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DAY 1, Welcome to Bratislava
Welcome at the airport, transfer to the hotel by personal tour guide who will explain all the details about the trip.
Welcome Dinner & overnight stay in Bratislava.
DAY 2, Bratislava, Devin, Beckov
Breakfast at ~8 am followed by meeting with your tour guide at the hotel and start of the tour of Bratislava – the capital city, visiting attractions such as:
- Primate‘s Palace – a marvelous Classicist and largest palace in Bratislava where the Treaty of Pressburg was signed in 1805
- St. Martin‘s Cathedral – one of the largest gothic constructions in Bratislava where the coronations of 19 rulers took place between 1563-1830, including Austro-Hungarian empress Maria Theresa
- Michael‘s gate – the only preserved city gate, ranking among the oldest town buildings
- historical narrow streets, squares, Slovak National Theatre and of course the historic Bratislava castle.
During the tour we will stop for a lunch in the city centre.
Next is the visit to Devin castle. The castle is located just inside the Slovak territory on the border between Slovakia and Austria. The border runs from west to east along the Morava River and subsequently the Danube. Owing to its strategic position, the cliff (elevation of 212 meters) at the confluence of the Danube and Morava rivers was an ideal place for a fort. Its owner could control the important trade route along the Danube as well as one branch of the Amber Road. That is why the site has been settled since the Neolithic and fortified since the Bronze and Iron Age. Later, both the Celts and the Romans built strong fortresses there. In the Roman ruins, the first Christian church located north of the Danube has been identified.
Later in the afternoon – transfer to Beckov, about 1hr drive from Bratislava; tour of the beautiful Beckov castle. It is 16 kilometers south of Trencin at the place where the river Vah (the longest river in Slovakia) finishes its journey through the Trencin’s valley and enters the lowlands of Dunaj. The castle lies on a steep 30 meters high rock over the village of Beckov. It is one of the oldest castles of former Hungary and Austro-Hungarian Empire.
Dinner & overnight stay in Beckov/Trencin
DAY 3, Trencin, Bojnice
Breakfast at ~8 am followed by a tour of the Trencin castle. History goes back to the age of the Roman Empire, commemorated by a Latin inscription on the castle rock describing the victory of the II. Roman legion at Laugaricio (the Latin name of Trenčín) in 179 AD. The oldest building is a stone rotunda, dating back to Great Moravia period. In the midst of 13th century the castle was the seat of the Baron Jakab Cseszneky, who was King Béla IV’s swordbearer. Later in the 13-14th century, the castle became the residence of Matthew Csák, the legendary “Lord of the river Váh and the Tatra Mountains”. He gave name to the Matúš Tower, which dominates both the castle silhouette as well as that of the town. The water well is connected to the legend of the Turkish prince Omar and his great love for the beautiful Fatima, whom he had to redeem by digging a well in the rock.
While in Trencin, lunch will be held at a traditional historical castle restaurant. Next stop is Bojnice, about 1hr drive from Trencin and visit to Bojnice Castle which was built back in the 12th century. The castle is renowned for its attractions, including the popular Castle Fairytale, the International Festival of Ghosts and Spirits and the Summer Music Festival. The romantic castle is also a popular location for filming fairy tale movies, such as Fantaghirò
Dinner & overnight stay in Bojnice
DAY 4, Lietava, Strecno
Breakfast at ~8 am followed by a short walk (about 1hr) to Lietava castle, an extensive castle ruin in the Sulov Mountains of northern Slovakia, between the villages of Lietava and Lietavská Svinná. The castle was built after 1241, most likely as an administrative and military centre. The castle changed hands until the 16th century when the Thurzo family gained it. It was reconstructed and fortified, and given its own military garrison. After the death of Imrich Thurzo in 1621, it was divided between his heirs. After the ownership disputes in 1641, they lost interest in it and the castle was abandoned.
After lunch at a local restaurant right near the castle, Strecno castle will be the next stop, about 30 minutes drive. The romantic ruins of Strecno Castle tower over the Vah river symbolize the feudal power in Central Povazie. Even though it has been a ruin for three centuries, the architecture that remains documents the development of the medieval fortress from the gothic to the baroque. Although the castle was only established in the middle of the 14th century, the site has been inhabited for much longer – archaeological discoveries show that the castle hill was already inhabited in the early Bronze Age.
Sulov, about 1,5 hr drive from Strecno will be the next stop where we will take a tour of Sulov Rocks, the most interesting part of a much larger mountain range called Strážovské vrchy (Strážov, 1213m), which are bounded by the southern part of the Lesser Fatra mountains (Lúčanská Mala Fatra) on the east and the Váh River on the west and north. The most interesting part of the Sulov Rocks forms the northwest and north rim of the little basin in which the village of Súľov sits. Thanks to the nature of the local calcareous rocks, a fantastic “stone forest” – made up of countless rock pinnacles and needles has developed here. This place lures both the hiker and the climber.
Another attraction in this area is the Sulov castle, originaly built early in the 15th century. The ruins of the castle completely merge with Sulov rocks, in fact it was built between the rock formations and functioned as a fort from which a nearby road could be watched and protected.
Dinner & overnigh stayt in Strecno
DAY 5, Orava castle, Museum of Orava Village, Thermal aquapark Oravice
Breakfast at ~8 am followed by a transfer to Oravsky Podzamok (about 1hr drive) to visit the Orava Castle situated on a high rock above Orava river. It is considered to be one of the most beautiful castles in Slovakia. The castle was built in the 13th century. Many movie scenes were filmed here, including the 1922 movie Nosferatu (adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula).
Orava Castle stands on the site of an old wooden fortification, built after the Tartar invasion of 1241. Its history since then reveals a familiar pattern of construction, destruction, reconstruction, fire, various ownerships and territorial squabbles. The original design was in Romanesque and Gothic style and was later reconstructed as a Renaissance and Neo-Gothic structure.
After lunch followed by the tour of the castle is the visit to the traditional “Skanzen” – Museum of Orava Village. This open-air museum of folk architecture exhibits intact rural houses brought from all around the region of Orava and re-assembled in Zuberec. The gardens and fields around the houses also show various ancient forms of farming.
Last activity of the day will be resting and relaxing in the nearby Oravice thermal wellness aquapark.
Dinner & overnigh stayt in Zuberec
DAY 6, Spis Castle, Bratislava
Breakfast at ~8 am followed by a transfer to Spis regio (about 2hr drive) to visit the Spis castle, one of the largest castle sites in Central Europe. The castle is situated above the town of Spišské Podhradie. Spis Castle was built in the 12th century on the site of an earlier castle. It was the political, administrative, economic and cultural centre of Szepes (Spiš) County of the Kingdom of Hungary. Before 1464, it was owned by the kings of Hungary, afterwards (until 1528) by the Zápolya family, the Thurzo family (1531-1635), the Csáky family (1638-1945), аnd since 1945 by the state Slovakia.
At the conclusion of the tour, transfer to Bratislava
Dinner & overnight stay in Bratislava
DAY 7, Good- bye Slovakia
After breakfast and check-out, you will have a free time for shopping & spending your last minutes in the beautiful City Centre of Bratislava until your departure and transfer to the airport.
Price: 790Eur
Please do not hesitate to contact us if you are interested at info@enjoyslovakiasoul.com
Accommodation details
- breakfast included
- there is a possibility to check your accommodation on the official hotel website
- price is based on 2 people per room
- single person per room available with a surcharge
- rooms are equipped with bathroom, shower or bath with WC, TV, radio
Included in the price
- your professional guide, driver and translator/assistant
- 6x accommodation with breakfast
- 1x welcome lunch
- 1 x traditional barbecue lunch
- all transfers around Slovakia
- refreshments
- fuel and all parking & highway tolls
- map of Bratislava & map of Slovakia, information material (brochures, leaflets)
- entrance fees to all museums, spa and other attractions
- personal CD-ROM with Photos of your trip
NOT included in the price
- flights to/from Slovakia
- return airport transfers (will be arranged)
- lunch, dinner
- alcoholic & non-alcoholic drinks
- souvenirs, tips
- any other trips not mentioned in this itinerary
