Orava Castle

An ‘eagle's nest’ above the Orava

Orava Castle (Oravský hrad) stands on a sheer limestone rock above the Orava river in the village of Oravský Podzámok in northern Slovakia. Its highest part rises about 112 m above the river. Construction began after the Tatar invasion of 1241 on the site of an older wooden fort, and the first written record dates from 1267, when King Béla IV took possession of it.

For centuries the fortress was the seat of Orava County and of the Orava estate, which owned almost the whole Orava region. The biggest rebuilding came under the Thurzo family, who acquired it in 1556; the complex took on its present form in 1611. In 1800 the castle burned down, and only after the Second World War was it thoroughly restored (1953–1968). Today it houses the P. O. Hviezdoslav Orava Museum. Film fans know it from the silent classic Nosferatu (1922): part of the scenes of Count Orlok's castle were shot here.

What to see

The complex consists of the Lower, Middle and Upper Castle, laid out in terraces along the rock. There are 155 rooms and 754 steps in total, so a visit is a real walk uphill.

• Basic tour (A) — all year except April: the defensive system of the Lower Castle, the historical, natural-history and ethnographic exhibitions of the Middle Castle, and the Citadel with an archaeological display and a media room about films shot at the castle. About 60 min without a guide, 90 min with one.
• Small tour (B) — May to October: the treasury, the Chapel of St Michael and the upper floor of the Thurzo Palace. About 30 min, suitable for visitors afraid of heights or with limited mobility.
• Grand tour (A+B) — May to October, all accessible rooms (about 90 min, 140 min with a guide).

The castle looks most dramatic from the bridge and the banks of the Orava. In the main season the museum runs night tours with theatre scenes.

Practical information

Getting there. From Zakopane it is about 64 km by car (roughly 1 h 15 min) via Chochołów and the Slovak towns of Trstená and Tvrdošín; from Liptovský Mikuláš about 47 km, from Dolný Kubín 10 km. The Kraľovany–Trstená railway has a station at Oravský Podzámok, about 10 minutes' walk from the ticket office; the bus stop “Oravský Podzámok, námestie” is 3 minutes away. Several paid car parks lie about 300 m from the ticket office.

Tickets. The ticket office is below the rock — tickets are not sold inside the castle. The basic tour costs €9 for adults and €4.50 for children, students and seniors; a family ticket is €22.50. The small tour costs €7, the grand tour €13. Photography (€3) and filming (€5) are charged separately. Ticket-office hours change month by month (see “Opening hours”); they are longest in July and August (8:30–17:00).

Good to know. Paths inside the castle are steep and uneven, so prams, wheelchairs and bicycles cannot be taken in. Animals are not allowed, not even muzzled dogs. From November to April the chapel, the treasury and the second castle gallery are closed, and in ice or snow the Citadel may close too. There is no shelter at the gate, so in bad weather wait in the gazebo or the information centre. In summer individual visitors can join guided tours in Slovak.

Nearby

Orava Castle combines well with other Orava sights: the wooden Church of All Saints in Tvrdošín (UNESCO), the articular church in Leštiny and the Museum of the Orava Village open-air museum near Zuberec. In Liptov, not far away, are the ruins of Likava Castle.

Official website: oravskemuzeum.sk

Photos: MarianekM, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons; Schliemann, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons; Andrzej Otrębski, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons; Samuel Mudrík, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons; Miro Svorc, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons; Photograph: Kateryna Baiduzha, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons.