Slovacchia: cosa fare e vedere

Bratislava, the capital, sits on the Danube close to the Austrian and Hungarian borders, with a hilltop castle, a pedestrian old town of small squares and the blue-painted Church of Saint Elizabeth. The UFO Bridge has a viewing platform above the river.

Further east, Poprad is the gateway to the High Tatras, jagged granite peaks with mountain lakes, trails and ski areas, and Spiš Castle, a UNESCO-listed ruin, stands above the plains nearby. Banská Bystrica, a former copper-mining town in the centre, has a square of Renaissance houses, and Košice, in the east, has the Gothic Saint Elisabeth Cathedral and a long pedestrian main street.

Bryndzové halušky, small potato dumplings with sheep's cheese and bacon, are the national dish, and kapustnica, sauerkraut soup, is eaten at Christmas. Slivovica is the local plum brandy. Winters are snowy in the mountains, and the best hiking runs from June to September.