Easiest Way to Visit the High Tatras in Slovakia Without a Car

So you’ve heard Slovakia has gorgeous mountains called the High Tatras?

And you would like to go there, for hiking, skiing or just chilling in a spa with the peaks as your backdrop?

That’s fair enough!

The problem with this idea is that information about Slovakia is often not straightforward, complete or in English.

That’s why we decided to write this guide, because honestly, figuring out a trip to the mountains can be overwhelming even for a Slovak person, if it’s their first time.

Fear not though. We’ll tell you the easiest way to visit the High Tatras in Slovakia—and without needing to hire a car as well!

Read on to find out all you need to know to have a fun and stress-free trip to the famous Slovak mountains.

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please read our Disclaimer.

Here’s a little bit about our journey, if you are new here! If you know us, feel free to skip this part.

After leaving our old life in Scotland in March 2022 (it rains too much there), we travelled full-time for almost 2 years. Sounds fancy, doesn’t it? Well, it was. If you think that carrying overpacked backpacks in 45°C heat around streets that aren’t even on Google Maps is fancy. And that’s just 1% of all the fun we had! 😆

During the 2 years we volunteered in Italy and Bulgaria (free travel while learning new skills, anyone?), explored other amazing European countries and backpacked Southeast Asia. Btw, even our secret wedding was more of an expedition than a wedding. 😅

And, of course, we researched and planned everything ourselves, because you gotta keep the budget low, right? If you are like us, you’ve come to the right place, because we want to share all the useful travel tips and info with you!

Excited? Good. Let’s get into it so you can go on your own epic adventures too!

Why should you trust our advice on Slovakia?

If you don’t know us – hi! We’re Mirka & Daniel and we know a thing or two about Slovakia.

Mirka is actually originally from there and Daniel’s earned his unofficial Slovak badge over the years of visiting and even living in the country. (We made it our temporary homebase after full-time travels almost ended our health and sanity.)

So why trust us?

Well, we’re locals. We are experienced travellers. And we research the hell out of everything to get the best experience we can and then share the info here with you, so you don’t have to do the work yourself.

Still not convinced? Drop us a message on our Instagram and we can chat—that way you’ll see what cool people we are! 😏

This will help you when planning a trip to Slovakia

If you’re planning to visit the High Tatras in Slovakia, this might come in handy:

• First of all, can you drink tap water in the country or will you 💩 yourself? We’re sure you agree that this is crucial information.
• Second, is Slovakia a safe country? This is also super important to check out, especially when heading to the mountains. If you’re planning to visit the High Tatras in Slovakia, don’t skip this post.
• Third, are you looking to update your bucket list? These are the 19 unique things you can do in Slovakia—check them out.

And if you’re overflowing with questions and/or anxiety, we can help! Book a call with us and we can plan your trip to Slovakia together, to make sure it’s stress-free and worth your money.

Can you visit the High Tatras in Slovakia without a car?

First, a valid concern you might have.

Is it possible to visit the High Tatras in Slovakia without hiring a car?

And not just visit them, but get around there, so you actually get to see something, go on hikes and enjoy your holiday?

Yes, the High Tatras are absolutely doable using just public transport – we’ve done it multiple times and we’re car-free travellers!

It’s true that you won’t be able to get everywhere super easily, but there are plenty of beautiful places you can reach using public transport alone, whether in the winter or the summer season.

Let’s talk about specifics.

The easiest way to visit the High Tatras in Slovakia

As an example in this post, we’re going to assume you’ll fly into Bratislava, before heading to the High Tatras.

Keep in mind though, that you can also:

• Fly to Vienna and then take a direct bus from the airport straight to Bratislava 
• Fly to Košice, Slovakia’s second largest city in the east of the country
• Fly to Poprad from some places in Europe

We’re listing Poprad even though it’s a small airport with not that many flights, because Poprad is actually where you want to get to. It’s your getaway into the High Tatras Mountains.

In our example, here is how your journey will look:

Fly into Bratislava – take a direct train to Poprad – take a train to a mountain village which will be your base.

Sounds super easy, right?

We did promise you the easiest way to visit the High Tatras in Slovakia!

Now that you know the route, let’s talk about details, so you can actually do this trip stress-free and with confidence.

How to take a train to Poprad

First part of your journey will be taking a train to Poprad, most likely from Bratislava, unless you find yourself somewhere else in Slovakia.

Either way, head to this website to find your connection and buy a ticket.

Pro tip: get your ticket online, not over the counter. You will avoid a potentially unpleasant conversation, where the cashier might not speak English, plus a fee. (This is a recent invention to try and discourage the use of physical tickets in the name of making more money for the government, sorry, we mean in the name of protecting the environment!)

Make sure to do this when buying a train ticket

When buying your train ticket on the website, make sure you also get yourself a seat reservation, especially if you’re travelling to Poprad from far away, like Bratislava.

The trains heading to the mountains (or east of the country) are forever busy.

You won’t be the only one on your way to visit the High Tatras—there’ll be loads of people, with loads of bags, suitcases etc.

Since the train takes nearly 4 hours, everyone wants to sit, so nearly everyone buys a seat reservation.

That means you might struggle to find a free seat without one—plus often the reserved seats are not marked as reserved (or people buy seat reservations last minute), so it can lead to you being kicked out of your seat and having a Slovak person speak at you in a scary language. 😄

The seat reservation will only cost you around €1 extra, so it’s definitely worth it, even if you’re otherwise a budget traveller set on saving money.

How to get from Poprad to the High Tatras

Poprad sits at the foot of the High Tatras, so, technically, you could base yourself there, and just do day trips into the mountains.

We have a friend who’s done it, car-free, so it’s doable.

The issue is, every day you’ll waste time (and money) travelling to the mountains from Poprad, before you can start your hike/walk/day trip.

This is why it’s better to base yourself in one of the mountain villages.

Where to base yourself when visiting the High Tatras in Slovakia

If you check a map, the High Tatras look super confusing, so trying to figure out where to base yourself will probably make you wanna scream.

It’s actually super easy, though!

All you have to look at is this map of local trains.

What it tells you:

• From Poprad, you need to go up, into the mountains.
• The horizontal list is all the mountain villages where you can base yourself.
• The 3 most popular ones are: Tatranská Lomnica, Starý Smokovec and Štrbské Pleso – you can see them highlighted on the map as the main locations.
• These 3 will give you: most accommodation options, easier access to hikes, more frequent transport, more shops, restaurants etc., in comparison with the smaller villages on the map.
• The disadvantage of staying in one of the 3 most popular places is that they are more busy, so if you’re after a quiet, peaceful mountain holiday, these 3 might not be ideal. Prices also tend to be higher in these 3 locations (of accommodation, but also restaurants etc.).
• When choosing which mountain village to stay at, decide based on accommodation available (and its cost) and transport to the places you want to visit (waterfalls, mountain peaks, caves etc.).

If you want to avoid having a 1* experience in a 4* hotel, like we did, make sure you book your accommodation early. You can use the map below to check out the prices. We’ve pre-set it for Starý Smokovec, but when you unzoom, you can see the other mountain villages too.

Our personal experience

We previously stayed in two of the popular locations: Tatranská Lomnica and Starý Smokovec.  

We did also go on a holiday to Stará Lesná, one of the smaller villages, because we could get a stay in a 4* hotel for (almost) free there. We share how we did that here, btw.

This was in the middle of summer and the difference between the 3 popular locations and a quieter one (Stará Lesná, in this case) was palpable.

As we travelled around on buses (because we were doing a car-free visit to the High Tatras), the 3 main locations were buzzing with people.

We were actually so happy to then come back to Stará Lesná, to peace and quiet.

The one big disadvantage?

The train and bus stops in Stará Lesná are a 20-minute walk to the 4* hotel we stayed at.

And before that we stayed in a guesthouse that was 20 minutes further, so on those days, we had to walk 40 mins before and after every day trip. Combined with the actual hikes, in the summer heat, it was not the most relaxing holiday! 😅

These are all the things that are worth considering when you’re planning your visit to the High Tatras in Slovakia.

If you want to run your ideas or itinerary by us, btw, just book a call with us. We can sense-check your plan and make sure you have the best, stress-free holiday in Slovakia!

Poprad to High Tatras transport

Now back to how you actually get from Poprad to your chosen mountain village, without a car.

Use the same website as before to see train connections and to buy your ticket.

You will, basically, go up and then along the horizontal route (see the map again, if you have no idea what we’re talking about).

How to get around the High Tatras in Slovakia

Once you’re in your mountain village, it’s pretty easy to get around.

Again, use this map and just move along the horizontal route, depending on where you want to go.

For train schedules and tickets, head to the same website as before.

For bus connections, because some places are better served by buses, use the journey planner on this website. You can buy bus tickets in person, on the bus, directly from the bus driver.

Remember, if you have any questions, shout us on our Instagram, or book a call so we can have a proper chat about your travel plans.

Bonus tip: do this before heading to the High Tatras

Here’s a little tip that might make a big difference to your visit to the High Tatras in Slovakia.

The mountain villages we recommended to you as your base?

They all have shops.

But outside of the 3 most popular locations (Tatranská Lomnica, Starý Smokovec and Štrbské Pleso)?

Your only option might be one small shop, with such awkward opening hours, you’ll never actually be able to shop there (that was us on our holiday in Stará Lesná).

The best thing to do?

• if you want to stock up on food, because you are staying in a self-catering accommodation, like a mountain cottage
• if you want a big variety to choose from
• if you have special dietary requirements

Shop in the big supermarkets in Poprad, before heading to your chosen mountain village.

You can find a big supermarket called Kaufland right next to the Poprad train station. It’s also one of the cheapest supermarkets in Slovakia, so it will help you if you’re doing the trip on a budget.

Don’t forget this when travelling to Slovakia

We’ve already mentioned safety in Slovakia once, but just to be sure:

DON’T FORGET TO CHECK OUT THIS POST ABOUT THE DANGERS IN SLOVAKIA!

“Whoa—why are you yelling at me,” you’re probably thinking.

Apologies, here is a (virtual) calming cup of tea aka the British solution to every problem, from a tough day at work to your luggage going missing to discovering you met a fake Santa, instead of the real one. 

But really, we just want to make sure you hear us, because safety is super important to us.

So. Joking aside. If you want to stay safe in Slovakia:

• Read this post on the dangers that await you there, especially in the mountains.
• Get travel insurance.

Speaking of travel insurance, make sure it’s a good one.

We trust True Traveller—the company was created by 3 travellers to help other travellers—like you or us!

With them, you’ll get awesome features other companies won’t give you, mindblowingly good customer service and, best of all, it will all come at a fraction of the cost of other insurance providers.

Check them out and make sure you’re insured before your trip to Slovakia (there are some really scary things waiting for you there😬).

This is the easiest way to visit the High Tatras in Slovakia. We hope we showed you it’s totally doable, even without a car!

If you have any questions, drop us a DM on our Instagram or book a chat with us, so we can help you with your travel plans.

And if you do visit the High Tatras in Slovakia, send us a pic from your trip—we’d love to see your adventures!