If a rating of the most picturesque places in Slovakia were compiled, this lake could quite deservedly claim a place in the top lines. At least, in our travels around this country in Summer in Slovakia: the world in 4 dimensions, we assigned him one of the 1st three lines.
If we “narrow” the boundaries of the topic, then we are talking about one of the most corners in the protected area of the High Tatras National Park (it is located in the shortest mountain range in Europe).
Although in this case the size does not matter: in the park, two-thirds covered with forests, there are about a hundred lakes. At the same time, the lake in Slovak is called “jezero” (with the emphasis on the 1st syllable), and if the clarification is “pleso”, then it is a mountain lake.
A geographical description of the lake appeared in the 17th century (work by David Frolich, 1664). The development of this region is associated with the appearance of the Kosice Kosice - Bohumin railway line in 1871, which connected it with the “gateway to the Tatras” - the city of Poprad.
Nowadays, a convenient panoramic train runs along the foot of the High Tatras mountain range - from Tatranska Lomnica station to Strbske Pleso station. After a 10-minute walk from the railway platform, you will find yourself on the shore of a mountain lake. It owes its name to the once village, now town, and railway station Štrba, where the border between the High and Low Tatras lies.
The lake itself lies at an altitude of 1346 m above sea level. On its banks there are popular hotels: Patria / Patria 4 * with its characteristic triangular facade against the backdrop of mountains (on the side adjacent to the mountains), opposite - Kempinski Grand Hotel High Tatras / Kempinski Grand High Tatras and small Solisko / Solisko. The lake is surrounded by a walking trail that starts just behind the Kempinski Hotel building and goes to the Patria Hotel.
The village around the lake is a popular resort, better known among our fans of alpine skiing, although there are also many trails for cross-country skiing: when the lake freezes and snow falls, ski tracks are laid here - you run along them and admire the Tatras.
But during the “non-snowy” season - spring, summer, autumn - our tourists come here much less often.
And in vain! We enjoyed walking the trails in the High Tatras National Park. It is famous for its species diversity of plants, many birds, and I saw roe deer. They say that the number of brown bears has also increased, and a friend of mine told me that he watched a bear feast on berries. True, we didn’t have to meet clubfooted people either at the beginning of summer or last fall...
It’s not that far from the lake to picturesque waterfalls, Belyanska Cave and other wonderful places, like Skalnaty Pleso on the way to Lomnicky Peak. But more on this in a separate article.
In the meantime, we are walking along Strbsky...
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- Address:
village Strbske Pleso, Presov Region, Eastern Slovakia
- Additional Information:
By train from the village. Smokovec, where there are many guesthouses and hotels, the ticket is less than 1 euro.
Travel time is 30 minutes.From Kosice - about an hour by highway.
You can go by bus or train to Poprad. From there it’s 12 km to Smokovec, then a train along the Tatras.
Winter holidays are just around the corner and of course you need to plan them in advance. Experienced travelers know that they need to prepare their sleds in the summer. Having studied the information on the winter resorts that interested me, I noticed that the best offers were snapped up back in August and September. But it's not too late to make a good choice. So let's go together on a virtual trip to the highest mountains of Slovakia!
We had a wonderful winter holiday in Slovakia with family and friends and celebrated the New Year there. Of course, there are excellent winter resorts in the Alps, but not everyone can afford such a holiday. You also need to take into account that prices for ski resorts are always higher than for regular ones.
When we were faced with the question of where to go for a ride, my friend from a travel agency suggested going to Slovakia. Since my friends don’t ski, they didn’t care where to go, as long as it wasn’t too far and there was sure to be a lot of snow. Slovakia borders on Ukraine, so we decided to go to our neighbors.
The winter was warm and many winter resorts were empty due to lack of snow. I have already talked about another popular resort among our tourists. Initially, we wanted to go there again for a winter holiday. But webcams on the mountain slopes showed every day only green spruce trees and slopes slightly covered with snow. December was ending, and no snow was in sight.
Sorry for the quality of some photos, half of them were taken from a phone, it’s kind of inconvenient to ski with a camera.
Without hesitation, we bought a tour to Slovakia to the winter resort of Strbske Pleso (I understand, it’s not convenient to read, but this is how the name of the resort is spelled correctly). The resort is called the gateway to the High Tatras because it is the highest and coldest resort in these parts. Exceptional natural conditions, clean air, coniferous forests and picturesque shores of a mountain lake create wonderful conditions for recreation and sports.
During the entire journey we never saw snow until we climbed high into the mountains.
Strbske Pleso is located 33 km from the city of Poprad at an altitude of 1355m, next to the lake of the same name. The ski season is the longest here, so you can safely plan a winter holiday from December to March. In winter the average temperature is -4°.
Lake Strbske Pleso is one of the most popular places for swimming and summer recreation in Slovakia. The unique microclimate has long been recognized as healing, so people come to the resort throughout the year to treat their respiratory system.
Strbske Pleso is also a famous venue for winter sports competitions: biathlon, ski jumping, combined event and snowboarding.
The resort infrastructure is well developed. There are modern hotels, boarding houses, and campsites. Of all the proposed housing, the Fis 3* hotel was closest to the highways, a little further than the Patria 4*.
After reading the reviews, we chose the Fis Hotel, which we did not regret at all. The nearest ski lifts were 30 meters away, which was very convenient. Just left the hotel and in a few minutes you are already taking the chair lift to the very tops of the snowy kingdom.
Trails Štrbské pleso. Photo source travel.ru
There are only six tracks, red and blue, but no black ones. There are rope tow and chair lifts, and there are children's lifts. There is a track with lighting for evening skiing. The total length of the Strbske Pleso trails is 4.5 km, the longest is about 2.5 km. There are snow cannons, but during our stay they weren’t launched even once, for what it’s worth, but there was plenty of snow.
For those who can afford a more expensive winter holiday, of course the resort in Slovakia will seem the most ordinary. And if you are planning to spend your winter holidays in the fresh air, among beautiful mountains and with health benefits, the High Tatras will provide you with this opportunity.
As for Slovak cuisine, we were not able to taste any special delights; Polish and Ukrainian are much tastier and more varied. We don’t like to eat in hotels, so for lunch we always went to some kind of kolyba, it’s a kind of national-style restaurant.
After 5-6 descents, the appetite appeared in earnest, and our entire friendly company ate everything that was brought to us, like locusts. The portions were large, no one left hungry. After having a good lunch, we headed to souvenir shops or went deep into the forest and enjoyed all the splendor, and then I went back to the ski lifts, and my friends went cross-country skiing.
As for lift tickets, it is certainly more profitable to take a ski pass. For the uninitiated, I will explain. Ski-pass subscription, a magnetic card that allows you to enter the ski station and use all lifts.
Official website of the resort Štrbské pleso. www.vt.sk/ru/zima/. Here you can find out a lot of useful information about the weather, prices, webcams and much more.
The Tatras are the highest mountains in Eastern Europe. More than 26 peaks rise above 2500m above sea level. On the territory of the national park, the picturesque landscapes of the rocky mountains have been preserved in pristine beauty. When planning a winter holiday in Slovakia, many tourists go to the most famous resorts of Podbanske, Smokovci and Tatranska Lomnica. The Slovak Paradise is also famous for its beauty; it is a national reserve with unique caves, waterfalls and rivers surrounded by beautiful coniferous forests.
Now dear readers, you will know a little more about the Slovak resort of Strbske pleso. Perhaps you will have a desire to go on a winter holiday to the High Tatras and have a wonderful time among beautiful nature and high peaks.
Thank you for your attention! Take care of yourself!
Lake Strbske Pleso (Strbske Pleso), despite the fact that when pronouncing the name itself you can, as they say, break your tongue, in fact it is one of the most popular and quite ennobled places to relax in the High Tatras themselves. If you decide to relax among the natural beauties of the country, this is the place to start.
In other words, this place is not only a special center where you can spend active holidays, but here you can also enjoy active sports. For this purpose, special skiing trails and cross-country skiing trails have been organized in the area. In addition to all this, here you will also find special springboards for professional-level jumps. In order for tourists to relax in complete comfort, there are a large number of hotels, cafes, bars and restaurants on the lake. In a word, you can relax 100 percent.
Lake Strbske Pleso: How to get there
If you decide to relax on Lake Strbske Pleso, you should consider the most popular ways to get to this place.
Airplane. If you decide to use the services of an airline, the airport that is nearby is located in the city of Poprad — Poprad-Tatry International Airport. The distance from the airport to the lake is about 25 kilometers. Having arrived in Poprad, the further journey can be covered by trains and ski buses.
Train. From Poprad itself you can get to Lake Strbske Pleso by train or train. This type of transport runs several times a day. As for travel time, it is a little over an hour. The ticket price will be about 4 EUR. You can find out the schedule on the official website of the Slovak Railway.
Automobile. If you choose a car, you will spend about two hours on the road. First you reach the village of Tatranska Strba (Tatranska Strba), and after that you need to get onto highway No. 538. Next is a direct path straight to the lake directly along road No. 537.
It is also impossible not to mention such an exotic form of transport as the “zubachka”. This is a tram that, when moving, seems to cling to the rails with its “teeth”. The upward movement of this transport is quite steep. This tram runs from Strba and from Poprad directly to the lake. Such a short journey is very exciting and impressive. You can return to the villages in the same way. The price for movement will be about 3 EUR.
Lake Strbske Pleso: Lifehacks
For those who are already at their destination, there will definitely be something to do. The main thing to remember here is that, despite the fact that the lake contains a large amount of fish, it is strictly forbidden to catch and feed it. In fact, this holiday is very different from holidays on the rivers of Russia or Ukraine. You will be surprised, but a wide variety of exercise machines are located all around the lake. In addition, even an ordinary walk around the lake will be pleasant and memorable.
If you are already fed up with the lake itself, you can take short excursions to the following places:
— Solisko (Solisko). There is an amazing view of the lake itself, as well as the ridges and peaks that are nearby;
— You won’t regret visiting Skok Waterfall (Skok). It is famous in the Tatras for its incredible beauty.
— And, of course, visit Popradske Pleso (Popradske Pleso)- This is also an emerald lake, which is located directly in the niche of the peaks. Many excursions pass through this lake.
The beautiful Strbske Pleso reservoir, located in the High Tatras and one of the most interesting local attractions, covers an area of 19.76 hectares. Situated in a lowland between mountains, it was formed after the collapse of a glacier in prehistoric times. The lake, which was formerly called Gorny, received its modern name in honor of the village of Strba, part of which is the famous ski resort Strbske Pleso. In summer, climbers and hikers come here. Strba is located on the southwestern shore of the lake and is considered the starting point for traveling through several nearby valleys and climbing famous peaks, for example, Krivan. From the east the lake is fenced by the Bashta Mountains. The greatest depth of the lake is 20 meters. Not a single stream flows into it or flows out of it.
The surrounding area of the lake has long attracted travelers. In 1872, a wooden hut was built for tourists on the shore of the lake, from which the Strbske Pleso resort began. The owner of this cottage was the owner of the local land, Josef Szentivani from Liptovsky Jan. At first, the log house was private, and only a year later it was converted to receive travelers. At the same time, another hotel appeared next to it called “Josefova Chata”. Finally, a village gradually formed around these houses, which we now call Strbske Pleso. At the beginning of the 20th century, the fashionable Grand Hotel appeared here. And when the railway line was laid here, tourists began to be seen on the shores of the lake all the time.
A wonderful view of the lake opens from the territory of the Area of Dreams ski center, where the World Ski Jumping Championships took place in 1970.
Štrbské pleso (Štrbské lake), despite language difficulties in pronunciation, is the most popular and ennobled vacation spot in. Holidays in Slovakia on mountain lakes begin here.
This is a kind of center not only for active recreation, but also for active sports. There are downhill ski slopes, cross-country ski tracks, professional jumping hills and much more. As a result, the largest number of hotels and restaurants are concentrated here.
It is easy to get to the lake from the village of Štrba or from Poprad. From Štrba you are taken to Štrbské pleso by a kind of tram - in Slovak “Zubáčka”, which clings to the rails with its teeth to pull passengers steeply upward.
And at the Strbske Pleso station, you can continue your journey through the Tatra villages on this nice train, which then comes to Poprad and back again.
And before it all started here with these trams:
You will see a lot of similar photos in these parts; their history is valued and cherished here. Upon arrival at the station, despite the fact that people are scurrying here and there, you are overcome with a feeling of calm and freedom, because the density of the human mass and even buildings against the backdrop of the mountains is greatly reduced. And peace and quiet are also valued here.
Štrbské pleso (that is, the lake) itself is very large and picturesque, formed by a moraine of a melting glacier... The height of the lake above sea level is 1350 m. The area of the lake is almost 20 hectares. The circumference of the lake is more than 2 km, depth - 20 m.
The lake is full of all kinds of fish, which cannot be fed or caught here; they swim here only on boats or in hotels. This, of course, is very different from, or other rivers and lakes in Ukraine. But here you can play sports - there are exercise machines all around the lake. And it’s very nice to just walk here.
Where to go from Strbske Pleso.
There are plenty of hiking options here.
1. The most predictable option is to go to Solisko. From there you have a good view of the lake itself, the neighboring ridges and peaks.
2. To the Skok waterfall, which, judging by the photographs, is one of the most beautiful in the Tatras (we didn’t get there).
3. On Popradske pleso - another emerald lake, located in a niche of mountain peaks, from where further tourist routes go - to Rysi (2400 m, border between Poland and Slovakia), from where you can get to the famous valley of 5 lakes on the Polish side or on the eastern side part of the Tatras.
Hotel Fis.
This is one of the oldest and most inexpensive hotels in the Strbske pleso area. Its location is ideal for skiers - right next to the ski lifts. You can read about our skiing in this place. In winter the hotel is sold out. In summer it’s calm. Still, there are hotels that are more modern. However, we really liked it here. The staff is very friendly, those who are 40+ understand Russian perfectly. The food is very tasty, a buffet breakfast (take what you want and how much you want) is included in the price of your stay at the hotel. Dinner is not included, but for 10 euros they also offered a buffet, I had to agree, individual dishes are much more expensive.
Window view of the sports area of the territory.
You can freely visit the wellness - an area of three saunas, Finnish, Turkish and infrared with a small pool. The rooms are small but cozy, there is no refrigerator or electric kettle, but the buffet will always boil water for you in a thermos. There is one channel on TV in Russian, WiFi in the reception area.
Well, in general, hotels for tourists who are used to spending the night in tents are always a luxury... Therefore, in order not to forget about who is who, immediately upon arriving at the FIS hotel we went to the mountains that same day.
But this video well conveys the feeling of lightness and freedom that vacationers experience there.
Well, would you relax here? I will be glad to see your comments.
To be continued…