Slovakia is a peaceful country, with beautiful scenery, inexpensive shopping and tourism and hospitable people.

Arts and culture centre in the capital city of Bratislava, but locals and visitors alike enjoy performances and galleries in even the smallest of towns.

Slovakia's national parks centre on the country's greatest natural resource: its mountains. From the alpine High Tatras down to the hilly Poloniny in the secluded northeast, this wide variety of mountains provides the lifeblood of the nation, supplying the purest water and air, hosting its richest forests and inspiring most of its folklore.

 

Location:

Slovakia, a small scale country in the centre of Europe, by the words of a folk song allocated "between Tatra mountains and the river Danube", has been a crossroads of Europe since the old times. Bordered by the Czech Republic, Hungary and Austria.

 

Climate:

Slovakia has a temperate climate with cool summers and cloudy, cold winters.

 

Money:

Slovakia’s currency is the Slovenska crown (SKK) which is divided into 100 haliers. Notes come in denominations of 20, 50, 100, 500, 1000 and 5000 SKK while coins in circulation are 10, 20 and 50 haliers, and 1, 2, 5 and 10 SKK.

 

Language:

The official language is Slovak, while Hungarian is spoken also.

 

Cuisine:

Slovak cuisine varies slightly from region to region. Slovak cuisine is traditionally rich in fat. It was influenced by the traditional cuisine of its neighbours and influenced these as well.

Kapustinica Soup - A traditional soup made from cabbage and smoked sausage. It is often served with baked or steamed bread (dumplings).

Studenne Predjedla, or cold appetizers, are popular dishes that include ham, smoked sausage, salami and seasonal vega tables.

Vyprazane Rezne, or fried steak, is one of the most popular Slovak dishes and is served with baked or mashed potatoes and seasonal vegetables. Normally, this meat served is pork, but can often be substituted for beef.

Stuffed peppers are another traditional delicacy and are often served in a tomato based stew and stuffed with meet and rice.

In recent years, various international cuisines have also become popular in the larger Slovakian cities like Bratislava and Nitra.

 

Tipping:

Tips generally aren’t included on bills. 10% is seen as the customary amount to leave. If you are getting taxis you should round the bill to the nearest 10.

 

Electricity and plug converters in Slovakia:

Current is 220 V, 50 Hz.

 

Local Time:

Central European Time (GMT + 1).

 

Opening hours:

Shops open from Mon-Fri 8am-7pm and Sat 8am-1pm. Many museums are closed on Monday.

 

Public Holidays:

Slovakia’s public holidays are New Years Day/Independence Day for Slovakians (January 1st), Catholic Epiphany (January 6th), Easter (March/April), May Day (May 1st), Liberation of the Republic (May 8th), Day of the Apostles (July 5th), Anniversary of the Slovak Uprising (August 29th), Day of the Constitution (September 1st), Our Lady of the Seven Sorrows (September 15th), All Saints Day (November 1st), Day of Freedom and Democracy (November 17th), Christmas (December 24th-25th).