Okres Považská Bystrica: Hotels and accommodation

The Kostolecká tiesňava offers climbing practice routes ranging from 20 to 200 metres in length. The Manínska tiesňava in Okres Považská Bystrica is less than one kilometre long and narrows to 3.7 metres at its narrowest point. The Kostolecká tiesňava is an approximately 500-metre-long limestone gorge formed by the epigenetic incision of the Manínsky potok stream into the Drieňovka limestone rocks.

Those planning to visit the Manínska tiesňava and Považský hrad may wish to book a hotel in Okres Považská Bystrica.

Nature

The Veľký Javorník National Nature Reserve protects remnants of the original fir-beech primeval forest and rare Carpathian flora. The Pružinská-Dúpna Cave is considered the best-known cave in the surroundings of Pružina. Mojtínska jaskyňa is freely accessible to the public in Mojtín, Okres Považská Bystrica, within the Strážovské vrchy.

Culture and history

The ruins of Považský hrad date from the 13th century; the castle was first mentioned in writing in 1316. From Považské Podhradie, the ruins can be reached via a yellow-marked hiking trail; since 2012, there has been an educational trail with four information panels. The ruins of Považský hrad offer views of the Váh Valley.

The Renaissance manor house in Považské Podhradie is a small, single-storey building with several turrets, built into the slope of the castle hill. The manor house, also called a “castle”, was reconstructed in 2012.

The Považská Bystrica City Museum presents the historical and cultural heritage of the city and region through authentic collections, exhibitions and themed events. The Vlastivedné múzeum in Považská Bystrica has natural science collections in the fields of geology, botany and zoology, as well as social science collections covering archaeology, history and ethnology.

The Church of Saint Andrew in Papradno is designated as a national cultural monument. Horna Marikova is home to one of the most intact ensembles of typical traditional folk architecture of the dispersed settlements in the Javorníky area.

Faith and tradition

The Považská Bystrica Calvary is situated on a steep hill east of the city and comprises twelve small masonry Stations of the Cross and the Chapel of Saint Mary Magdalene. It serves its original sacred purpose again and is also a well-maintained resting place in natural surroundings.

The Bačova cesta connects the sheepfolds in Papradno and Pružina. At its annual opening in May, visitors can learn more about sheep keeping and sheep breeding, as well as taste Slovak dairy products.

Trails

The blue-marked Vážska cyklomagistrála Udiča–Považie is 46 kilometres long and runs through the Maríková valleys and through Papradno, Brvnište, Stupné and Jasenica.

The lookout tower on Stratene is freely accessible year-round as part of the ridge route through the Javorníky; it can be reached, among other ways, from the Papradno-Podjavorník settlement.

The Považský hrad–Manínska tiesňava cycling route starts at the railway station in Považská Bystrica, where there is also a car park. The route from Považská Bystrica to Domaniža leads uphill through the Briestenné natural landscape to the area above Čelkova Lehota. From the summit of this route, good visibility allows distant views as far as Kľak.

More location pages: Waagbistritz, Ďurďové, Kostolec, Sádočné, Vrchteplá, Záskalie, Horný Lieskov, Plevník-Drienové.

To the higher-level travel overview: Trenčín.