Starý Smokovec, High Tatras, Slovakia

Starý Smokovec is the oldest resort in the Slovak High Tatras and the administrative centre of the town of Vysoké Tatry. It grew from a hunting lodge that Count Štefan Csáky built near a mineral spring in 1793, and by the 19th century it had become a well-known spa. The village lies at about 1,010 meters below Slavkovský štít, and its landmark is the Art Nouveau Grandhotel of 1904.

Starý Smokovec is the main stop of the Tatra Electric Railway, which has run here from Poprad since 1908: the ride takes 25–30 minutes, and trains continue to Tatranská Lomnica (about 15 minutes) and Štrbské Pleso (about 40 minutes), so you can travel around the High Tatras without a car. A few minutes’ walk above the station, a funicular opened in 1908 climbs about 2 km and 250 m in height to Hrebienok, a small ski area in winter and the starting point in summer for walks to the Studený potok waterfalls and to Rainerova chata (1863), one of the oldest mountain huts in the Tatras.

The resort has hotels, guesthouses, restaurants and shops selling outdoor and ski gear, and it runs into the neighbouring spa villages of Nový Smokovec and Horný Smokovec. For cheaper accommodation, Poprad, half an hour away by train, is a practical base.

Key points:

• Altitude: about 1,010 m.
• Founded: 1793, the oldest settlement in the High Tatras.
• Getting there: Tatra Electric Railway from Poprad, 25–30 minutes.
• Funicular to Hrebienok: running since 1908, about 2 km long.
• Nearby: Hrebienok, the Studený potok waterfalls, Tatranská Lomnica, Štrbské Pleso.