The castle was founded in 1209, wrecked by the Tatars in the 13th century and reconstructed in the 15th century. Although the castle burnt down in 1780, the ruins and the site are spectacular. The highest enclosure contains a round Gothic tower, a cistern, a chapel and a rectangular Romanesque palace perched over the abyss. Instruments of torture are exhibited in the dungeon. Off the Beaten Path Trencianske Teplice Trencianske Teplice is a spa town in West Slovakia.
Hiking trails lead into the green hills flanking the resort.
Those with a taste for the exotic should also visit the hammam , a Turkish bathhouse in the middle of town. The river here forms the international boundary between the two countries and the 500m limestone cliffs are impressive. At the mouth of the gorge is a 14th-century fortified Carthusian Monastery , now a park administrative centre and museum. There's a pleasant riverside hike through the gorge and from June to mid-September raft trips depart from a landing near the monastery. It's not possible to cross to Poland here.