Tourism in Slovakia

Tourism in Slovakia offers amazing natural landscapes, beautiful mountains, interesting caves, old medieval castles and towns, charming folk architecture, relaxing spas, and exciting ski resorts.

In 2024, more than 2.2 million people visited Slovakia. The most popular places to see are the capital city of Bratislava and the stunning High Tatras mountains. Many visitors come from nearby countries, with most guests coming from the Czech Republic (about 26 percent), Poland (15 percent), and Germany (11 percent). Most visitors are from Slovakia itself—about three million people, which is 60 percent of all guests.

Statistics

Most visitors to Slovakia who stayed in tourist places come from:

Natural environment

About 40% of Slovakia is covered in forests, home to animals like brown bears, wolves, foxes, wild boars, muskrats, chamois, and lynxes. Many of these animals live in protected areas, and almost all of Slovakia’s mountains and regions have some kind of protection.

One of Slovakia’s top attractions is the Tatra Mountains, especially the High Tatras, the highest part of the Carpathians. These mountains have special plants and animals and are great for skiing, hiking, and mountain climbing.

Rivers and streams in Slovakia’s mountains are popular for rafting and other exciting water sports. Rafts have been used for a long time, and trips on the Dunajec river are very popular with visitors.

Slovakia has many mineral springs and spas. In 2007, there were 94 places where people could visit spas with over 11,900 beds. That year, more than 276,000 people visited these spas, and about 35% of them were from other countries.

The spas include:

• Balneological spas: Bojnice, Brusno, Dudince, Lúčky, Piešťany, Sklené Teplice, Sliač, Smrdáky, Trenčianske Teplice, Turčianske Teplice
• Climatic spas: Nový Smokovec, Štós, Štrbské Pleso, Tatranské Matliare, High Tatras
• Mixed spas: Bardejovské Kúpele, Číž, Nimnica, Rajecké Teplice and Vyšné Ružbachy

New water parks are being built across the country. Recent ones include Tatralandia in Liptovský Mikuláš, Aquacity in Poprad, and Aquathermal in Senec.

Slovakia’s karst areas have many caves, and the list keeps growing with new discoveries. Eighteen caves are open to visitors, and the longest one is 9 km long. Some of these caves are UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites. One of them, Ochtinská Aragonite Cave, is one of only three aragonite caves in the world.

Architecture and landmarks

Slovakia has many amazing castles, mostly in ruins. Some of the most famous include Bojnice Castle, Spiš Castle (the biggest fortified castle in Europe and a UNESCO site), and Bratislava Castle. Many towns and cities in Slovakia have beautiful old centers with squares, similar to places in nearby countries like the Czech Republic and Austria.

The country is also full of historic churches in styles like Baroque, Romanesque, and Gothic. Slovakia has rich folk traditions, including songs, dances, folk art, and special clothing. You can find souvenirs such as dolls in folk costumes, wooden carvings, and special instruments like fujaras. There are also many museums and places for sports, like skiing.

See also: List of castles in Slovakia

See also: List of fountains in Bratislava

See also: List of museums in Slovakia

See also: Sport in Bratislava

See also: Ski and winter sports in Slovakia

See also: List of ski areas and resorts in Slovakia

Food and beverage

See also: Slovak cuisine

Food in Slovakia is often cheaper than in places like Western Europe. Visitors can try special wines and beers from different areas. Popular wine areas include Tokaj, Little Carpathians, Nitra, Topoľčany, and Záhorie. Some well-known drinks are Hubert, a sparkling wine, and Karpatské Brandy Špeciál, a favorite brandy. Traditional drinks like Demänovka and Horec are made from herbs. Slovak spirits such as slivovica (plum brandy) and borovička (made from juniper berries) are also popular. Topvar, Zlatý Bažant, Šariš, and Corgoň are well-liked beers.

Slovakia has tasty cheeses like bryndza, korbáčik, oštiepok, parenica, and tvaroh, along with a dish called žinčica. In restaurants or pubs, leaving a tip for good service is optional and usually around 10 percent of the bill.

Objects on the UNESCO World Heritage List

Slovakia has many special places that are important to the world, and they are listed by UNESCO. These places include old mining towns, beautiful historic towns, and amazing castles.

Some of the special places are:

• Banská Štiavnica, an old mining town, and tajchy, ancient water reservoirs
• Bardejov, a historic town
• Levoča, Spiš Castle and associated cultural monuments, including Levoča, Spiš Castle, the town of Spišská Kapitula, church paintings in Žehra, and Spišské Podhradie
• Vlkolínec, known for its traditional houses
• Caves in the Slovak Karst, such as Dobšiná Ice Cave, Domica Cave, Gombasek Cave, Jasovská Cave, Krásnohorská Cave, and Ochtinská Aragonite Cave
• Primeval beech forests in Poloniny National Park and Vihorlat Mountains, including Havešová, Stužica, Rožok, and Kyjovský prales
• Wooden churches in central and eastern Slovakia, located in Hervartov, Tvrdošín, Kežmarok, Leštiny, Hronsek, Bodružal, Ladomirová, and Ruská Bystrá

History

Tourism in what is now Slovakia started to grow in the mid-1800s when people began visiting the High Tatra and Low Tatra mountains. The first hotels and restaurants were built late in that century, and growth sped up after 1918 when Czechoslovakia was created. The number of tourists rose steadily from around 270,000 domestic and 45,000 foreign tourists in 1926 to over 500,000 domestic and 82,000 foreign tourists in 1936.

During World War II, tourism slowed down. After 1948, when a Communist government took control, visitors from Western countries were no longer welcome, which hurt the tourism industry. The government controlled tourism tightly and didn’t invest much in new facilities, except in the High Tatras area. However, because most people in Czechoslovakia couldn’t travel abroad, the government had to create more places for them to relax. By 1989, there were almost 1,000 places to stay with nearly 150,000 beds, used by about 4 million tourists, including many from other countries. Popular spots included Bratislava, the High Tatras, Košice, Banská Bystrica and Piešťany.

After the Communist government ended in 1989, Slovakia’s tourism changed to fit a market economy. Many buildings were sold to private owners, and new ones were built with help from other countries. New travel agencies opened, and more tourists from abroad visited, bringing in more money. Slovak people also started traveling more, first to nearby countries like Croatia, and later to places around the world such as Egypt, France, and Indonesia.

Tarantino - Roth film

In 2006, the Czech Republic and Slovakia asked to stop the film Hostel because they thought it showed their countries as scary and full of bad things. The director, Eli Roth, said he got the idea for the film from a website he saw.

Slovakia worried the film would hurt its reputation and make people not want to visit. A news article in The Denver Post joked that travel warnings might be issued for the country because of the film. A review in New York Magazine also made comments that didn’t help Slovakia’s image.