroom each, rather than taking turns to use their own bathroom.

The breakfast room is on the ground floor and has two large tables. Breakfast is served between 7.30 and 9.00am and we went down just before 7.30 - Janja, if you read this I must apologise because I thought we had come down after 7.30 and now I know why you were rushing around so much! Laid out on a side board were several cereals, yoghurts and fruit juice. On our table there were dishes of different jams (- some homemade and very delicious), soft cheeses and plates of sliced prsut (the Slovene equivalent of prosciutto), a garlicky sausage and sliced cheese. Janja brought bread rolls and gave us a choice of how we wanted our eggs cooked. We asked for scrambled and she brought a hefty plate for the four of us; it was lovely, very buttery but delicious. Bread rolls were brought but there was also sliced bread for toasting on the sideboard. Janja had asked us the previous evening whether we wanted tea or coffee; coffee was in a stay-warm flask and there was hot water for tea, with a big box of different teabags on the sideboard. An Earl Grey was the nearest thing to "English tea". Overall breakfast was excellent and was thoroughly enjoyed.

We reminded Janja about the taxi and she telephoned the company immediately. Although we wouldn't be taking the taxi until 1.20pm and the rooms were to be vacated by 10.00am we were able to leave our bags there for the morning and use the toilet at the house before the taxi came.
There is plenty of parking space in front of the house for visitors with a car and the house is a ten minute walk from the centre of Bled and the lakeside, with a few bars and restaurants (and a supermarket) on the way. The bus to and from Ljubljana stops at the end of the road.

There are lots of householders in Bled offering private rooms but I doubt whether many are as pretty as Sobe Stojanovic. There might be several nearer the lake, but the nearer you are the more you pay. We paid Euro27 (the breakfast element is Euro5) per person per night which included breakfast and tourist tax. You should also note that stays of less than three nights usually include a small supplement too. Breakfast is not included as standard, so you can pay less if you aren't taking it. Bled is not a cheap resort so Sobe Stojanovic represents excellent value and staying in private rooms generally allows you to see something more than just hotels and to have more of a chance to meet Slovenians. Although Janja was busy she had time to talk to her guests and certainly made us feel very welcome. Highly recommended!

Sobe Stojanovic
Finzgarjeva 23a
4260 Bled

Although we didn't use it, a TV lounge is available for guests, and pets are welcome. There are also laundry facilities and a fridge for the use of guests.

http://www.slovenia.info/es/ zasebna-soba/Stojanovi%C4%8D-Janja.htm?zasebna_sob a=21335&lng=2

Summary: Good value attractive accommodation at Lake Bled