Walking holidays, tours and vacations in Slovakia

Meadows, mines, castles and calvaries

Between the bustle of Bratislava and the well-trodden trails of the High Tatra, run ranges of hills, clothed in beech woods and quilted with meadows.  They are wonderful walking country, quiet and peaceful, dotted with villages stirring uncertainly at the interface of old socialism and capitalism.
 
Banská Štiavnica, the focus of our Slovakian walk, was once the “third largest city in the Hungarian empire”, its wealth founded on gold and silver mining, resulting in an extraordinary architectural richness in the town itself, now slowly being restored. Our walk will take you through those hills and villages, and spirals towards the town, where you spend two days exploring its history. 

The holiday ends in Bratislava, with a stay in the best hotel in the old Habsburg part of the city below the castle, close to the Danube.

Hours per day: 2½-5½ 

A longish walk to start with, but then moderate lengths, which can be shortened further if required. Local taxis can be summoned at will.

Difficulty: medium 

All the paths are signed on the ground and on the maps, so you hardly need our walking notes (expertly written and checked by our pioneers). Terrain tricky through woodland on Day 2, otherwise well-established paths. Average cumulative uphill stretches (CUSs) 331m per day.

Total 7 nights in shared room, all breakfasts, luggage transfers, 4 picnics and 2 evening meals and taxi from first hotel to the start of the walk

Savings and supplements

Single Room Supplement £80

Lone Traveller Additional Supplement £25
3rd person and over £70 off per person

3+ bedded rooms - call us for savings

Shorter breaks

6 nights (miss night 6) £460; SRS £60; LTAS £20; 3rd person+ £60 off pp

5 nights (miss nights 6 & 7) £385; SRS £50; LTAS £20; 3rd person+ £50 off pp

Fly to Bratislava

(All flights are subject to change at short notice - please check carefully before you book your holiday)

From:

Birmingham Ryanair, SkyEurope;

Bristol Ryanair;

Cork SkyEurope;

Dublin Ryanair, SkyEurope;

Edinburgh Ryanair;

East Midlands Ryanair;

Luton SkyEurope;

Manchester SkyEurope;

Stansted Ryanair

It is also possible to fly to Vienna.

Typical rail journey:

London: 14:41 Eurostar to Paris (N), walk 10 mins to Paris (E) for 18:54 express train to Frankfurt to catch 23:38 night train to Prague (08:55) to catch the 10:07 Eurocity train to Zvolen osobna stanica arrive 17:50.  ~27 hrs. 

Bratislava: 18:58 Intercity to Vienna (20:08) for 20:28 night train to Strasbourg (06:43) and 07:15 TGV to Paris (E) (09:34). Walk 10 mins to Paris (N) for 11:13 Eurostar, arrive 12:28. ~18.5 hrs.

The first hotel is in Zvolen and the last walking hotel in Banska Stiavnica - last night spent in Bratislava. Best airport is Bratislava, though it is also possible to fly into Vienna

Bratislava airport:

Land by: 13:00 (later arrivals possible except on Sat when onward travel is by bus)

Outward:  Bus/taxi then train:  3–5 hours

OPTION:  Pre-booked taxi transfer from Bratislava airport to the first hotel 2 hrs 

Return: Train then taxi (c. 3 hrs total) to Bratislava hotel (spend 1+ nights) then local taxi to airport or bus.

OPTION:  Pre-booked taxi transfer from Banska Stiavnica to Bratislava hotel (or airport) 2 hrs

Return flight earliest:  No limit if you are prepared to miss breakfast and use local taxi.

For pre-bookable taxi prices, see "Price includes"

 
Nearest railway stations :

Start: Zvolen (short walk)

Finish: Bratislava (taxi from hotel)

IMPORTANT: Do not book your flights until we have confirmed that we have provisionally reserved accommodation for you.