Štrbské Pleso

Štrbské Pleso is a relatively small but exceptionally picturesque ski resort owned by Tatry Mountain Resort (as are Jasná and Tatranská Lomnica). It lies on the southern slopes of the High Tatras, and the ski area is on the fairly even but in places steep slopes of Predné Solisko. The village has a well-deserved reputation as the most high-alpine ski area in the Tatras (even though the pistes in Tatranská Lomnica go higher): despite the southern aspect, skiing conditions last a very long time here, and the resort is one of the first to open the season. The village itself lies on the shores of Štrbské Pleso, a mountain lake lined with a dozen or so more or less luxurious hotels, including the Grand Kempinski, the most exclusive five-star hotel in Slovakia. The village was founded as a mountain spa in the second half of the 19th century, but it only developed as a ski resort in the 1970s. In preparation for the 1970 FIS World Ski Championships, modern buildings went up, the transport system was expanded, including a new electric rack railway from Tatranská Štrba, and a new ski centre was built at the mouth of the Mlynická dolina valley. The ski area covers the slopes of Predné Solisko: the Solisko Express 4-seater chairlift, more than 2 km long, runs up towards the summit, with its top station near the Chata Solisko mountain hut. The newer Furkota 6-seater chairlift also arrives close by. Fairly long, evenly pitched red pistes lead down through dwarf pine to the top station of the Interski T-bar and the short 3-seater Moskity chairlift, alongside which you can ski down to the car park near the FIS hotel. In total there are just over 9 km of downhill pistes, mostly red. Near the valley stations of the chairlifts and the car park, the ski jumping complex catches the eye: the large K120 hill, now out of use, and the K90 normal hill, where the 1970 World Ski Jumping Championships were held. The normal hill hosted the Junior Nordic World Ski Championships three times: in 1990 (ski jumping and Nordic combined only), 2000 (ski jumping, cross-country and Nordic combined) and 2009 (ski jumping and Nordic combined only). Štrbské Pleso is also a place where cross-country skiers will feel at home: more than 18 km of trails have been prepared in the area, and the whole site was beautifully laid out and partly floodlit for the Universiade held here in 2015. Because much of the resort is closed to cars, it feels like a true mountain village spread over a large area in beautiful scenery, and practically every hotel here stands in or at the edge of the forest. All in all, it is not a place for wild skiing, but it certainly offers the chance to relax on skis in the most beautiful scenery Slovakia has to offer.