TATRA TOP TEN

Lomnicky Peak

 

If you want to experience unforgettable views to Slovak and Polish side of the Tatras, you should surely make a cable-car trip to the second highest peak of the Tatra Mountains - Lomnicky Peak. Located 2632 meters above sea level, the astronomic observatory, café Dedo and observation terrace are accessible by a cable-car. You can begin your trip to this Tatra peak by embarking the cable-car in Tatranska Lomnica and changing at Skalnate pleso station.

 

 

AquaCity in Poprad

 

The finest location to relax, while visiting in the High Tatras, is surely AquaCity in Poprad. The spa center, solely utilizing the thermal water, is an ecological and the Green Apple Award wining enterprise. You can easily spend a half-day here, swimming in the Olympic swimming pool and relaxing in several outdoor pools, where you can sit all year round. An extensive wellness with a selection of saunas and other pampering treats is a good reason to visit the AquaCity in Poprad to pamper yourself during your Tatra stay.

 

 

Strbske Pleso Lake

 

The highest located town in Slovakia is Strbske Pleso in the High Tatras. This Tatra place is especially known because of the glacial lake - Strbske pleso - which is surrounded by a forest, luxurious Grand Hotel Kempinski High Tatras and the majestic background on the High Tatra peaks. The Strbske pleso lake has recently been voted as one of the hundred most beautiful places in the world. You can reach Strbske Pleso by the Tatra Electric Railway from Poprad-Tatry, Smokovce, Tatranska Lomnica and other Tatra resort towns.

 

 

Stary Smokovec and Hrebienok

 

The southern side of the High Tatras developed in the course of the 19th century to a well-known Tatra spa center, where well-to-do people from the city used to visit for their summer retreats. You can still find majestic fin-de-siecle Tatra hotels and modern interwar sanatoriums here. The major Tatra spa town is Smokovce, where you can explore a little bit of this ancient grandeur. You can make a funicular trip from Smokovec to Hrebienok and descend to the Cold Creek waterfalls.  

 

 

Poprad and Spisska Sobota

 

The liveliest city on the Slovak side of the High Tatras is Poprad and anyone looking for shopping and other urban enjoyment, such as walking along the city promenade, sitting in a café or dining out should not miss Poprad. All Poprad life is concentrated along the prolonged central square. If you are looking for a change, then visit in the medieval town of Spisska Sobota. Today part of Poprad, but once a rival town, you will find a protected monuments reserve with the Gothic St. George church and bell tower in the center of the square flanked by typical street fronts with attached roofs.

 

 

Liptov Region and Demanovska Cave

 

Liptov Region has a peaceful touch compared to the dynamic landscape of the High Tatras and you will surely enjoy visiting here as a day trip during your Tatra stay. Liptovska Mara dam - one of the largest man-made lakes in Slovakia is one of the major attractions. You may visit in the Low Tatras, e.g. in the Demanovska Valley famous for its caves, alsothe port of entry to reach two highest Low Tatras peaks, Chopok and Dumbier, both reaching over two thousand meters above sea levels. During good weather you will enjoy panorama view of the Western and High Tatras and of views toward the south of Slovakia. Another option to visit is an open-air-museum in Pribylina, presenting typical folk architecture of the Tatra region.

 

 

Levoca and Spis Castle monuments

 

A day back in the time while staying in the Tatras is visiting the rich treasury of Spis Region. This region, from where you may see the Tatra peaks, has the highest concentration of listed national cultural monuments. Probably the most important city is a former leader of the medieval powerful Pentapolitana Leage, where once all lines of the Polish and Lithuanian royal dynasty, the Jagellos, met to discuss family matters. The city, Levoca, is famous for its St. James church with an altar done by local prolific Master Paul. The altar is the highest wooden Gothic altar of the world and brought Levoca a World Cultural Heritage listing by UNESCO. There are, however, other UNESCO listed treasures in the region: the Spis Castle - one of the largest castle compounds in Europe, Spisske Podhradie - synagogue - memorial to the Jewish community of Spis Region and the Romanesque-Gothic church with spectacular and somehow mystical wall paintings in Zehra.

 

 

Zamagurie and Dunajec Rafting

 

Zamagurie region is one of the most spectacular corners in Europe, which has retained its authentic character. This is a place really worthy to make a day off, while visiting in the Tatras. The remarkable untouched region is inhabited by the Gorals [Highlanders], proud, but very hospitable people speaking a distinct Slovak-Polish dialect. Gondoling on the Dunajec River that flows along the Slovak-Polish border through the Pieniny National Park is the main attraction here. You may even visit at the Cerveny Klastor monastery, where once a learned monk Cyprian lived and experimented with flying from the Tatra peaks.

 

 

Zakopane and Polish Tatras

 

Zakopane is the center of the northern - Polish - side of the Tatras. A charming town is located under the majestic Giewont massif and is well-known for its market, where you can buy typical local products of the Tatra region. You will surely appreciate the characteristic wooden architecture of Zakopane; the famous Polish architect Stanislaw Witkiewicz designed several local buildings in the so-called Zakopane style, which he created. The town is an excellent starting point for hikes to northern Tatra valleys.

 

 

Wooden architecture - Kezmarok wooden church

 

The Old Lutheran church of Kezmarok was constructed in the 18th century using the typical building material of the region - wood. The Lutherans were not allowed then to use other materials for building their churches. The church underwent complete restoration during the 1990s and was recently added to the roster of UNESCO World Cultural Heritage sites. There are several more typical wooden churches in Slovakia - in Svaty Kriz, Hronsek, Hervartov and especially in locations in the North-Eastern region of Slovakia.


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