Stiavnica Hills: staying by a tajch

The tajchy are artificial lakes built by the miners of Banská Štiavnica to power the silver and gold mines below the town. Today they lie among beech woods and meadows of the Štiavnica Hills, dark-green water ringed by trees, part of a landscape listed by UNESCO together with the town itself. Every stay in this selection lies near a named tajch; whether you can walk down to the water from the door differs from place to place, but the reservoirs set the tone of the whole area.

Water with a past

Počúvadlo, Richňava, Veľká Vodárenská – each tajch has its own atmosphere, some lively in summer, others hidden in the woods and almost silent.

The town on the hill

Banská Štiavnica rises in terraces of burgher houses, churches and two castles. It is an afternoon away from the forest, and a good place for dinner.