"A Great Experience To Cachtice Hrad..." Cachtice by coceng

Cachtice Travel Guide: 54 reviews and 93 photos

BRATISLAVA<<<<<CACHTICE>>>>>TRENCIN

SLOVAKIATuesday 14th May 2002
Marek (my student friend from Bratislava) made my dream came true ! This was the main reason why I wanted to be in Slovakia. To see The Countess. To see what it was like to be at her Castle. To wander the hill where many girls were grisly murdered. Am I morbid ? What's so morbid about that ! It's all about experience of being at one place; of being able to reach one dream place & feel the history of the place.
Me & Marek took the train from Bratislava to Nove Mesto nad Vahom, then another train to a small village called Cachtice. Walking was next on our agenda. A good walk seeing the rural Slovakia. Passing green hills, cemeteries (no, I am not morbid !), shops, houses, churches...Then, hiking up. Up the hill where those girls were going, same place where me & Marek were going, wish somebody could give us ALL a lift ! It was quite a walk, believe me.
Marek was occasionally heading way in front of me 'cos he had long legs to be proud of. Me, I just stagger along. As we walked nearer the top, the scenery opened itself even more daring. Yellow, green hills looming in the distance.
Is it still further up Marek ? Wonder if he could hear me.
The sign was white rocks on top of the hill, well of course that's the Castle wall.
We were there !
Impressive ? Yes. Not just the ruins (it's all in ruins of course & Slovak government should make this Castle as one their National Treasures. It is actually) but the rolling hills & small houses & the small village down below looked utterly stunning.
Marek probably thought I was crazy for taking like 2 rolls of films on Cachtice Hrad alone, he only took 2 photos I think.
Spent a good hour on top. Could hear the wind cried "Alzbeta....." maybe summoning her about this Asian guy who wanted to meet her.
We bid farewell to the wind & going down. Easy. We arrived at a small village called Visnove. A quite town but would love to talk with the villagers about The Countess. Many versions of the story I bet.
We caught the train back to Noce Mesto nad Vahom, collected our luggage & took the train to Trencin.
What an experience for me ! Cachtice Hrad. Thanks Marek BIG, of helping me & accompanying me to one of the best kept secret Slovakia could offer !
Many more castles of course in Slovakia. Choose the one which tickles your fancy just as Cachtice Hrad did on me.

The History...

The fame of this castle...is the history of a 17th century mad Hungarian Countess by the name of... Alzbeta Nadasdy-Bathory [Please click !]....who tortured & murdered over 600 peasants women here & elsewhere.
When her wrongdoing was discovered, she was then imprisoned in Cachtice for the rest of her life !
There should be a confirmed history about this, or at least a movie on her & her wrongdoings...but for now, at least we can see & being in the castle where she was supposed to be imprisoned till the end of her life...
Since the fire in 1708, there isn't much of the original left from the castle ruins but it definitely has great views to as far as the eyes can see...& the small town, Visnove lies below the hill.....

The Slovak Plains...

Climbing Up...
There's a road trail to the ruins...& yes, we can drive near to the top if hiking is too tiring for some people...
If you do hike, we get to see some amazing plains & hills as I captured from the photo on the left...
More photos from The Cachtice Hrad...:

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The Direction :
By car, Cachtice Village is 7 km south-west of Nove Mesto nad Vahom;
Visnove & the castle are 5 km from there on a side road south of the village !~

Nice Trees All The Way...

The Road Trails...
Here is the road trail...walking, by bike, by scooter...even by car ( no speeding please !) is possible..just hope that nobody comes from the decending direction...or vice versa !
Please take a look of some tips that I could offer in my Travel Tips below & many many photos of the Cachtice Hrad...plus everything that my camera captured along the way to the top of the hill, in my Travellogues below...

My Itineraries In SLOVAKIA...
Arriving in Cachtice from Bratislava...on Tuesday 14th May, 2002....spent a few hours enjoying the castle ruins & the town below...
Then, me & Marek continued our journey to Trencin,..on the same day....& that night, we would take the midnight train to Kosice....
Slovakia was my 2nd country on this trip, & previously I was in Austria....
Please have a visit to all the places that I went to around Slovakia & Austria....on my Travel Pages, with lots of photos & great places to discover!
My next destination after Slovakia was Poland....more places & photos!

Thank You.

Pros and Cons

Pros:A Satisfying & Amazing Hike For Me !
Cons:Overlooked By Mass Tourists...(Until Now).
In a nutshell:Try To Reach Here If You Are In Slovakia !

Last visit to Cachtice: May 2002
Intro Updated Jun 2, 2004
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Reviews (26)

The Amazing Cachtice Hrad... Favorites (14)

This castle was one of several 13th century Hungarian strongholds between Piestany-Trencin. In the 17th century, a mad... more travel advice

The Amazing Cachtice Hrad... Favorites (14)

This castle was one of several 13th century Hungarian strongholds between Piestany-Trencin. In the 17th century, a mad... more travel advice

Amazing Walk... Things to Do (10)

To get to The Cachtice Castle (Ruins), first I had to reach Nove Mesto nad Vahom. This laidback town lies between... more travel advice

Amazing Walk... Things to Do (10)

To get to The Cachtice Castle (Ruins), first I had to reach Nove Mesto nad Vahom. This laidback town lies between... more travel advice

Transportation (2)
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Comments (6)

katamorgana Sep 15, 2005 at 4:49 AM Report Abuse

Hello coceng, I have never realised, how interesting place could be Cachtice ( I like it there of course). I am sitting on my bike and going there. Good pages. (-:
matcrazy1 Aug 13, 2004 at 4:07 PM Report Abuse

Interesting destination I should visit. Good page and lovely pictures.
Skipka Oct 6, 2003 at 3:53 AM Report Abuse

Excellent source of info about our Bloody Countess :) here and there if u will be able to find books of J. Niznansky should be great for you to read. Fiction is called in Slovak Cachticka pani (The Lady of Cachtice).
renuschka Jun 1, 2003 at 9:30 AM Report Abuse

Elizabeth Bathory is very nice done
yen_2 May 26, 2003 at 9:27 AM Report Abuse

Interesting place, sounds like so far away yet so near;-)Great memories!
MEdelmann May 22, 2003 at 10:19 AM Report Abuse

What an interesting place! I never heard of it... although it seems not very far away from here ... and great updates again!