Chopok South and Horehronie with Kids: Ideas by Age and Weather

How to plan a day with children below Chopok

The advantage of Bystrá is that most destinations for children are within ten minutes by car: Mýto, Tále, Bystrianska Cave and the gondola at Krupová. The Hotel Bystrá water world is across the road. With small children one main programme in the morning is therefore enough, a nap in the apartment after lunch, and water or the garden in the early evening.

A few things that help with planning:

• On Monday the Slovak Caves Administration caves are closed, so go to Bystrianska Cave from Tuesday to Sunday.
• Up on Chopok it is cold and windy even in summer. Take a jacket and hat for everyone, even if the sun is shining in Bystrá.
• Cash is useful at Tarzania (they do not take cards) and on the little train in Čierny Balog.
• At the apartments we provide a baby cot on request for children under 3, at €10 per stay, and you can leave a pushchair or bicycles in the ski room.

With a baby and a toddler

• By gondola up Chopok. From Krupová two cabins run, with a change at Kosodrevina. Children under 6 ride free with a paying adult, at most two per adult. By the upper station the Panoramic Trail starts, with 11 stops and a big swing; entry is free. The terrain on the ridge is stony and you will not get far with a pushchair, so a carrier is better.
• The little train in Čierny Balog. Children under 3 ride free, and a pushchair travels free too. The diesel train to the Vydrovská valley takes 45 minutes there and back, just right for a toddler’s attention. In 2026 it ran until 15 September; more in the article on the Čierny Hron Forest Railway.
• Hotel Bystrá water world. A small children’s pool, and children up to 5 get in free. An adult pays €20 for 2 hours.
• Bystrianska Cave. Children under 4 get in free and the circuit has only 26 steps. It is around 6 °C inside, so warm clothes, and a carrier rather than a pushchair.

Pre-schoolers aged 4 to 6

• First skiing. At both Mýto and Tále the Berg ski school teaches, and individual ski lessons start from age 4. At Mýto there is a children’s ski kindergarten with a magic carpet for complete beginners, and a children’s corner in the restaurant below the slope. Tále has two children’s tows, and you can sledge on the lower part to the left of the children’s tow. Children up to 5 had a ski pass for €3 at Tále in winter 2025/26 if they skied with an adult.
• At Krupová there is the Tatry Motion ski school with the MAXILAND learning area, and in winter 2025/26 an area for the youngest with children’s tows was added. Children under 6 get a Jasná ski pass free with a paying adult. Details in the article Chopok South ski passes.
• The children’s route at Tarzania. For children under 150 cm the rope park has a children’s route low above the ground, and a parent can help from the ground. It costs €8 and is open from May to September; more in the article on Tarzania in Tále.
• Family attractions at Mýto. In summer there was an inflatable obstacle course, a bouncy hill and a large trampoline, and in the bike park three children’s trails. The 2026 season began on 6 June and has already ended.

School children aged 6 to 12

• Tarzania in full. From a height of 150 cm children can take the blue (180 m, €12) or red route (292 m, €16), 5 to 7 m above the ground.
• The Cave of Dead Bats in the Ďumbier karst is only for children from age 8. It is about 90 minutes on foot to the entrance, and the tour on rock paths with rope protection takes about an hour and 20 minutes. You must book every tour by phone in advance. It is open from March to December, outside July and August at weekends only.
• Golf to try. In Tále in 2026 there was a golf training session for children from age 6 every Sunday from 10:00 to 11:00, for €10 including equipment hire. More in the article Golf in Tále.
• A hike with a chalet. By gondola to Kosodrevina, on foot along the blue trail to M. R. Štefánik Chalet and from there down the green trail to Trangoška. Jasná gives 9 km and 2 hours 40 minutes, and the way to the chalet is gently uphill.
• Snowboarding is taught at the Berg ski school from age 7, and group lessons start at the same age.

Teenagers

Older children will enjoy an all-day hike on Ďumbier from Trangoška, the highest peak of the Low Tatras. It is about 3 hours 20 minutes up with over 900 m of ascent, so only with good fitness and a good forecast. If they are over 12, they can hire a mountain cart at Kosodrevina and ride all the way down to Krupová. In winter you can cross Chopok from Srdiečko and Krupová to the north side and return by gondola.

When it rains or blows

• Hotel Bystrá water world is across the road. Capacity is limited, and the hotel recommends announcing your visit in advance at the wellness reception. Children under 14 may enter the sauna world only until 15:00; more in the article on the Hotel Bystrá water world.
• Bystrianska Cave is a short way from the apartments. Outside summer tours run at 9:30, 11:00, 12:30 and 14:00, and every hour from June to August. It cannot be booked, and a tour runs with at least 4 people.
• Caracalla Spa in Brusno has a children’s pool for children under 6, an indoor playground and a wild river. Children under 6 get in free, and only people from 15 may enter the sauna world.
• Banská Bystrica for a whole day: the Thurzo-Fugger experience exhibition with virtual reality, the astronomical clock on the Barbican and the Li-2 aircraft by the SNP Memorial. The plan is in the article Banská Bystrica in one day.

In winter with children

Jasná opens the 2026/27 winter season on the weekend of 27 and 28 November 2026. The resort will announce when skiing starts on the south side on jasna.sk. Mýto plans to open on 19 December 2026, and Ski Tále, according to the resort, tries to open after Christmas. With children who are still learning, start in Mýto or Tále. They are closer, smaller and quieter. Go to Krupová when your child can manage a tow.

After skiing you leave skis and ski boots in the ski room in the house, and wet things dry in the room, each of which has its own thermostat.

What to combine it with

If you want to put everything together into days, see the Chopok South itinerary for a weekend, 5 or 7 days. Bosorka Apartments have two separate bedrooms and a kitchen, so they work well even with small children; more on the Apartments page.