Poloniny National Park

Poloniny occupies the corner where Slovakia meets Poland and Ukraine, and it protects some of the least disturbed beech forest in Europe: the Stužica, Havešová and Rožok stands within the park are components of the Ancient and Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians and Other Regions of Europe, a World Heritage property spread across eighteen countries. The park is also a designated dark-sky park, one of the few in Central Europe.

What you actually see

• The primeval beech - old-growth stands that have never been logged.
• The dark sky - one of Central Europe's few designated dark-sky parks.
• The wooden churches - Rusyn timber churches in the villages around the park.
• The wildlife - bison reintroduced nearby, along with bear, wolf and lynx.

When to go

May to October is the walking season, with beech colour in October the best of the year. Winter closes many forest roads. Clear autumn nights are the best for the sky.

Honest expectations

The core forest zones are strictly protected and largely closed to visitors; what is walkable is the buffer. The region is remote with limited accommodation. Roads in are slow.

Nearby

Snina is southwest, and the Polish and Ukrainian borders are north and east.