Slovakia travel resources

Before you go

• If you’re not a citizen of an EU country, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland, your passport must have been issued less than 10 years before you arrive and be valid for at least 3 months after you leave the Schengen area. You may be asked to register fingerprints and a photo under the EU Entry/Exit System (EES). It is free.
• Cars and other four-wheeled vehicles up to 3.5 tonnes need an electronic vignette on signed motorway and expressway sections, according to Národná diaľničná spoločnosť (NDS), the state motorway company. Buy it from its shop at eznamka.sk, which NDS says “is the only official sales channel”. See vignette prices and resellers to avoid.
• Your stay must be reported to the foreign police. Hotels, hostels and guest houses do this for you; in private accommodation you must report it yourself within 3 working days of arriving, or 10 working days if you’re a citizen of an EU country, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland, according to the Interior Ministry.

Top destinations in Slovakia

• Bratislava: official site · Wikivoyage
• High Tatras: official site (in Slovak) · Wikivoyage
• Košice: official site · Wikivoyage
• Banská Štiavnica: official site (in Slovak) · Wikivoyage
• Slovak Paradise National Park: official site · Wikivoyage

Travel resources

• Slovakia.travel (official tourism site)
• ZSSK (Slovak national railway operator)

Travel tips

1. If you’re not an EU citizen, carry your passport. Slovakia’s Act on the Residence of Foreigners (in Slovak) says you must prove your identity with a valid travel document when the police ask, and the same act sets a fine of up to €1,600 for not doing so.
2. On Bratislava’s buses, trams and trolleybuses, validate a paper ticket when you board the first vehicle, and don’t validate it again when you change. You can also pay by tapping a contactless bank card on a validator marked with the contactless symbol, says Bratislava’s transport company.
3. Don’t drink alcohol in the street in Bratislava’s Old Town. A city ordinance (in Slovak) bans drinking in all public places in the Staré Mesto and Ružinov districts and at public transport stops across the city. Licensed café and restaurant terraces are exempt, as are events where the city or district allows alcohol sales.
4. Check drink prices before ordering in clubs around Bratislava’s Old Town, and keep sight of your drink. GOV.UK warns of drink spiking, theft and extortionate prices there, and of pickpockets at the Christmas markets.
5. In Tatra National Park, hike only on marked trails and in daylight. Many trails are closed from 1 November to 31 May, according to the park administration (in Slovak). GOV.UK warns that brown bears live in many mountain and forest areas, including the Tatras.
6. In the mountains, call the Mountain Rescue Service on 18 300. Adults must pay the cost of their own rescue or search, the service says (in Slovak), so take out insurance that covers mountain rescue.