Slovakia

Starting with the Turks in the 9th century and continuing through to Napoleon Bonaparte’s invasion in the early 19th century, invading kingdoms have been fighting over Slovak strongholds for more than a thousand years. Today’s Slovakia may be a young country, but it has a rich history and culture, an amazing natural landscape, and a capital often referred to as ‘Beauty on the Danube’. 

Much of the country is mountainous and with its majestic peaks, dark turquoise mountain lakes and tumbling waterfalls, the scenery of the High Tatras National Park is breath-taking. More than 300 castles, forts and monasteries dot Slovakia’s landscape. Witnesses to earlier eras, some have been beautifully restored, whilst others have fallen into evocative ruins.

For centuries Bratislava was a small town in the shadow of the nearby Imperial capital of Vienna. Today this small historical city, uniquely situated on the border of three countries, sits only in the shadow of its 9th century hilltop castle. Bratislava is one of Europe’s most charming capitals and the picturesque streets of its old town are literally overflowing with monuments to a glorious past. The River Danube has long been of the utmost importance to Bratislava. In the 1st century it protected the Roman Empire from barbaric German tribes and later it helped protect the city from Tartars and Turks. A cruise on the River Danube, which today serves as a national boundary between Slovakia, Hungary and Austria, is the perfect way to visit the capital of the country at the heart of Europe.