Experience the best of Banská Bystrica

Banská Bystrica grew as a mining and trading town, and its historic centre sits around a large square with a town hall and merchant houses. In the medieval period the surrounding hills yielded silver and copper, and the town's wealth came from that work and from trade.

The Slovak National Uprising Museum, which tells the story of the 1944 revolt against the wartime government, lies in the town. The Low Tatras rise to the north, with forests, walking routes and ski slopes at Donovaly. The old mining town of Banská Štiavnica, a UNESCO site, lies to the south-west.

Slovak food is hearty: bryndzové halušky, potato dumplings with sheep's cheese and bacon, is a favourite, and kapustnica, a sour cabbage soup, is a winter dish. Slovak wines and beer are common. Winters are cold and snowy, summers are warm, and the autumn colours in the hills are the most attractive season.