Slovakia
The High Tatras are proper mountains at a fraction of Alpine prices
Population
5.4m people
Currency
Euro
Main Language
Slovak
best time to visit
May – September for hiking, December – March for skiing
Climate
Continental, cold snowy winters, warm summers, alpine in the north
Visa
Schengen area – 90 days visa free in any 180 day period for UK and most non-EU visitors
Country overview
Slovakia is routinely skipped by people going between Vienna, Prague and Budapest, which is odd given Bratislava is an hour from Vienna by train and the mountains in the north are among the best value in Europe. The country has been independent only since 1993 and still gets confused with Slovenia often enough that both tourist boards have made jokes about it.
Bratislava is small for a capital and better for it. A compact old town, a castle on the hill, a Communist-era bridge with a UFO-shaped restaurant on top, and a Danube waterfront. It can be done in a day, which is exactly why so many people treat it as a stopover, and why it is pleasantly free of crowds by evening.
The High Tatras are the real reason to come. They are the smallest alpine range in the world by area but genuinely alpine, with sharp granite peaks, mountain huts, and a network of trails that costs a fraction of what the same terrain costs in Austria or Switzerland. There are also more castles per head here than almost anywhere.
Annual events and festivals
- Fasiangy (Feb) — the Slovak carnival, with village masks, music and a great deal of fried dough.
- Easter Monday dousing (Mar-Apr) — water and sometimes perfume thrown over women. An old and now largely playful tradition.
- Vychodna Folklore Festival (Jul) — the oldest and biggest folk festival in the country, running since 1953.
- Pohoda Festival (Jul) — the main international music festival, held on a former airfield.
- Bratislava Coronation Festival (Jun-Jul) — re-enacts a Habsburg coronation. Eleven monarchs were crowned here.
- Cultural Summer, Bratislava (Jun-Sep) — concerts and theatre in courtyards and squares all summer.
- Bratislava Music Festival (Sep-Oct) — the main classical music event.
- Constitution Day (1 Sep) — marks the founding of the independent republic.
- Slovak National Uprising Day (29 Aug) — commemorates the 1944 revolt against Nazi occupation.
- Christmas markets (Dec) — Bratislava main square, small and unusually good on food.