Poprad, The High Tatras

2 weeks ago I took a couple of days off to have a long weekend, and I wanted to go to the mountains. Luckily the weather forecast was ok, so I chose Poprad and The High Tatras as my destination. I booked accommodation in Poprad, and did a day trip up to the mountains. I stayed in Penzion Slavia, good location near the train station, very basic but everything you need and the price was good. The train from Bratislava takes about 3,5 hours and costs 20-25 €. On Sunday the 17th it was important day here, Velvet revolution started 30 years ago! It ended the communist era, and a few years later it ended Czechoslovakia. The day is a public holiday both in Slovakia and Czech Republic.

That day I took the train up to the mountains, to Strbske Pselo (seriously Slovaks, vowels are good letters too). The train (Tatra Electric Railway) takes over an hour from Poprad and the return ticket is just 4 €. It was a bit cloudy up there, but still gorgeous views and there's a lovely mountain lake that I walked around. The High Tatras are both in Slovakia and Poland, but the major part and the highest peaks are in Slovakia. 29 peaks are over 2500 m.

On my way back I stopped at Stary Smokovec, that I actually liked more than Strbske Pselo. On my next visit I think I should stay there instead of Poprad. It was not the high season so it was very nice and peaceful, just as I like it :). First I took some pics from the train.

Then some pics of Stary Smokovec

I took a few more pics from the train, and the Poprad train station.

The High Tatras are just gorgeous, I also took some pics from the train, so the quality is not the best.

On Monday I stayed in Poprad to check what that town has to offer. It is not a big city, according to Wikipedia the population is about 50 000, so it is very easy to just walk around it. The city definitely has its charm!

Tuesday it was time to head back home, the day was gorgeous, so I took some pics from the train.

My next trip will be to Sofia, Bulgaria, on this Friday, just for the weekend, but that will be my next post, hopefully it won't take 2 weeks...  Wizzair flies there from Bratislava, and the return ticket was just about 43 €. And since I can crash on my friend's couch, that will be a very affordable weekend getaway!