Bratislava is the biggest city of Slovakia and the state capital since 1969. Here the Carpathians beginning in Romania’s Iron Gate come to an end. If you travel across the country by train, you can see amazing vineyards on the slopes of the Little Carpathians.
Bratislava’s old town has preserved a lot of gorgeous monuments and incredibly rich museums. Some of the monuments tell us about that past of Slovakia when it was under the reign of Hungary.
The Slovakian National Opera Theater hardly has any competitors in Europe. It is especially renowned by the fact that famous composer Franz Liszt visited Bratislava 15 times!
Spissky Hrad is the greatest castle in Slovakia. It was founded in 1209. In the 13th century, the castle was destroyed in a Tatar invasion and completely restored in the 15th century. It looks very impressive and colossal, despite the fire of 1780.
The upper part of Spissky Hrad has a round Gothic tower, a font, a chapel and a Roman palace overhanging an abyss. The dungeon of the castle preserves torture instruments.
The mountain ridges of the national nature reserve Lesser Fatra stretch across the whole north-eastern Slovakia (50 km). The highest mountain is Velki Krivan (1709 m). In the heart of the national park one finds Vratna, a picturesque mountain valley surrounded by forests. In winter it turns into a popular ski resort. Hiking opportunities vary from easy tourist walks through the forest to crossing of scenic mountain ridges. Here one can find a number of hotels and restaurants; nevertheless, there may be no vacant places in the midsummer. You can get from Zilina, a nice small town in the center of Slovakia, not overcrowded with tourists, to Lesser Fatra in a day.
High Tatras are the only truly Alpine mountains in the Eastern Europe and also one of the smallest mountain massifs in the world. What a splendid view it is - narrow rocky peaks with steep slopes rising above wide valleys and downslopes covered with thick pine woods! Moreover, all this beauty, including 30 valleys, almost 100 glacier lakes and plenty of mountain brooks, fits a comparatively small area of 260 sq. m. Hiking routes cover 600 km.
The Danube river. The national nature reserve Pieniny was merged with a similar park in Poland to protect a canyon cut though by the Danube (between the Slovakian village of Kerveny Klastor and the Polish village of Szczawnica). The river here serves as the national boundary between the two countries. Near the canyon entrance, there is a 14th century monastery, nowadays turned into a museum. From June to September one can make an exciting rafting trip on the Danube.