Basic Travel information about Slovakia

Although Slovakia is just a small country in the heart of Europe, it has so much to offer to its visitors. Except for the charming capital Bratislava, there are many places worth of seeing all over the country. Ancient towns, romantic castles and chateaux, healing springs in pampering spa resorts, modern aquaparks, majestic peaks of the Tatra Mountains, those are just a few attraction making Slovakia a popular tourist destination.

Bratislava is definitely not the only historical town of our country. There are many other places that deserve at least a short stop, including Trnava, the first royal town in Slovakia and the historical religious centre, Trencin with the mighty castle on the steep rock, Nitra, the oldest documented settlement in Slovakia, Banska Bystrica with the historical burgher houses on SNP square, Zilina, a base for exploring the beautiful noth-western Slovakia, and the two historical centres of the Eastern Slovakia, Kosice offering the historical main street with the breathtaking Cathedral of St. Elisabeth and the smaller Presov with its cosy main street. Also, now quite small but once famous and rich mining town of Banska Stiavnica located in the steep hills of the Central Slovakia and Levoca, the gem of the Spis region, should not be skipped.

As the territory of Slovakia has always been a crossroad of the ancient trade routes, our country had been invaded many times. For protection, many castles and chateaux were built and some of them are still surviving, e.g. upturned bed like Bratislava Castle, beautifully restored Trencin Castle, fairy tale Chateau in Bojnice and massive Gothic castle of Orava. Also the picturesque ruins in Beckov and Strecno, as well as the large Spis Castle are worth of visiting.

The unique folk architecture of Slovakia has been preserved in the villages of Vlkolinec and Cicmany. Also the wooden churges in the Eastern Borderland with their history dating back to the 15th century became a Central European rarity because of their construction and valuable interior.

The place, that no Slovakia visitor should miss are theTatra Mountains, considered to be the smallest Alpine mountains in Europe and the subject of the national pride because of its heavenly peaks, romantic valleys and crystal clear glacial lakes and streams. Except for the exquisite natural scenery, the Tatra Mountains also offer terrains ideal for mountaineering & rock climbing, mountain biking and paragliding. Several quality ski resorts make the Tatra Mountains the most visited place in Slovakia in the winter time. Nearby Pieniny National Park offers exciting rafting trips down the Dunajec river.


Many healing springs and favourable climate gave birth to a number of spa resorts in Slovakia offering health treatment in combination with relaxing atmosphere and many attractions as well. The most famous spa towns are Piestany with unique atmosphere and busy social life, Trencianske Teplice with its “Musical Summer” and International Film Festival, the popular climate spa of Vysoke Tatry, town of Bojnice with a romantic castle and the newly refurbished spa in Rajecke Teplice. Friendly service and favourable rates make spas in Slovakia a real bargain.



Hot springs are also used for numerous thermal swimming pools in the new waterparks offering tempting attractions like water slides and rafting tubes combined with pampering therapies, e.g. steam rooms, saunas, solariums or massages. Tatralandia in Liptovsky Mikulas, Aquacity in Poprad and Aquathermal in Senec are ideal for a family vacation.




Some of the sites of Slovakia have even been listed on the UNESCO list of world cultural and natural heritage, including the old mining town of Banska Stiavnica and technical monuments in its surroundings, well preserved Gothic town of Bardejov in the north-east part of the country, wooden architecture reservation of Vlkolinec Village, the central Europe’s largest medieval castle of Spis, the unique ice cave Dobsinska Ladova Jaskyna in the Tatra Mountains and Slovak Karst, the region of limestone canyons and caves.