Považská Bystrica
| Považská Bystrica | |||
| Town | |||
 from above Church of the Visitation of the Virgin Mary in Povazska Bystrica, view from Milochov, Považský hrad
|
|||
|
|||
| Country | Slovakia | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Region | Trenčín | ||
| District | Považská Bystrica | ||
| River | Váh | ||
| Elevation | 288 m (945 ft) | ||
| Coordinates | 49°06′50″N 18°26′30″E / 49.11389°N 18.44167°ECoordinates: 49°06′50″N 18°26′30″E / 49.11389°N 18.44167°E | ||
| Area | 90.555 km2 (35 sq mi) | ||
| Population | 41,697 (2009-12-31) | ||
| Density | 466/km2 (1,207/sq mi) | ||
| First mentioned | 1316 | ||
| Mayor | Karol Janas | ||
| Timezone | CET (UTC+1) | ||
| - summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||
| Postal code | 017 01 | ||
| Phone prefix | 421-42 | ||
| Car plate | PB | ||
   Location in Slovakia
|
|||
  Location in the Trenčín Region
|
|||
| Statistics: MOŠ/MIS | |||
| Website: http://www.povazska-bystrica.sk | |||
Považská Bystrica (Slovak pronunciation: [ˈpoʋaʃskaː ˈbistritsa]; German: Waagbistritz; Hungarian: Vágbeszterce) is a town in northwestern Slovakia. It is located on the Váh river, around 30 km from the city of Žilina. It belongs to Upper Váh region of tourism.
Považská Bystrica is situated in a fold of mountain ranges Strážovské vrchy (1213 m) and Javorníky (1071 m a.s.l.). Mountains offer an attractive experience to trekkers and mountain-bikers in summer season, cross-country and skiing opportunities in winter season. Veľký Manín mountain (890 m a.s.l.) dominates the town skyline providing views from most places in the town. On the hill next to the town on the opposite side of the river Váh lies the ruins of Považský hrad castle with two manor houses beneath, to which the town's history is closely bounded.
Another popular tourist attraction close to the town is a breath-taking canyon Manínska tiesňava. Canyon splits Veľký and Malý Manín mountains. It is an internationally sought-after place-to-die for rock climbers. It is also less known as one of the filming sites for The NeverEnding Story (film) in 1984. Just a few kilometers away lies another highly challenging reef formation: Súľovské skaly. To sum it up one of the most famous Slovak spas Rajecké Teplice lies about 20 km from the town, few kilometres closer are the youngest spas in Slovakia in Nimnica. Town has mostly postmodern architecture meaning that most of the pre-20th-century buildings were replaced in the 1960s and 1980s.
...
Wikipedia