Poprad

Poprad is a major tourist and economic centre in the Prešov region of Eastern Slovakia.

Districts

• Staré Mesto
• Matejovce
• Spišská Sobota
• Veľká
• Stráže pod Tatrami
• Kvetnica

Understand

Poprad is situated in the middle of Podtatranská kotlina. Its area is 63 square kilometers. It is the 10th biggest town in Slovakia and the largest town of the Spiš region. Poprad is an important economic, tourist and cultural center of the Spiš region. The River Poprad flows through the town with its small tributary Velický Potok. Poprad has a mild climate and its weather is influenced by the High and Low Tatras. Winter is usually long and cold with snow. Summer is short and warm. Poprad is called “gateway to High Tatras“.

The town as a whole approximately 53,000 inhabitants. The majority of inhabitants are Slovak but the dominant positions among the ethnic minorities are held by Romas and Czechs.

Climate

History

The territory belonged to the Kingdom of Hungary since the 10th century and was probably originally inhabited by Slavic settlers. It was colonized in the 13th century by German settlers and became the largely German town Deutschendorf meaning 'Germans' village'. From 1412 to 1770, as one of the Szepes towns, Poprad was pawned by the Kingdom of Hungary to the Kingdom of Poland, resulting in a strong Polish influence on the city's further development.

Poprad itself, the first written reference to which dates from 1256, was for 690 years (up until 1946) just one of several neighbouring settlements, which currently make up the modern city. The other parts of the current municipality are Matejovce (first reference 1251), Spišská Sobota (1256), Veľká (1268), and Stráže pod Tatrami (1276). The most significant of these original towns was Georgenberg (or Szepesszombat, now: Spišská Sobota), which preserved its dominant position in the area until the late 19th century.

Get in

By plane

Airport Poprad-Tatry (IATA: TAT) is the highest-placed airport in Europe, 718 m above sea-level. It sees limited, mostly seasonal, service. The nearest international airport is in Košice, approximately 100 minutes by road.

By train

Direct trains serve Poprad from Prague, Žilina, Košice and Bratislava. Trains can be caught from Bratislava main train station (Bratislava Hlavna Stanica) approximately every one to one and a half hours. The approximate fare for this trip, which lasts about 5 hours, is €12.

See (available in English) for train and bus connections.

By bus

From some towns in Czech Republic, Poland or Slovakia it can be easier to catch a bus than a train.

• Bratislava: regular bus connection by many bus companies.
• Košice: regular bus connection by many bus companies.
• Banská Bystrica
• Žilina: egular bus connection by many bus companies, at least once every hour during the day, it takes around 2 hours, tickets cost around €7.
• Zakopane: the bus company Strama goes from Zakopane to Poprad with a few stops in Vysoké Tatry, ticket cost €5,50 one way . This service is irregular, especially in winter. In front of the station in Zakopane, there is a bus stop with a sign that lists the times the bus leaves for Poprad; unfortunately it's in Polish, but it's not hard to figure out. If the service is not running, look for the drivers that stop in front of the bus station. Tell the driver you want to go to Poprad. Your best bet is to get enough people who want to go to make it worth the driver's while. Some locals may also going, so ask them if you can join them to form a group. The driver will drop you off at Łysa Polana (Łysa is pronounced Wee-Sa in Polish), the border town between Poland and Slovakia. Wait for another bus to take you to Poprad (not long).

See

Historical buildings – Classic and Baroque houses, Renaissance houses, Burgher's habitation and church of St. John the Baptist (Ján Krstiteľ) in Stráže, church of St. Ján Evanjelista in Veľká, Renaissance bell tower from 17th century and church of St. Štefan in Matejovce, ruin of Poprad castle from 15th century in Zámčisko nad Kvetnicou.

• Church of St. Egidius, St. Egidius square. Early-Gothic from the late 13th century. Interesting wall paintings (like the oldest High Tatras panorama). 
• church of St. George (Juraj), Spišská Sobota. There is an interesting Gothic altar by Master Paul of Levoča. 
• Podtatranské museum Poprad, Vajanského 72/4. Mondays closed. you could find expositions Gánovce – The Environment of the Neanderthal Man, Prehistoric Age and Early Middle Age below the High Tatras, Poprad through Centuries, Nature both known and unknown, Manufacture of blue-printing from Elemír Montštek's workshop in Hranovnica and Folk plastics. €2, reduced 1. 

Do

Poprad offers a lot of pleasure activities for its tourists and citizens.

• Aqua City Poprad. Aqua City Poprad has several inside and outside swimming pools, sauna, water toboggans, fitness centre, children played ground, hotels, bars, cafés and restaurants.

Poprad has good conditions for sports such as swimming, football, basketball, tennis, and skating, bowling or extreme sports. If you like cycling, Poprad and Svit are connected with bike paths. It is also very popular with roller skaters.

In the winter there is skiing or snowboarding to High Tatras, Svit – Lopušná Dolina, Kubašok – Spiššké Bystré or Poprad – Kvetnica.

• If sports are not for you there is shopping from clothes to souvenirs.
• Young people should visit the International Festival of Mountain Films and the music festival Okey Leto.

Eat

In Poprad you can find restaurants which cook traditional Slovak SLOVENSKÁ REŠTAURÁCIA, Italian Cafe RAZY Reštaurácia, or Country food COUNTRY Reštaurácia. If you like a pizza you can visit Pizzeria UTOPIA, Pizzeria U JOZEFA, Pizzeria PALERMO or Pizzeria ALBANO. On the square of St. Egídius, you can visit the sweetshops - DOMENICO, IZAIRI BIDAET, J a R, JUSIPI HAJDAR or RAMIDA.

Tipping customs are similar to those in Europe and America though tips are slightly smaller; five percent is usually sufficient in restaurants.

Credit cards are quite commonly used in restaurants in Poprad but always ask if it's important to know before hand.

Budget

• Velická izba, Velické námestie 34. 11am - 10pm.  

• Penzión TATRY, Na letisko 72/A.  

Drink

If you want join good drink and fun you should visit GAMMA RAY PUB, SURPRISE CLUB. CafeRazy or SUBWAY. SUBWAY is perfect cocktails and karaoke bar.

Cafés

Domenico is a very good café where you can find many cakes and coffee types. Also, they have got good juices and teas.

Sleep

You can lodge at a range of facilities, from cheapest boarding-houses to expensive hotels. Boarding-houses are Penzión ELIZABET, Penzión SABATO, Penzión TATRY**, Penzión ÁTRIUM** or Penzión FORTUNA***.

For those on a tight budget, Penzión FANTAZIA, or Hostel SLAVIA (behind Penzión FANTAZIA) is a good bet. Both are about 15 mins walk from the bus station.

Hotels are Hotel EURÓPA, Hotel GARNI*, Hotel GERLACH**, Hotel SATEL*** or Hotel POPRAD***.

• Stay Safe.  

Budget

• Penzión - Koliba u Štefana, Športová 4425/4. from 20 EUR. 

Mid-range

• Pension Aqualand. from 40 EUR. 
• Hotel Satel, Mnohelova 825. from 70 EUR. 

Splurge

• Hotel Mountain View, Sportova 1397/1. from 120 EUR. 

Go next

There are many attractive places of cultural and historical interestor of natural beauty to visit within half an hour of Poprad, including Levoča, Spiš Castle, Kežmarok, Vysoké Tatry, the Tatra Mountains and the Slovak Paradise National Park.