Tourist Attractions & Monuments Slovakia

Dedicated to St. Elizabeth, this church is more commonly known as the Blue Church. It was built between 1909 and 1913 on the plans of the famous Art Nouveau architect Lechner Odön. It is probably the prettiest church in Bratislava, all blue, with a roof of icy tiles, also blue. It was built with new materials such as reinforced concrete and artificial stones. It is decorated on the outside with earthenware and motifs dear to Viennese Art Nouveau.

The castle of Devín, which stands on a sublime site overlooking the confluence of the Danube and the Morava rivers, has distant origins. Excavations have revealed a human presence as early as the Stone Age, between the^5th and 4th millennia BC. In the Bronze Age, around 1500 BC, a first fortified site was raised by the Maďarovce civilization. Archaeological excavations seem to prove an uninterrupted occupation of the site, In the Roman period, Devín formed an integral part of the defensive fortifications of the Empire. Devín was later occupied by various barbarian tribes. The archaeological evidence of the arrival of the Slavs dates from the 7th century. The foundations of a church from the 9th century and some traces of a cemetery remain from this period, the period of the Great Slavonic Moravia. The first medieval fortifications of the castle date from the 13th century. The ruins of the highest tower of the castle remain today. In the 15th century, under the control of aristocratic families, the castle was enlarged in its upper part and then extended in its middle and lower part, to provide for its military defense functions. In the 17th century, the castle passed into the hands of the famous Hungarian aristocratic family of Pálffy. The castle was later demolished by Napoleon's army. Today, only beautiful ruins remain. A visit to the castle is a pleasant walk outside the city.

Situated on a hill overlooking Bratislava, the castle stands out for its size, and naturally became the symbol of the city, taking on its definitive form in the ^15th century. The castle may not be remarkable, but it offers a fine view of the city and is well worth a visit to the History Museum, which houses a collection of Slovak folk culture. At the same time, archaeological discoveries made during the reconstruction of the castle are showcased.

Not far from the confluence of the Slatina and Hron rivers, in the old town of Zvolen, there is an urban castle, built between 1370 and 1382 under the reign of King Louis the Great of Hungary. It was then renovated during the 16th century and more recently in the 1960s. Today, it houses a beautiful collection of Renaissance paintings belonging to the national gallery as well as temporary exhibitions of artists or young art students.

The region of northeastern Slovakia is known for its Eastern wooden ritual churches scattered in picturesque villages located in the mountains of the Carpathian Arc. One of these buildings is the Greek-Catholic Church of the Ascension of the Blessed Virgin in Hunkovce. Built at the end of the 18th century, this charming building stands in the shade of old trees in the centre of the village, surrounded by a small cemetery with interesting carved crosses.

This medieval Gothic building with three naves and the 76-metre high tower is a true museum of Slovak religious art. Inside, there are 11 wooden altars of the th and th centuries, whose altar dedicated to Saint Barbara is attributed to the master Paul de Levoča. The main altar, carved in 1888, is immense and dominated by a Christ crucified in a very surprising suspension. The baptismal font is a fine example of the mixture between Protestant and Catholic heritages.

Housed in the Muza hotel-restaurant, the Mihal Gallery is a unique project that seeks to showcase the life and work of world-renowned artist Andy Warhol in an interesting way. Among the twenty-five works is the famous, oft-reproduced painting of Marilyn Monroe, but this one is an unpublished work that Warhol created by hand. It's the most precious work to be seen in the country by this pop-art icon, originally from Eastern Slovakia.

One of the most beautiful castles in Slovakia. Originally mentioned in the ^12th century, the castle was built of wood before being completely rebuilt in stone in the ^13th century. In 1643, it passed into the hands of the Pálffy family, to whom the castle owes its current magnificence. Between 1889 and 1910, John Francis Pálffy devoted a considerable part of his fortune to embellishing the castle. The architect Joseph Hubert, known for his taste for the neo-Gothic style, was in charge of the work. On John Francis Pálffy's death, the château came under state ownership. Its successive embellishments make Bojnice the finest example of Slovakian castle renovation in the ^19th-century Romantic style. The castle's interiors still display the original decorations of the Pálffy family, whose portraits adorn the walls. Highlights of the visit include a beautiful chapel with magnificent ^14th-century murals, the winter garden, an incredible Oriental salon with Arabesque ornaments and Buddhist statuettes, the gilded hall with its ceilings inlaid with gold leaf, and the castle caves where a spring carved the rock and in which the skeleton of a Neanderthal man was discovered. Various types of tours are available, including night visits, sometimes by candlelight only, with a guide in period costume - an original way to discover this unique building and its legends.

The exhibition, which was opened to the public in 1983, is located in a baroque manor in the eighteenth century. It presents the development of popular art of Ukrainians and ruins in Slovakia from the sixteenth century to the present. The two dominant points of the exhibition are a rare collection of icons and the works of the national artist Dezider Milly (1906-1971). His paintings describe and paint rural man from inside, a beautiful historical testimony.

The region's largest gallery hosts exhibitions of traditional and contemporary art, as well as symposia. Housed in the former county seat of Košice, the classical architecture creates an interesting dialogue with the most contemporary works. In April 1945, the first Czechoslovak government met here, during the few weeks when Košice was the capital of the new Republic proclaimed after the fall of Nazism.

This is undoubtedly one of Bratislava's most interesting galleries, thanks to its fine collections of European paintings from the ^16th to ^18th centuries: Dutch, Italian, German, Spanish and English. But it also boasts some splendid paintings by Slovak masters of the ^19th century, notably Ladislav Nedňansky and his superb landscapes and popular scenes painted in the manner of the Impressionists, or Dominik Skutecký, with his working-class scenes.

This central square built in the early th century has a oblong shape. It is broken to the north by the basilica. The old town hall nestles majestically in its centre. It is surrounded by over bourgeois houses, some of which are worthy of interest. At No. 13, the Gantzaugh house (the headquarters of the regional museum of Šariš) has a beautiful rococo facade. At No. 16, the old school of 3 houses linked to each other is now city hall. This house, originally Gothic and modified in Renaissance style, has lovely frescoes on its facade, including Bardejov weapons.

At No. 26, a Gothic Renaissance style house is priceless, with its facade adorned with a superb fresco depicting the coronation of the Virgin Mary. The house No. 42 served as a cellar at the Tokaj which produced the vineyards of the city. At that time, the market was hosted, and the city hall was sometimes sheltered in the event of weather.

In the centre of the central square, a statue of the Immaculate Virgin is enthroned on a high column and displays its slightly overloaded baroque coquetries. The statue was erected in 1720-1723 in gratitude for the Virgin who would have delivered the city from the plague epidemic of 1709-1710. It takes its present appearance from its restoration in 1909, when the sculptures of many saints were added to the building, including the angel Saint Gabriel and the archangel Saint Michael.

The Singing Fountain is located between the State Theatre and St. Elizabeth Cathedral. Inaugurated on ¹ May 1986, it is the oldest Singing Fountain in the former Czechoslovakia. It was founded with the support of former mayor Rudolf Schuster, who later became president of Slovakia. In the heart of a park ideal for relaxing and taking a short break when visiting the city, this fountain starts to sing and the lighting of the water jets turns to the rhythm of the music.

In the heart of Košice's central square, it stands out with its gallery bell tower, polychrome roof, north door decorated with a bas-relief illustrating the Last Judgment and the life of St. Elizabeth. Attention should also be paid to the Gothic frescoes, the sculptures of the 15th century master Štefan, not to mention the altarpieces with shutters. It is also famous for its 1477 sundial, and its amazing gargoyle depicting a drunk woman with a glass in her hand.

To the southwest of the village of Silica in Slovak Karst is a chasm 50 m long, 30 m wide and 91 m deep. A signposted path from the village leads to this abyss, a site inhabited since prehistoric times. Continuing along the path, you will find the Silická Ice Cave, named after the presence of an ice cascade that has been frozen for 2,000 years. This cave is not freely accessible, its entrance is fenced.

This cave is more than 2.9 km long and 55 metres deep. The temperature inside is around 8.5°C/9.5°C, which is ideal for "thermal caving therapy". This cave has been inhabited since prehistoric times and was used in the Middle Ages as a refuge for the populations of the region. It is also a bat paradise: there are 19 species out of 24 recorded in Slovakia. The visit lasts 45 minutes and is spread over 720 metres.

It is the only aragonite cave on the European continent. There are two others in Mexico and Argentina. Aragonite, a very rare variety of calcium carbonate, crystallizes into twigs and small white shrubs. She draws delicate and poetic structures. The most beautiful part of the cave is called the Milky Way, which sparkles like a starry sky. The cave was discovered in 1954 by miners and opened to the public in 1972.

One of the most important caves in the Slovak Karst National Park, the Gombaseská Cave is located at the western foot of the Silická Plateau, between Slavec and Plešivec. This small cave, only 1.5 km long, with red and brown walls, is famous for its remarkably fine stalactites and stalagmites up to 3 meters high. Only the first 350 meters are open to the public. It is classified as a world heritage site by Unesco.

The largest, most colourful and most visited of the Slovak Karst caves. It offers a network of 22 km of galleries, including 6 in Slovakia and 16 in Hungary with stalactites and stalagmites the size of tree trunks. It is crossed by an underground river, called Styx, on which it is possible to sail for 2 km along ice formations with dreamlike shapes of great beauty. Duration of the visit between 45 minutes and 1 hour.