The High Tatras and Kežmarok — tarns, peaks and foothills

Set off early in the morning; the journey via Brno, Žilina and Poprad takes practically the whole day. Check in at a campsite in the foothills in the afternoon and keep the evening for nothing more than a short walk and a first look at the ridge. Do the bigger shop on the way, in Poprad — the shops in the Tatra settlements are small.

Štrbské pleso lies at an altitude of 1,346 metres and the settlement beside it is the highest in Slovakia. An easy path runs around the water with views of Solisko and Patria, and the ski-jumping complex stands above the village. The car park at the tarn is small and charged, so it is more comfortable to leave the vehicle at the campsite and come by the Tatra electric railway — it runs from Poprad via Starý Smokovec to Štrbské Pleso, with a branch from the Križovatka stop in Starý Smokovec to Tatranská Lomnica.

Popradské pleso at an altitude of 1,494 metres can only be reached on foot — cars and motorhomes are not allowed anywhere near it, and the only surfaced road leading there is for walkers. From Štrbské Pleso along the Tatranská magistrála trail it means an hour to an hour and a half of walking; from the Popradské Pleso stop the surfaced track climbs steadily. Above the tarn stands the Symbolický cintorín, a quiet grove with a cairn and wooden crosses commemorating those who died in the mountains. You can return the same way, or carry on past the mountain hut deeper into the Mengusovská dolina valley.

The funicular from Starý Smokovec has been running up to Hrebienok since 1908 and takes you to an altitude of 1,285 metres without a single uphill step. From there a marked path leads to the waterfalls of the Studený potok, where the water forces its way over granite steps — a pleasant option for a day when yesterday's hike is still in your legs. Anyone wanting more follows the waymarks into the Malá or Veľká Studená dolina valleys.

From Tatranská Lomnica a cable car runs up to Lomnický štít (2,634 metres), with a change at Skalnaté pleso; the lower section up to Skalnaté pleso has been carrying passengers since 1937. The ticket for the upper section is tied to a specific time slot and has to be bought online in advance — you will not get one from the self-service machine — and time on the summit terrace is limited to 50 minutes. In strong wind or a thunderstorm the upper section does not run, so keep the TANAP Museum or the Exhibition of Tatra Nature in reserve; both are right in Tatranská Lomnica.

Belianska jaskyňa in Tatranská Kotlina is the only cave open to the public in the High Tatras: the tour lasts around 70 minutes, there are 874 steps and the temperature is about six degrees, so a jacket comes in handy even in August. Tickets are neither reserved nor sold in advance; they go on sale on the spot shortly before entry, and you can only go in with a guide. Further along the way, stop in Ždiar, a Goral village below the Belianske Tatry, where whole ensembles of folk architecture have been protected since 1977. The afternoon belongs to Kežmarok — the Gothic town castle with its museum and the wooden articular church of 1717, on the UNESCO list since 2008.

The last day is given over entirely to the drive back, via Poprad onto the D1 and on towards Žilina and Brno. Set off early so that you have room for calm breaks; on the descent from the Tatra settlements into the Poprad basin, save your brakes by changing down. If you have an hour to spare, Spišská Sobota in Poprad is worth a stop — an urban conservation area with the church of St George and the altar by Master Paul of Levoča.