Master Paul's House

♥ VISIT SLOVAKIA ♥

Visit Slovakia – Unique castles, caves, hot springs, folk, beautiful nature


Unique castles, caves, hot springs, folk architecture, the European Dead Sea, a famous Celtic town, European wildlife and much more. What are some of the unique Slovak tourist spots that you’d hardly be able to find elsewhere?


Slovakia is a central European country known for its dramatic natural landscape and many castles. Near the Austrian border, capital city Bratislava features a pedestrian-only Old Town with a lively cafe scene. Rising on a hill above the Danube River, Bratislava Castle houses a branch of the Slovak National Museum, with displays ranging from Roman artifacts to 20th-century arts and crafts.

Slovakia is a castle superpower

The smaller the country, the greater the number of its castles. It’s doubtful you’d find another country that has as many castles as Slovakia. The first written mention of Slovakia’s oldest castle Devín dates back to the year 868. Spiš Castle is a UNESCO World Heritage site and one of the ten largest castles in the world. And the whole world knows the terrifying story of the bloody countess Elizabeth Bathory from Čachtice Castle. Altogether, Slovakia has as many as 220 castles and castle ruins! Not enough? Then add its 425 chateaus to the mix.

The first folk architecture reservation in the world

Travel back in time and see what life in the Slovak countryside looked like in past centuries. The picturesque wooden village of Čičmany at the foothills of the Strážov Hills is actually the first-ever folk architecture reservation in the world! How did Čičmany come into existence? How did our ancestors live? How did they dress? How did they build painted wooden houses that look like fairy tale gingerbread houses? This place has many interesting stories from the distant past to tell. After all, the first mention of the village dates back to the year 1272.


The biggest cave dripstone

Yes, Slovakia is a cave superpower too. So far, 7,000 caves have been discovered in the country, and Krásnohorská Cave has the highest sinter column (34 metres) in the world. For a long time, it was considered the biggest dripstone in the world, registered in the Guinness Book of Records!


The centre of Europe

If you hear somebody say that Slovakia is the heart and centre of Europe, it’s not a joke. In a beautiful spot at Kremnické Bane in Central Slovakia, next to the ancient Church of St. John the Baptist, you can find a stone marking the geographical centre of Europe.

Bethlehem in Rajecká Lesná

Master carver Jozef Pekara needed more than 15 years to finish the Bethlehem in Rajecká Lesná. It is a true rarity, since it’s the largest wooden moving Bethlehem set in Europe. Pekara’s Bethlehem includes about 300 figures, half of which are movable. The piece is 8.5m long, 2.5m wide and 3m high. The beautiful exhibition not only depicts the birth of Christ, but also the history of the Slovak nation. For a long time, it was considered the largest Bethlehem in the world.


More than 1,600 mineral springs

No other country has, compared to its size, as many mineral springs as Slovakia. There are 1,657 officially-registered springs, but there probably are many more yet to be discovered. The mineral water of Smrdáky is unique for its hydrogen sulphide content. The largest number of springs in Slovakia can be found in Bešeňová, with 33 springs that reach temperatures of up to 61 °C.

UNESCO Cultural Heritage

Three localities from Slovakia were inscribed to the UNESCO World Heritage List already in 1993: Castle of Spiš and its environs, Banská Štiavnica and Vlkolínec. In 2000, the historic town Bardejov was added, in 2008 wooden churches of the Slovak part of Carpathian Mountain Area and in 2009 town Levoča.

UNESCO Natural Heritage

Unique natural heritage of Slovakia is represented in the UNESCO World Heritage List by caves and abysses of Slovenský kras karst and by Dobšinská ľadová jaskyňa cave. In 2007 the Carpathian primeval beech forests of the Bukovské vrchy and Vihorlatské vrchy Mts. in the east of Slovakia were added to this list.

UNESCO Intangible Heritage

Fujara is the most typical Slovak musical instrument. It was included by UNESCO in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The list was founded in 2001.

Second on the UNESCO intangible heritage list is the Music of Terchová – the “heavenly“ archaic folk music characteristic of Terchová and neighbouring villages, typified by multi-voice singing.

Ittai Rosenbaum: Movement, for solo violist

Avishai Chaimedes gives the world premiere of Rosenbaum's miniature piece of music theatre at the 2016 Indian Summer in Levoca Festival