Herľany Geyser

The Herľany geyser is not natural in origin: a borehole sunk between 1870 and 1875 in search of mineral water struck a system of carbon dioxide charged water, and it has been erupting ever since, throwing cold water some fifteen to twenty metres for around twenty minutes at intervals of roughly thirty-two to thirty-six hours. It is one of very few cold-water geysers in the world and the eruption times are published so visitors can time a trip.

What you actually see

• The eruption - cold water thrown fifteen to twenty metres for about twenty minutes.
• The interval - a cycle of roughly a day and a half, published in advance.
• The borehole origin - a geyser created by nineteenth-century drilling.
• The spa park - the grounds of the former spa around the geyser.

When to go

Year round; the whole visit depends on catching an eruption, and times are published by the local authority. Turning up without checking usually means seeing nothing. Winter eruptions in cold air are the most dramatic.

Honest expectations

Without checking the published schedule there is nothing to see; the geyser is inactive for over thirty hours between eruptions. The interval drifts and predictions are approximate. There is nothing else at the site.

Nearby

Kosice is west, and Jasovska cave is southwest.