For lovers of well-preserved Roman architecture Qasr Bashir is certainly a hidden gem. Standing within the solid walls of Qasr Bashir, you will certainly be able to feel the living history of life on the edge of the Roman Empire.

History of Bojnice Castle

A castle is first recorded on the site in 1113. In the early 14th century a castle on the site belonged to Matus Cak Trenciansky, who had captured it in the 13th century, before passing to other aristocratic owners. Amongst these nobles were members of the Thurzo family who were first gifted it by King Ferdinand I in 1527 and updated the castle from a Gothic to a more comfortable Renaissance palace.

In the 17th century the Palfi family received control of Bojnice Castle. It was Count Jan Palfi who decided in the late 19th century to renovate the castle in the romantic style seen today.

Bojnice Castle Today

Bojnice Castle has been part of the Slovak National Museum since 1950. The interiors include furniture from the early modern period through to the late 19th century. The chapel features a 14th century Florentine altar, and Count Jan Palfi is buried in a chapel in the rock below the castle.

Beneath the courtyard is a cave that contains the castle’s water source. The grounds around Bojnice Castle include a moat with swans and a 600-year-old tree. Besides the standard daytime tour, the castle also offers night tours. In late April and early May the International Festival of Ghosts and Spirits is held there.

Getting to Bojnice Castle

Being very centrally located, from the centre of Bojnice, the castle is a 3 minute drive via the Rekreačná road, or a 5 minute walk via Hurbanovo námestie and Zámok a okolie.

History of Devin Castle

In late antiquity the site was part of the Limes Romanus (or ‘limits or borders’) of the Roman Empire. In the 9th century the prince Rastislav built a fort on the site in service of the kingdom of Great Moravia. The Upper Castle dates from the 13th century, with palace buildings following in the 15th to 17th centuries. Napoleon’s troops destroyed much of the castle in 1809.

Devin Castle became a National Heritage Site in 1961. Because Austria was just across the river, the site was heavily guarded to prevent citizens from escaping into the free west before the fall of Communism in 1989. The Maiden Tower, Devin Castle’s most famous sight, was depicted on the Slovak 50 halier coin before the adoption of the euro in 2009.

Devin Castle Today

Besides the Upper Castle and remains of the palaces, the grounds also feature the castle’s well, into which visitors can pour a bucket of water to hear its depth, and the ruins of a 4th-century church.

Devin Castle is now part of the Bratislava City Museum. There is an archaeological exhibit featuring artefacts found in the castle area and the history of excavation of the site. Unfortunately, due to an unstable foundation, the Upper Castle has been closed since 2008 for reconstruction. The rest of the castle area is still open to visitors.

Getting to Devin Castle

From the centre of Devin, the castle is reachable in around 2 minutes by car or 15 minutes by foot via the Brigádnická road.

History of Fil’akovo Castle

When Fil’akovo Castle was built, which is said to have been sometime by the 12th century, the area belonged to Hungary, as did most of present-day Slovakia. It would later be expanded both in the 15th and 16th centuries, with the latter improvements being a futile attempt to defend it against the Ottomans.

The most interesting period of Fil’akovo’s history is from the 16th century, particularly from 1554, when it was taken by the Ottoman Empire. The town belonged to the Turks for nearly 40 years, and was made the seat of a sanjak or administrative district of the Empire, hence the palm tree on Fil’akovo’s coat of arms.

In the late 17th century, Fil’akovo Castle was burned and abandoned.

Fil’akovo Castle Today

The main tower, known as Bebek’s Tower, now houses a permanent exhibit on the castle’s history. It includes objects from the Ottoman and Hungarian periods. The top floor has temporary exhibits – for instance, in October 2010, an exhibit displayed African dolls and masks.

Other remains include the palace, a watchtower, and a massive half-circle cannon bastion (the ‘clock’ bastion). As a bonus, the castle provides a stunning and scenic view of the whole town and its surrounding landscape.

Tours of Bebek’s Tower are given in Slovak or Hungarian. After the tour, visitors are free to wander about the ruins via an instructive path which runs around the castle. Access to the castle is via driving to the parking lot by the Municipal Office, then walking around 5 minutes.

Getting to Fil’akovo Castle

From the centre of Fil’akovo, the castle is a simple three minute walk or two minute drive via the Podhradská road.

History of the Museum of the Slovak National Uprising

Before the outbreak of the Second World War, much of the western part of Czechoslovakia was annexed and then occupied by Nazi Germany, which then allowed the eastern part to become an “independent” country. Wartime Slovakia was a Nazi puppet state, led by Jozef Tiso.

In 1943 Edvard Benes, head of the Czechoslovak government in exile in London, began planning for an overthrow of the puppet government. On 29 August 1944 the Slovak National Uprising (Slovenskeho narodneho povstania or SNP in Slovak) began in Banksa Bystrica. The rebels included not only Slovaks, Czechs, Poles, and Hungarians, but fighters from as far away as Britain, Canada, and the United States. Although the uprising was ultimately unsuccessful, it remains an important part of Slovakia’s history, and 29 August is celebrated as a national holiday.

The museum was designed to be a museum as much as a monument. Built between 1966 and 1969, it’s archetypically brutalist, taking the form of a concrete, semi-angular geometric shape. An eternal flame and sculpture entitled The Victims’ Warning stands in the museum as part of the memorial.

The Museum of the Slovak National Uprising

The Museum of the Slovak National Uprising gives a comprehensive view of the conflict, including the political climate in Czechoslovakia and Slovakia at the beginning of the war, the different factions who opposed Nazi rule, and the stories of individual members of the rebel forces. It uses audio-visual displays as well as artefacts, and is presented fully in English as well as Slovak.

Outside the museum is a display of Czecholsovak, Russian and German tanks, guns, an airplane and a life-sized model trench. This display is free, and open even when the museum is not.

Getting to the Museum of the Slovak National Uprising

The museum is located in Banksa Bystrica in the main square. The town is roughly 2 hours drive north east of Bratislava via the E58 and E77.

Orava Castle history

In the mid-16th century the Thurzo family gained control of the castle and began to renovate buildings into Renaissance and neo-Gothic styles. The present shape of the castle was achieved in 1611. The castle burned in 1800 and was reconstructed after World War II, and became a national cultural monument in 1953.

Several rooms in Orava Castle are furnished as they would have been in various periods of the castle’s history. There is also an exhibit on the natural history of the Orava region, and an archaeological exhibit showing the phases of construction on the castle site.

The chapel is decorated in the 17th to 18th century style preferred by the Thurzos. Entrance to the chapel is not included in the price of a ticket to the castle.

Orava Castle today

Classic horror fans may recognize the castle from the film “Nosferatu.” The castle was used as a location for filming. You might find a vampire (mannequin) lurking in a dark doorway, waiting for you.

Visitors must enter with a tour. Some guides speak English, and some texts are in English. The tour lasts about an hour and 45 minutes and involves climbing many steps as the tour works its way to the citadel. During the tourist season there are night tours, and in the summer there are performances on the castle grounds.

Getting to Orava Castle

The town of Oravský Podzámok is a part of Trstená – Kraľovany railway route. There are two train stops in the town: Oravský Podzámok and Oravský Podzámok – zastávka. Oravský Podzámok is a 10-minute walk from the ticket office. There are several buses that go towards the castle and the nearest stop is Oravský Podzámok – námestie.

There are also  2 paid public car parks near the castle, both approximately a 4-minute walk to the ticket office.

Spis Castle history

Whilst a first incarnation Spis Castle was begun in the 12th century, this collapsed due to tectonic shifts. It was thus in the early 13th century that the Spis Castle we see today has its roots, built in anticipation of Tatar incursions.

A Gothic renovation during the second half of the 15th century, under the nobleman Štefan Zápoľský, paved the way for prestigious courtly life. As the threat of invasion lessened, Spiš Castle became a place for balls and upper-class hobnobbing, and much less of a strategic fortification. Details like the castle’s Gothic-style windows are an example of harmony between defensive and decorative design.

After a fire in 1780, the castle began to fall to ruin. Restoration began in earnest during the 1970s, propelling Spiš Castle to fame. Included on Unesco’s World Heritage list in 1993, today it is one of Slovakia’s most popular attractions.

Over the next few hundred years, Hungarian noble families controlled the castle, converting it from a fortress into a palatial home. All of these changes have meant that Spis Castle is endowed with a wealth of architectural influences, including Romanesque and Gothic as well as structures from a variety of time periods. For example, many of the existing buildings were constructed during the 15th century.

Spis Castle today

Eventually abandoned and much of it destroyed by a fire in 1780, the remains of Spis Castle were declared a National Cultural Monument in 1961 and a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1993.

Several movies like Dragonheart (1996), Phoenix, Kull the Conqueror, The Lion in Winter or The Last Legion were filmed here.

In the archeological part of the exhibit you can see findings from the Stone Age until the Middle Ages. Roman coins were also find inside narrow dark cave under the castle.

Castle’s bedroom, washroom, armory, chapel and torture room are also interesting parts of the exposition.

Getting to Spis Castle

Spiš Castle is 1km east of Spišské Podhradie, off the D1 highway or about an hour’s uphill hike from the village. From the (free) car park, there is a steep 10-minute walk to the castle entrance.

History of St Elisabeth Cathedral

Construction of St Elisabeth Cathedral began in 1380 and continued through to the 19th century, with the southern tower being completed as late as 1906. The design and construction of the cathedral was so significant that it influenced the building of other churches as far away as Poland and Transylvania.

The famous Altar of St Elisabeth, with its gothic double spiral staircase – one of just five of its kind in Europe – dates from the 15th century.

Many of the interior decorations exhibit the influence of German and Dutch artists, with a number of frescoes adorning the interior and exterior completed in the 15th century by the master and local artist Štefan being a particular highlight.

Francis II Rakoczi, a Hungarian nobleman who orchestrated the biggest anti-Hapsburg uprising in the former Kingdom of Hungary, is buried in the crypt.

The complex of the cathedral and its adjacent buildings – St Michael Chapel and Urban Tower – were declared as Cultural Heritage Monuments in 1970.

St Elisabeth Cathedral Today

St Elisabeth Cathedral is found on Hlavná ulica, or Main Street, a pedestrian street lined with buildings from many periods, including several beautiful Art Nouveau examples. It is particularly worth climbing the 60 metre high northern tower of the cathedral in order to enjoy a panoramic view of the buildings which give an insight into the country’s heritage and differing architectural styles.

Just behind the cathedral is the smaller but no less beautiful St Michael’s Chapel. Visitors must purchase tickets inside the cathedral to enter the chapel.

Getting to St Elisabeth Cathedral

From the centre of Kosice, St Elisabeth Cathedral is an 8 minute walk via the Hlavná road. It’s also a 6 minute drive via the Štefánikova road. Being located centrally, there’s a great deal to see in the surrounding area.