A weekend for two in the Little Carpathians

The Little Carpathians run north-east from Bratislava as a long wooded ridge, with wine towns at their feet – Svätý Jur, Pezinok, Modra – where cellars open onto courtyards and Frankovka and Riesling are poured beside the barrels. Above the vineyards the beech forest begins almost at once. For two people, it is a place of short distances and slow pleasures: a walk to a ruined castle, an afternoon tasting, a long dinner. The stays chosen here suit a couple's weekend; their form varies, from a room in a wine town to a more unusual retreat in the hills.

Wine at the end of the walk

Paths climb from the vineyards into the woods and come back down to a cellar door. In autumn the towns celebrate the harvest, and the streets smell of young wine.

Two days, unhurried

Modra's blue-and-white ceramics, the Red Stone Castle, a quiet bench above the vines – the region rewards an easy pace and a lot of conversation.