Bystrianska Cave

A cave beneath Chodorový vrch

Bystrianska Cave (Bystrianska jaskyňa) is the most important cave of the Horehronie valley on the southern side of the Low Tatras. It lies at the southern edge of the village of Bystrá, close to the resort of Tále. The entrance is at the foot of the north-western slope of Chodorový vrch at 565 m above sea level.

The cave was carved in several stages by the Bystrianka stream, which flows down from the southern slopes of the Low Tatras and disappears underground in the karst zone. The known passages are more than 3,531 m long with a vertical range of 99 m. There is an older Old Cave, whose entrance lies 70 m above the present stream bed, and the lower New Cave, through which the underground stream still flows. Most passages are narrow and tall, because water widened tectonic fissures, but there are also larger halls formed by roof collapse. The most striking formations are flowstone “curtains” (for example in the Chapel) hanging from the edges of old flowstone crusts, and aragonite occurs in places below the Hell chasm. Thirteen species of bats have been recorded in the cave.

Local people had long known the entrance to the Old Cave, but the first to venture deep inside were J. Kovalčík and E. Laubert in 1923. In 1926 the Hell chasm was discovered, and it later gave access to the New Cave. In 1939–1940 part of the cave was shown to visitors for the first time, still without electric lighting. The Old and New Caves were connected in 1955, and the present 580 m route has been open since 1968. A memorial plaque in the Collapsed Dome recalls a tragic event of the anti-fascist resistance during the Second World War.

What to see

The tour circuit is 580 m long and almost level, with only 26 steps. It takes 45 minutes. Along the way you see three chasms about 20 m deep, while the underground stream flows 15–20 m below the path. The cave is valued for its variety: narrow fissure passages alternate with roomy halls, and flowstone curtains and crusts show how water has decorated the underground over the centuries. The temperature is 5.7–6.7 °C, so you need a jacket even in summer.

Practical information

The cave lies between Podbrezová and Mýto pod Ďumbierom. By car it is 12 km from Brezno via Valaská towards Tále, 40 km from Banská Bystrica via Podbrezová, 50 km from Liptovský Mikuláš over the Čertovica pass and 75 km from Poprad. The entrance is only about 120 m from the car park along an almost level path, making this one of the most accessible caves in Slovakia for families with small children and older visitors. There is a bus stop, “Bystrá, jaskyňa”, next to the cave.

Prices in 2026: adults €10, children aged 4–15 €5, students and over-60s €9; photography without tripod or flash is free. Visits are guided only, Tuesday to Sunday; in summer tours start every hour, in other months four times a day. The cave is closed from November to the end of December. A scheduled tour runs with at least 4 visitors and bookings are not taken.

Nearby

Not far away, beyond Brezno, lies Čierny Balog, where you can ride the Čierny Hron Forest Railway to the Vydrovo forestry open-air museum. On the way to Banská Bystrica you can visit Ľupča Castle, and if you would like to see another cave, head to Harmanecká Cave with its white flowstone.

Official website: ssj.sk

Photos: Pe3kZA, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons.