Trips around Bytča district
Hello travelers! If your journey leads to Bytča or you pass by this city, I have some TripTips for you. I visited so many known and less known places around Bytča during our summer holidays which I am going to introduce you right now! You might need to travel more because some of the TripTips are situated not in the heart of Bytča city or if you have a bicycle or a car it is also great benefit. I hope you will find some new places which you would like to visit. So here we go! 🙂
Bytča
Bytča city is surrounded by many villages and stunning nature about which is written more down below. Anyway, if you like more city life, coffee bars, restaurants and parks, Bytča has everything you need. Besides, it is not much, there are some places I really recommend to you!
Bytča is known, similar to Štiavnik, for its special ice cream. It is next to the supermarket Lidl and trust me, you won´t be able to decide which flavour to buy. If I should recommend you some restaurant, it will be definitely newly opened City Hall at the square next to other ice cream shop. Food is served like from professional cooks. They offer variety of burgers, cakes and pies, lemonades and so on. And then there are other good restaurants as V Uličke, Restaurant Gallery, Palatín and many pizzerias – Pizza Restaurant Baba, Lunario, Expert pub pizzeria.
The best coffee bars are at the square and if you want to have a rest, everywhere around you are zones for relax and also benches. Spectacular park is also near Bytča castle where a dragon used to live. Maybe if you look carefully, you will find him near the castle. If you are kind of art lover, in Wedding palace are sometimes exhibitions and also balls and weddings.
But…. If you are a sporty type, good option for you is roller skating near chapel on the edge of the city or near Bytča “canal”. Don´t be afraid, I know it sounds horrible but water is full of fish and wild ducks. Many people go running or walking with their dogs by the canal. Walking during the sunset can be really calming, refreshing and romantic.
Súľov
Besides, there is beautiful look out tower (article here),
and also small, mysterious cave, which I visited last year (article here).
There are several footpaths and routes for tourists which are really stunning. You can ride a bike or go on your foot but do not forget to take some snacks, water and Trip is ready to start! Admittedly, I haven´t visited every well known place, but castle in Súľov, which I visited 2 times already, stuck in my mind. To be honest, there are just ruins of the castle and its walls. Many wooden boards will acompany you during your way up to the castle ruins. You will get information about animal species living in Súľov and also about the nature there. I promise you won´t get lost because the boards will lead you straight to the castle. On the top of the hill is beautiful breathtaking view on village Súľov and there is also, unfortunately, place of death. In 2008 one family decided to go for a walk to the castle with their small 2 years ol child. Suddenly, thunderstorm surprised them near the ruins. They hid in the ruins and then lethal lightning took its victims. Woman and her child died here…
So be careful with the weather and don´t risk hikind in bad conditions.
If you sucessfully manage to get to the top of the hill where the ruins are situated, after walking down do not just walk around the restaurant on the meadow. Halušky are the best there! 😛 And if you are bold enough to try ride a horse, you have the best option in Súľov. You can pay for just one ordinary ride or you can prepay ´riding school´ for 10 rides. The instructors will tell you everything about horses and also how to take care of them. During summer season is possible to attend summer camp for children. Imagine stunning nature, rocks, sheep, horses, wind in your hair… This is the best healing for your soul!
Hlboké nad Váhom
Term Hlboké nad Váhom rainfall shouldn´t be unknown for citizens of Bytča. If you don´t know this beautiful place you should definitely plan your next trip right now, right there! It won´t take long from the village Hlboké nad Váhom. It is around 15 minutes walking up to the woods from the centre of the village. Your trip will be most beautiful during winter because of the icicles and frozen water in the small watercourse that flows from the rainfall near the road you will walk by. The unique environment of the 15-meter waterfall was also admired by spectators of popular fairy tales Perinbaba, Salt over Gold, Tomáš Sokol and Dúhenka. I recommend to climb up to the top of the rock from which the rainfall slowly falls down. You can then walk behind the rainfall and see very special sceneries situated only in Súľov rocks. I must admit that we got lost in the forest behind the rainfall but we found the way back to the rainfall very easily.
Another spectacular place to see in Hlboké nad Váhom is calvary. When you find a church on the hill, keep going up the stairs that will lead you to the grave made of rocks where is a statue of Jesus Christ. It is very peaceful place where you can recover, pray and admire the nature around you. I recommend to go there during the sunset, it is overwhelming there …
Svederník
In this village you will find a young lookout tower resembling a cross. I admit that I did not expect the journey to take more than 30 minutes, but it really took approximately 45 minutes. As soon as you see a nice painted bus stop, which is also below in the photo, turn off the main road towards the street and pass by. Next, you will be led to a lookout tower by the signs, which are really on every corner. Being literally in the heart of nature, it is surrounded by unspoiled nature, forests and meadows. You will find here beautiful peace and certainly your lost energy. Enjoy a moment of silence. 🙂
Štiavnik
This time I advise you to refuel at least a quarter of the tank or get a good bike tour. Štiavnik is one of the longest villages in Slovakia and you will see it for yourself. Near the end there is a nice lookout tower, as well as amazing forests full of mushrooms, but also a brown bear and a predatory wolf, so be very careful in the woods. If you walk up to village, you will see grazing fallow deer on the left.
After a difficult hike and ascent to the lookout tower, I recommend you to refresh yourself with a wonderful ice cream. For a low price a huge pleasure, interesting flavors and really big deserved portions. Ice cream is situated in the center opposite the church. Bon appetite! 🙂
Hričovské podhradie
Hričovské podhradie does not bear its name just like that. It is really located under the castle. Its walls are well preserved and in recent years the castle has been reconstructed. I think that it will take a couple of years to complete the castle, thanks to the wrong approach, but I am looking forward to the result now. Do not be discouraged by the scaffolding, because from the first imaginary hall you get further. Just walk through a small hole through the scaffolding. Near the castle is a blackboard with much information and legends about the castle. On the way to the castle you will be accompanied by wooden boards with ornaments and information about the history of the castle and its owners.
At the beginning of the village there is a shop selling cheese products. You can also order a cheese cake for celebration, or just ward off hunger as you climb the castle.
Link for the cheese products – http://syrove-torty.sk/
Divinka
I must admit that I had planned to visit the lookout tower in Divinka also during the summer holidays, but somehow there was no time or a good partner left :/ Therefore I decided to allow my friend to become famous on our website with her experience of a trip to the lookout tower. She has beautifully described both – the way and what awaits you at the finish. THANK YOU! @anetkakrajka
The lookout tower in Divinka was officially opened on New Year’s Eve in 2018. I was there with my boyfriend in early February, but I think the lookout tower has a charm at any time of the year. You can get there easily, either by bus, where you get off at the stop just behind Coop Jednota or by car, which you enter the first one-way behind Jednota. The car can be parked at the cemetery, where our whole tour started. On the lookout, we were guided at the beginning by a footpath that begins at the house of mourning and continues to the lookout. The whole route is marked with arrows and signs. We only hesitated once when the road was divided in two directions, but fortunately we chose the right way – to the right. The road to the lookout leads mostly through the forest, eventually along a meadow. During the journey, benches and educational information boards about Veľký vrch are placed along the sidewalk.
Velký vrch has a rich history and archaeological research was carried out, but the lookout tower is located on Malý vrch. Gradually, we got to the wooden lookout tower, which is about 20 meters. The whole tour took us 35 to 40 minutes in a relaxed pace. All we had to do was to climb the stairs and finally we could breathe and enjoy the view not only of Divinka, but also the Hričov dam and the wide surroundings. Benches are also located below the lookout, where we have strengthened a little. It is an unpretentious and low-cost trip in the vicinity of Žilina, so I highly recommend it to all those who love walking and do not know where to go over the weekend.
