Holiday apartment in Žakovce: Churches, manor house and cycling routes

Žakovce combines a distinctive landscape setting with an unusually dense concentration of churches and historic buildings. The village lies in a broad valley widening in the southeastern part of the Poprad Basin. Between the stream, sacred buildings and architectural history, a diverse local character emerges, which can be understood both through specific dates and through different architectural forms.

Landscape

The Žakovský potok flows through Žakovce. Its source lies north of the village in the Dufalová Valley. The Žakovský potok flows through Žakovce and rises north of the village in the Dufalová Valley. The broad valley widening in the southeastern Poprad Basin provides the geographical setting for this location.

Culture and architectural history

The historic sacred buildings include the Roman Catholic Chapel of St. John of Nepomuk, Kaplnka sv. Jána Nepomuckého, in Žakovce. It dates from 1775. The Church of St. Nicholas, Kostol sv. Mikuláša, is also located in Žakovce. It contains a stone baptismal font from 1531.

Kostol sv. Mikuláša was built around 1300 as a single-nave early Gothic church with an attached western tower. In the 1740s, it underwent extensive reconstruction in the Baroque style; almost all medieval architectural details were lost in the process. The church is listed in the Register of Immovable National Cultural Monuments under ÚZPF number 1020/1.

Another historic building is an 18th-century late Baroque manor house preserved in Žakovce, originating from the local landowners. The architectural character is complemented by the Chrám Narodenia Presvätej Bohorodičky. It was built in 1793 as a Baroque-Classical tolerance church without a tower and is listed in the Central Register of the Slovak Monument Fund under number 1 019/1. The Chrám Narodenia Presvätej Bohorodičky is in good condition and serves its religious purpose.

The Evangelical church in Žakovce was also built in 1793 as a Baroque-Classical tolerance church without a tower. It is in good condition and serves its religious purpose.

The sacred buildings make different architectural forms and periods visible. Mikuláša, with its early Gothic origins dating to around 1300, reaches further back than the two tolerance churches built in 1793. Its attached western tower contrasts with their towerless design; the late Baroque manor house adds a secular building type to this comparison within the local character of Žakovce.

Cycling connections

Žakovce is also connected to several described cycling routes. The 12-kilometre MTB route from Poprad to Vrbov passes through the village. In addition, the Panoramic Ride through the Tatras runs from Žakovce towards Stráže pod Tatrami along field paths. This route passes through Žakovce between Vrbov and Stráže pod Tatrami. The two route descriptions therefore mention both a specific MTB distance and a connection along field paths and between the villages of Vrbov and Stráže pod Tatrami.

More local pages

For further local selection, the following pages are available: Slovenská Ves, Spišská Belá, Stara Lesna, Lechnica, Spišská Stará Ves, Lendak, Osturna and Kežmarok.

To the higher-level travel overview: Okres Kežmarok.