The Manor

Topoľčianky

The manor Topoľčianky is loca-

ted in the village of the same name,

which lies north of Zlaté Morav-

ce. The village is known for its large park,

where the manor is located. In the past, it was home to the

Habsburg family. It was later used by the Czechoslovak

presidents, mainly during World war one. It was during this

time that the last big modification of the manor took place,

mainly of it‘s three renaissance style wings. Tomáš Garrique

Masaryk liked to visit the manor during the summer. He

used it not only for relax, but also for work. A notable part of

the manor is it‘s chapel, built in 1662, where the painting of

it‘s founder, Alžbeta Rákoczy, is located. The manor wing la-

ter turned into a museum of historical furniture and housing

accessories. The library is also open to the public. It contains

over 14 thousand titles, including the first Slovak grammar

book, written by Anton Berno-

lák in 1770. Today, the three

renaissance wings are

being used as a hotel.

The Chateau

Beladice

Pustý Chotár

The chateau was built

on behalf of the Jesen-

sky family in the year

1820. It was expanded in

the neoclassic style at the

end of the century by a la-

ter owner, baron H. Lindelóf.

To this day, the chateau has remai-

ned in its neoclassic form, but with a re-

duced floor plan. The stained-glass windows in

the main entry hall and the beautiful lacunar cei-

lings in the second floor lounges are also notab-

le. The chateau is a cultural heritage monument of Slo-

vakia. After a complete renovation in the year 2003, it has

been opened to public as Park Hotel Tartuf with congress rooms.

A dominant feature of the complex is an extensive park. The Natural gal-

lery of art ceramics, opened in the summer of 2007, is located within the

park. It is a follow-up to the international ceramics workshops that took

place here in the years 1999 – 2009. 52 artists from 4 continents at-

tended these 8 workshops. The gallery is open to all visitors of the

chateau, customers of the hotel, tourists and the wide public.

The Chateau Mojmírovce

The village Mojmírovce is located on the eas-

tern border of the Nitra highlands. A dominant

feature of the village is the chateau, built in 1721 in la-

te-baroque style. A gorgeous park has been built around the

chateau, which has been considered to be the most beautiful park in all

of Austria-Hungary for a long time. After a fire in 1866, the chateau has

been rebuilt in the classic style and today, it serves as a hotel and a con-

gress centre. There is also a stud farm located in the complex, which

was built by the Hunyady family. Many breeds of horses were bred

here, including Arabian, Spanish and Italian breeds. Race hor-

ses, hunting hor-

ses and tan-

dem horses were

also bred here.

The Chateau Oponice

Chateau Appony is a typical fortified chateau built on the turning

point of the 16th and 17th century. The chateau is known mainly be-

cause of its Appony library with an empire interior. The building con-

sists of three double-isle wings in the shape of the letter „U“. It has

two stories and underneath is a partial cellar. In the past, the com-

plex also contained an agricultural building, a chapel and a carria-

ge storage building. The chateau went through an extensi-

ve, four-year reconstruction, during which it was com-

pletely rebuilt and turned into a hotel, which has a ca-

pacity of 150 beds. Aside from the hotel, the com-

plex also contains a wellness centre, an English park

and the aforementioned Appony library.

The Ruins of the

castle Gýmeš

The ruins of the castle Gýmeš are in-

tertwined with the history of the village Je-

lenec, which is also known under the older

name Gýmeš. The village is for the first time mentioned in the Zo-

bor charter from the year 1113 as a part of

the property of a Benedictine monas-

tery. The ruins of the castle are lo-

cated on the quartzite top of the

hill Dúň (514 m). The castle

was built before the year 1253

and was the seat of one of the

most powerful Hungarian fa-

milies, the Forgách family,

which lived on the castle sin-

ce 1865. During its exis-

tence it has been raided

twice by the Turkish inva-

ders and once by the ar-

mies of Gabriel Betlen.

The Ruins of the castle Oponice

The village Oponice is located in the Topoľčany district and was es-

tablished in 1773 through the merging of the villages Veľké Oponi-

ce and Malé Oponice, which were probably founded in the 13th cen-

tury as extramural settlements of the Oponice castle. The origi-

nal Romanesque building was heavily fortified and served well du-

ring the Turkish invasion. It served as a safe haven for the castle

lords. The castle was damaged by a fire in 1645, but it wasn‘t destroy-

ed until the beginning of the 18th century by the emperor‘s armies.

The Mlyňany

Arboretum

The Mlyňany Arboretum

is considered to be one of

the most beautiful and ri-

chest gardens in middle Eu-

rope. Aside from the non-native

wood species and an impressively

aesthetic garden architecture, a neoc-

lassical chateau can also be found in the

complex. The park was founded in 1892 by Šte-

fan Ambrózy, who started to plant non-native wood species

in the adjacent forest. Today, it has an area of 67 ha and there

are more than 2300 species of evergreen and deciduous tre-

es. The park is

complemen-

ted by various

ponds and ori-

ental pavillons.

Did

you know that

the manor chapel

has been an important

destination for pilgrims in

Slovakia since 1686? Did you

know that the study room

of the first Czechoslovak

president Tomáš Garrique

Masaryk is located in

the manor?

Hotel Zámok Topoľčianky

Parková 1, 951 93 Topoľčianky

Phone: [phone]

fax: [phone]

e-mail: [e-mail]

www.zamok-topolcianky.sk

Park Hotel Tartuf

Pustý Chotár 495, 951 75 Beladice

Phone: [phone]

e-mail: [e-mail]

www.tartuf.sk

Appony library

Opening hours:

Monday – Friday: 9.00 – 15.30

Saturday – Sunday: 13.00 – 16.00

Hotel Kaštieľ Mojmírovce

Školská 919, 951 15 Mojmírovce

Phone: [phone], 0907 846 040

fax: [phone]

e-mail: [e-mail]

www.kastielmojmirovce.sk

Château Appony

Oponice 271, 956 14 Oponice

Phone: [phone], 038/323 84 02

e-mail: [e-mail]

www. chateauappony.sk

Did

you know that

the Natural gallery of

art ceramics in Beladice

is unique to Slovakia and

that the name of the complex

„Tartuf“ is derived from a

rare mushroom, which is

a popular meal among

gastronomers?

Did

you know

that thanks to the

Hunyady family, the

village of Mojmírovce

was the birthplace of

horse racing in the

Austro-Hungarian

monarchy?

Did

you know that

stories about welcoming

guests to the castle are

popular among the people? They

were welcomed by the so-called

„shovel dance“. Before they could

sign-in into the visitors book

they had to receive four hits

with a shovel to the

backside.

Did

you know that the

arboretum is divided into

5 parts? These include the rose

garden, the East Asian section, the

North American section, the Native

Slovak section with a decorative

nursery and the original part of

Ambrózy‘s park.

Arborétum Mlyňany SAV

Vieska nad Žitavou, č. 178

951 52 pošta Slepčany

Phone: [phone], fax: [phone]

e-mail: [e-mail]

www.arboretum.sav.sk

Opening hours:

01.04. – 31.10.

Monday – Friday: 7.00 – 18.00 h

Saturday, Sunday, holidays: 8.00 – 18.00 h

01.11. – 31.03.

Monday – Friday: 8.00 – 17.00

Saturday, Sunday, holidays: 9.00 – 16.00

discover the place, live the story

The Bison park Lovce

The Bison park is located 10 km outside of the village Topoľčian-

ky. It was founded in 1958 and it has been a protected study area

since 1964. The Bison park has an area of 140 ha and it is desig-

ned to hold 12 bison. In the year 2008, a forest nature trail has

been built around the entire Bison park. Along the trail, the-

re are informational panels about the life of bisons, but also abo-

ut other animals that can be found in the forest.

Protected area Jelenec Chestnuttree farm

The protected area Jelenec Chestnuttree farm is located on the north-west slope

of the hill Dúň, approximately 5 km from the village Jelenec. It can be reached

thanks to a green tourist trail. The Chestnuttree farm was supposedly founded

in the 13th century by the Forgách family. It is therefore the oldest known at-

tempt at creating an artificial forest in Slovakia. The growth has an area of

3,8 ha and has been protected by law since 1952.

Zobor - Nature

trail Zobor hills

The Zobor hills nature trail has 27 stops

and the overall length of the paths is 14,7

km. The starting point of the main circuit, which leads to Zobor

and back, is the Specialized St. Svorad hospital Nitra Zobor under

the Zobor hill. Tourists can get there using city transport buses

nr. 1, 9 and 25. Besides the main path, the nature trail also has two

side paths – one leads to Dražovce and the other leads to Žibrica.

Main circuit – leading to Zobor

• Specialized St. Svorad hospital - Svorad‘s spring - Svorad‘s

cave – Baring on the road – Three oaks – Shrubbery – Zobor

Hillfort - Trail Markers for Hikers – Pyramid – Zobor –

Tribeč - Animals of the Steppes - Zobor Steppe National

Nature Reserve - Vegetation Growing on Quartzite

Side circuits:

• leading to Dražovce - Thermophilic plants – Pines in

Zobor hills – Vineyard – St. Michal Archangel Chapel

• leading to Žibrica - Goat Ridges - Plants in the Oak and

Hornbeam Forests - Forest Trees - Marks on the Trees - Forest

Birds - Žibrica Nature Reserve - Deciduous

Forest Animals - Žibrica Hillfort - Anthills

The National Stud Farm Topoľčianky

The National Stud Farm Topoľčianky is one of

the most important stud farms in the world

and is one of Slovakia‘s cultural heirlooms.

It was founded in 1921 and since then, the

farm‘s employees and horses have repre-

sented Slovakia in national and interna-

tional breeding and sport competitions.

The National Stud Farm informs the pub-

lic about its activities and contributes to the

preservation of Slovakia‘s

cultural heritage in the

form of horse breeding.

The

Hippology

Museum in Topoľčianky

The Hippology Museum in Topoľčianky is the only one of its kind in all of

Slovakia. It was founded in 1989 and is under the administration of the Na-

tional Stud Farm in Topoľčianky. Visitors can visit

the blacksmith, saddle and wheelwright workro-

oms, as well as learn about the various bre-

eds of horses. They can also visit a carria-

ge storage, with an exposition that shows

various vehicles, and many other attrac-

tions. Horse-collars, saddles and panels

showing the evolution of agriculture and

livestock breeding are also noteworthy.

The Thermal spa

Poľný Kesov

The village Poľný Kesov is located approximately 15 km from

Nitra, in the direction of Nové Zámky. It is known main-

ly thanks to its

thermal spa. The

thermal waters

are used to cure

locomotive organs

and rheumatism. The

visitors can use the sau-

na, volleyball and basket-

ball courts, tennis courts,

fast-food restaurants, table

football and air hokey tables, pool table and many more. There are three

swimming pools in the complex, with a temperature from 26 to 33 ºC.

The Church of St. George,

Kostoľany pod Tribečom

The village Kostoľany pod Tribečom is located in the Zlaté Morav-

ce area. Until the year 1960, the pre-Romanesque Church of St. Geor-

ge, that is located in the village, went mostly unnoticed. The original core

of the church was built in the 13th century. In the middle of the 13th century, a second aisle

was added to the church and the main entrance was placed on the south side. Reconstruc-

tions and expansions of the church also took place in the 17th century and in 1721. In 1963,

a new west aisle was added. The Marian cycle is depicted on the walls of the older aisle and

on the walls of the presbytery. Many traditional Christian themes are also depicted on he

walls, such as the Annunciation, the Visitation, the Birth, the Announcement and the Ado-

ration. The Church of St. George is one of he National heritage monuments of Slovakia.

Did

you know,

that some trees in the

Jelenec Chestnuttree farm

are 300 – 400 years old?

Did you know, that the chestnut

tree was brought to the Tribeč

forest by the Forgách family?

Lesy SR, š. p. Odštepný závod Topoľčianky

Parková 7, 951 93 Topoľčianky

Phone: [phone]

www.lesy.sk

Opening hours:

May – September: 9.00 – 17.00

October – April: 9.00 – 15.00

Did

you know

that the bison

is one of the

largest European

mammals?

Národný žrebčín Topoľčianky, š.p.

Parková 13, 951 93 Topoľčianky

Phone: [phone]

fax: [phone]

e-mail: [e-mail]

www.nztopolcianky.sk

Termálne kúpalisko Poľný Kesov

– Hotel ThermalKesov

Poľný Kesov 252, 951 15 Poľný Kesov

Phone: [phone]

e-mail: [e-mail]

www.thermalkesov.sk

Opening hours:

Monday – Friday: 9.00 – 20.00

Kostol sv. Juraja - Farský úrad Ladice

951 77 Kostoľany pod Tribečom

Phone: [phone]

e-mail: [e-mail]

http://www.ladice.fara.sk/

Did

you know

that the horse

has been of a man

companion and

helper for over

6000 years?

Did

you know that

the Church of St.

George is considered to

be the oldest church

in Slovakia?

Hipologické múzeum

Hlavná 68, 951 93 Topoľčianky

Phone: [phone]

fax: [phone]

e-mail: [e-mail]

www.nztopolcianky.sk

Opening hours:

Tuesday – Friday: 9.00, 10.00, 13.00

Saturday – Sunday: 14.00, 15.00, 16.00

open upon request

discover the place, live the story

Project was co-financed by ERDF- EU funds

„Investícia do našej budúcnosti“

„Investment into your future“

európska únia

TRIPS INTO THE REGION OF NITRA

TRIPS INTO THE REGION OF NITRA

Published by: City of Nitra, 2012

Text: P. Ostovrchá, A. Pivarčiová

Translation: J. Mudrák

Grafic design: Peter Jánsky

Photographs: Archive of Nitra City and Institutions

Managers, P. Rafaj

Print: Patria I., spol. s r.o.

Edition: 3.000 units

Project was co-financed by ERDF- EU funds

„Investícia do našej budúcnosti“

„Investment into your future“

európska únia

Castles and Manor-houses

nature attraCtions

attraCtions in nitra surroundings

beladice

(18 km)

Tesárske

Mlyňany

(38 km)

lovce

(38 km)

topoľčianky

(36 km)

kostoľany

pod tribečoM

(23 km)

Jelenec

(14 km)

zobor

(5 km)

oponice

(23 km)

mojmírovce

(18 km)

poľný kesov

(19 km)