Short Trip: Lednica Castle and surroundings

It’s a beautiful sunny Saturday and our family council is in session. We’re deciding where to go today. There’s a lovely castle in Lednica that’s being actively restored by volunteers together with the local community – we’re happy to support their efforts. While we’re there, we can also explore the surroundings of the castle. Great idea. We’re going – come along too! 😊

Total time: 2.5 hours

Distance: 3.7 km

Elevation gain: 214 m

Type of trip: family-friendly hiking

Starting point: parking lot near the municipal office in Lednica


Climb to the Castle and First Impressions

We park our cars in the last available spots at the small parking lot near the municipal office. If there’s no space left, there’s still plenty of room along the road. Above our heads, the historic castle walls rise dramatically from the rock. We’re excited to explore them. Passing by the local pub, we head toward the castle. We stop at Katarínka’s Spring. Next to it is an information board where we can read the legend of the beautiful Katarínka.

We start climbing toward the castle along a grassy path. We pass above the gardens of nearby homes, walking directly beneath the castle cliff. When it’s wet, the path can get slippery, so we need to be careful. We hold hands and hike uphill like a little train. We arrive at the ticket booth, where we have a friendly chat with a helpful gentleman who gives us some basic information. We contribute to the castle’s restoration and look forward to exploring it. There won’t be a guided tour — we’ll discover everything on our own.

As we approach the entrance gate with the iron grille, we notice building materials spread around the area. Restoration work is in full swing. The weather is still nice, and the skilled craftsmen are making good progress. There’s quite a lot of material here, so it seems they still have plenty of plans for further restoration. That’s a good sign. We know everything here is being done under the supervision of experienced professionals.

Defensive Tower

As soon as we enter the defensive tower, we notice lively construction activity. We carefully climb the steps next to the scaffolding. People with limited mobility should be especially cautious here. We reach a tunnel carved into the rock — this must have been an impregnable place back in the day. The rocky tunnel leads us to the castle courtyard.

This part of the middle castle is also undergoing significant restoration work. We explore the underground cellar and the courtyard with remnants of palace structures, already excited for the main attraction. With a sense of respect, we look up at the tall ladder that leads to the upper parts of the castle. There used to be a tower here, from which carved stone steps led to the upper lookout point. The tower and lookout no longer stand, but the staircase carved into the rock remains. Do we dare to climb the ladder?

Of course, we’re going up. However, we recommend this only to those who aren’t afraid of heights and have at least some physical fitness. Part of our hiking group stays below, while the more agile ones scramble up.

Upper Part of the Castle

After successfully climbing the ladder, we are rewarded with beautiful views of the entire village. However, the area is small and crowded with people who want to descend, so we can’t linger here for long. What really draws us in is the castle’s greatest local attraction, unique far and wide — a narrow staircase carved into the rock leading up to the lookout. Without hesitation, we head up.

We slowly climb the steep steps up to the lookout. The passage is so narrow that only one direction of traffic is allowed at a time—either a group is going down, or everyone is going up. The steps can be dangerous in bad weather, so in such conditions, access to the lookout is not allowed. Once at the top, we take in the vast surrounding views. It’s clear they designed this perfectly long ago.

After a while, we head back down. For some, descending can be even more challenging than climbing up. Luckily, the steps are set quite deeply into the rock, and there are sufficiently high railings on the edges. We descend the stairs and are then faced with another thrill — climbing down the ladder.

We conquered the ladder. Once more, we take a good look at the middle part of the castle, then descend completely down through the rocky tunnel and the tower. We leave Lednica Castle feeling very satisfied, carrying a strong impression from the visit. Now we decide where to go next. From the upper lookout, we noticed a rocky viewpoint on a hill behind the village, accessible by a marked green hiking trail. We’re heading there.

The Way Back

We descend from Lednica Castle down to the village and join the green trail. It leads us along the asphalt road through the village, passing between houses. The path ascends as we approach the viewpoint called Lednické Skalky, located in a protected area. We stick to the marked trail and take care to protect nature. After climbing up, we turn off the field path and cross a meadow until we reach the viewpoint. From there, there is a beautiful view of the village and especially the castle.

We enjoy the view and then take a scenic detour along the meadow path back to the village. We’re in no hurry, as the whole way offers beautiful sights. The kids really love it here, and we’re glad we took the time to explore not only the castle but also these rocky formations. We arrive at the village square by the cross, then head to the parking lot and get into the cars. Happy with today’s trip, we drive home.

Before the trip, we didn’t even realize how interesting the village of Lednica is. We’re really glad we came here. We will definitely return to check on the progress of the Lednica castle restoration. The walk was mostly easy, except for the climb up the ladder and stairs. For the kids, though, it was the highlight of the trip. We definitely recommend it. Long live our beautiful castle!

The route of our trip is shown on the map.

You can find more similar trip ideas at visit.trencin.sk/en/kategoria/day-trips-from-trencin/

This was made possible with the support of the Ministry of Transport and Construction of the Slovak Republic.

Logo Oblastne organizácie cestovného ruchu Logo Ministerstva Logo Slovakia travel

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