RAFTERS from the Zvolen First Rafters’ Association have opened “Dancing Rafts on the Hron,” the name of the new boating season on the waterway.
Tourists can again travel down the river on 12-person rafts as guides in folk costumes inform them of interesting sites on the banks and vicinity, the SITA newswire wrote.
“For example, they tell them about the history of Zvolen, which is one of the five oldest towns in Slovakia, and about Pustý Castle, which is the largest castle in Central Europe, at 7.6 hectares,” Martin Mázor, the association spokesperson, told SITA. “People who want to can visit the ruins of this castle. The upper part is now being unveiled, but the lower part hasn’t yet.”
The main route takes two hours to navigate, and it takes visitors from Zvolen to the Vodácky sportsmen’s camp in the village of Budča. Tourists can get back to Zvolen by minibus. However, Mázor says it is possible to sail from Banská Bystrica all the way to Žiar nad Hronom; such a passage takes two to three days. Visitors interested in these voyages can book them in advance by phone. The boating season will last until September or October.
“It depends on the weather,” Mázor said. “If September is damp and chilly, and if there is fog on the Hron, we will end sooner.”
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